The forthcoming Barnes & Noble Booksellers at 901 Old York Road in the Jenkintown section of Abington Township has sparked a lively debate among area residents.

In July, Noble Town Center announced that it signed leases with eight big-box tenants, among them Barnes & Noble Booksellers.

A community member’s Sunday post to the Jenkintown Community Page has garnered 167 comments at the time of this writing. The post leads with “Jenkintown doesn’t need a Barnes & Noble” and notes that the mega-retailer may harm the business of nearby Capricorn Books.

Capricorn Books launched in 2022 at 605 West Avenue and is described in the post as “an essential part of the Jenkintown community and the literary community of Greater Philadelphia.” Since its opening, the store has become involved with the Philly Bookstore Crawl, the Hiway Theater, and local author book signings, among other endeavors.

The poster, who says she is a former graduate student at Arcadia University and a former Barnes & Noble Willow Grove employee, writes that the Noble Town Center location will be “a small store to give the illusion of abundance” and have “no cafe, no place to sit” to decrease loitering.

“Just keep in mind, once BN Jenkintown is open, that if you want a book on sale you go to Barnes and Noble, but if you want an experience, you go to Capricorn Books,” the post concludes.

The thread’s comments include:

Capricorn Books is the epitome of what small town/small business represents. Jenkintown is at its heart a small, know your neighbors, know the business owners town. I wouldn’t have it any other way. These businesses support our local initiatives in ways the bigger competitors never would (even though they could financially). We will continue to champion Capricorn and every other treasure here in the Jenkintown Borough. #shopsmall

As long as they paid their employees, a living wage with benefits, I see this as a positive thing for the neighborhood. A lot of places got sunk by this devastating ongoing pandemic, so it will be nice to see something actually in where there’s a large vacant store currently. I do not believe that this will affect business at Capricorn books. I am definitely not defending national retailers or big box stores. It just is a good sign while so many other places have more and more empty storefronts.

I go to the library or Capricorn books every time. Capricorn books is a gem for this community. They can pre-order any book that you want. There is also an independent book shop called Open Book Bookstore on high school road in elkins park. Also a gem for the community. Please support local and do not go to Barnes and Noble!!

I love Capricorn and everything it represents, but I respectfully disagree. First off, they’re not both in the borough. They’re not even walking distance from each other. Second, they’re catering to different clientele, or if you want semantics, the same clientele who might have different needs at various times.

For instance, if I’m going to a birthday and the child has requested a book that’s not available same day at Capricorn, I’m not going to order it. I’m going to go to Target and pick it up on the way to the party. And unless this child lives in jenkintown boro, I’m not going to get a gift card to Capricorn because it’s not their local bookstore. If I see a title I’d enjoy, I would absolutely go into Capricorn and pick it up or order it.

It’s a hyper local bookstore you visit when you are in the immediate area. I liken it to Open bookstore/Open bookshop (unsure of the name) in Elkins park. I’ve heard wonderful things about it, but I don’t live there and I have no idea where it’s located, have never sought it out and probably won’t unless I’m with a friend who lives there and wanted to go.

Small businesses and big box bookstores can coexist and I say this as someone who owns a small business and has worked for corporate giants as well. I do agree that you go to one for practicality and efficiency and the other for a personalized experience.

A comment also notes that a Barnes & Noble Booksellers previously existed at 835 Old York Road until it closed in 2012.

Glenside Local reached out last week to Lisa Vassallo, Paramount Realty’s Director of Marketing, for a rough timeline regarding the store’s opening. We will be in touch when we hear back.

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