Borders Group Inc. has launched its own ecommerce site after a year and a half of development and testing.
The new site will allow customers to shop online and will also be available on in-store kiosks for people to use while they shop.
“By creatively combining the assets of our new online channel with the many advantages of our stores and vice versa, we’re giving customers an elevated experience that we believe they’ll find more satisfying than anything else in bookselling today,” Borders CEO George Jones told the Free Press.
One of the new features at Borders.com is the Magic shelf. Borders says it gives customers the feeling of shopping in one of its stores. Customers can browse the virtual bookshelf and click on a title to get more information along with the option to make a purchase. Users can customize the shelf and it can display 20 shelves of titles.
“We wanted a real bookstore online,” said Kevin Ertell, senior vice president for e-business at Borders. “What we did to capture that bookstore feel was putting the Magic Shelf on the sign-in page.”
Borders said last year it would end its relationship with Amazon.com, which had been operating Border’s ecommerce transactions since 2001.
For the first time, 26 million Borders Rewards members will be able to redeem coupons and other incentives online.
The site will offer more than an online shopping experience, Jones said. “It is a source of information and entertainment that brings a real bookstore experience to life online,” he said.
