Barnes & Noble is staging one of retail’s most surprising comebacks. The century-old bookseller, once written off as another casualty of Amazon’s dominance, is now planning a major store expansion while its owner explores a potential multibillion-dollar IPO.
The turnaround has turned a legacy bookstore chain into one of the more unexpected public market candidates of the year.
From Near Collapse to Comeback Story
By the late 2010s, Barnes & Noble looked like it had lost the war. The company shed more than $1 billion in market value in the five years leading up to 2019, while Amazon captured roughly half of the US bookselling market. In fiscal 2018 alone, Barnes & Noble posted a $125.5 million loss on $3.7 billion in revenue across about 600 stores.
Everything changed when hedge fund Elliott Management bought the chain for $683 million in 2019. Under new leadership, Barnes & Noble shifted back toward a more independent bookstore feel, cutting back on non-book merchandise like toys and giving store managers more control over what they stock. The company also absorbed two other independent booksellers along the way.
BookTok and Foot Traffic Fuel the Revival
The strategy appears to be working. Data from Placer.ai shows store visits surged, with December foot traffic hitting 22 million, up 15% compared with the same month in 2017. Social media trends like BookTok have also helped reignite interest in physical books and in-store browsing, driving a new generation into brick-and-mortar shops.
Now Barnes & Noble is leaning into the momentum. The company plans to open 60 new stores in 2026, marking a major expansion push. At the same time, Elliott Management is reportedly exploring a potential IPO that could bundle Barnes & Noble with UK bookseller Waterstones, setting the stage for one of the most unexpected public offerings in recent memory.