MOBILE, Ala. — Barnes & Noble is back in Mobile. The national bookseller opened its new store in the McGregor Square shopping center at 3930-B Airport Blvd. on Wednesday, Sept. 23, ending a 16-year absence from the city that began when its Springdale Mall store closed in 2010.
The opening comes with a lineup of family activities and local author appearances that continue through the first weekend, giving readers several chances to meet writers with deep Gulf Coast roots.
Ribbon-Cutting With Watt Key
Mobile author Watt Key helped mark the occasion, cutting the ribbon at the grand opening celebration and signing copies of his novel “Beast.” The new store covers more than 20,000 square feet and carries books, games and gifts, along with a cafe.
Key said the enthusiasm on opening day surprised him.
“Yeah, it’s really exciting for me, because honestly, it’s been so long since we’ve had this kind of energy around a big box bookstore,” Key said. “But seeing what I’ve seen today, there’s obviously still a lot of excitement and a lot of need for a Barnes & Noble and just another big bookstore that encourages people to read and get out. And it’s such a pleasant environment just to come walk around.”
Opening Day Activities
The store planned a celebration for its first day. Arthur, the aardvark from the long-running children’s books and PBS animated series, was scheduled to make an appearance, along with face-painting for children.
Arthur first appeared in author and illustrator Marc Brown’s picture book “Arthur’s Nose” in 1976, and the character went on to star in one of the longest-running children’s animated series in American television history. Generations of young readers have grown up with Arthur and his friends, making him a natural fit for a bookstore’s family-friendly debut.
Two local authors were also scheduled to appear on opening day: Mobile novelist Watt Key and historian Paul Brueske.
Author Appearances Through the Weekend
The author events continue after opening day. The store’s announced schedule includes:
- Wednesday, Sept. 23: Opening at 10 a.m. with Watt Key and Paul Brueske, a visit from Arthur and face-painting for kids.
- Thursday, Sept. 24, 5 p.m.: David Preston.
- Saturday, Sept. 26, 10 a.m.: Paula Lenor Webb.
- Saturday, Sept. 26, 1 p.m.: Leslie Anne Tarabella.
- Saturday, Sept. 26, 3 p.m.: Joe Cuhaj.
The opening-weekend perks go beyond author visits. Barnes & Noble Rewards members can earn double stamps on purchases through Sunday, Sept. 27, and the store’s costumed Arthur character is hosting storytime events for children over the weekend.
Readers planning to attend may want to check with the store ahead of time for details on book signings, storytime times and any changes to the schedule.
Meet the Authors
Watt Key
Watt Key is one of the best-known writers living in Mobile. His debut novel, “Alabama Moon,” published in 2006, follows a boy raised in the wilderness of south Alabama. It won the E.B. White Read-Aloud Award and was adapted into a 2009 film starring John Goodman. Key has since written a string of young adult adventure novels, including “Dirt Road Home,” “Fourmile,” “Terror at Bottle Creek,” “Hideout,” “Deep Water” and “Bay Boy,” many of them set in the swamps, rivers and backwoods of the region. He holds an MBA from Spring Hill College in Mobile.
Paul Brueske
Paul Brueske is a Gulf Coast native and Civil War historian. He is the author of “The Last Siege: The Mobile Campaign, Alabama 1865,” a history of the Union campaign against Mobile in the final weeks of the war. Brueske founded the Mobile Civil War Round Table and is also the head track and field coach at the University of South Alabama.
Paula Lenor Webb
Paula Lenor Webb is a librarian at the University of South Alabama and a Mobile author. Her books include “Such a Woman: The Life of Madame Octavia Walton LeVert,” a biography of the 19th-century Mobile society figure and writer, and the mystery “Mississippi Mojo… And Murder,” written with Mary S. Palmer.
Leslie Anne Tarabella
Leslie Anne Tarabella is an Alabama writer and columnist known for humorous essays about Southern life. Her books include “We Don’t Push in Fairhope: Stories from the Changing South.”
Joe Cuhaj
Joe Cuhaj is a longtime outdoors writer whose guidebooks have helped hikers explore the state for years. His titles include “Hiking Alabama” and “Hiking Through History Alabama.”
David Preston
David Preston rounds out the week’s schedule with a Thursday evening appearance at 5 p.m.
A Long Gap for Mobile Readers
Barnes & Noble first came to south Alabama in the spring of 1994, when it opened a store at Springdale Mall on Airport Boulevard. That location closed in 2010 after lease negotiations fell through.
Springdale, which opened in 1959 as one of Mobile’s first major shopping centers, has since been largely converted back into an open-air center anchored by big-box retailers.
After the Springdale store closed, the chain’s only coastal Alabama location was at the Eastern Shore Centre in Spanish Fort, across Mobile Bay in Baldwin County. That store remains open, so the region now has two Barnes & Noble locations, one on each side of the bay.
For more than 15 years, Mobile-side shoppers looking for the chain had to cross the Bayway or the Causeway to reach Spanish Fort, shop online or rely on other booksellers in town.
Where to Find It
McGregor Square sits at 3930 Airport Blvd., near the intersection with McGregor Avenue in west-central Mobile. Airport Boulevard is one of the city’s primary commercial corridors, and the new store sits just a short drive west of the old Springdale site.
The bookstore occupies the McGregor Square space formerly home to DSW, the shoe retailer. The company noted that the new location is just over a mile from its old Springdale Mall store.
According to the company’s store listing, the Mobile location includes a cafe, a toys and games section and vinyl records in addition to books. Like other Barnes & Noble stores, it plans to host author signings, readings, storytimes and other events.
A Changing Bookstore Chain
The Mobile opening fits a broader trend for Barnes & Noble. After years of closing stores, the company has shifted in recent years toward opening new locations across the country, often in smaller formats with more locally curated selections chosen by individual store managers.
The company tied the Mobile store directly to that approach.
“The design of the Mobile store showcases the ambition of Barnes & Noble to create exceptional local bookstores that marry the best traditions of independent bookselling with the resources of the historic chain,” the company said.
Barnes & Noble said it is in a period of strong growth because its strategy of handing control of each store to its local booksellers has worked. The company said existing stores are posting strong sales and that it has been opening many new locations after more than 15 years of shrinking store counts.
For Mobile, the return adds another option to a local book scene that also includes independent sellers and the Mobile Public Library system.
If You Go
- What: Barnes & Noble grand opening
- Where: McGregor Square, 3930-B Airport Blvd., Mobile
- When: Opened Wednesday, Sept. 23
- Size: More than 20,000 square feet, with books, games, gifts and a cafe
- Opening day: Arthur, face-painting for kids, authors Watt Key and Paul Brueske
- Opening weekend: Double stamps for Rewards members through Sunday, Sept. 27, and storytime with Arthur
- More authors: David Preston (5 p.m. Thursday); Paula Lenor Webb (10 a.m. Saturday); Leslie Anne Tarabella (1 p.m. Saturday); Joe Cuhaj (3 p.m. Saturday)
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