Barnes & Noble opens new store at West Park location

James DeCourley noticed that the new Barnes & Noble that opened Tuesday night has a lot of facets -- it is equal parts bookstore, classroom and coffeehouse, and now offers movies and music.

But for the Cape Girardeau father of 2-year-old Haley Nicole, it's also a fun house.

"We really like the children's department," he said as he perused the store, holding his young daughter in his arms. "It has a stage, which they're going to use for story time and putting on plays for the kids."

The new Barnes & Noble in Cape Girardeau -- which offered a sneak peek to customers Tuesday before officially opening today -- largely garnered kudos from customers who showed up in droves to catch a glance.

"It's a definite improvement from the old one," said James Crowell of Cape Girardeau. "It's a lot bigger and I like that it's in the mall. I think that's more conveniently located."

Earlier this year, Barnes & Noble announced it would vacate its location on William Street to move a few hundred yards to the nearby West Park Mall. The new location is 9,000 square feet bigger and includes movies and music, something the old location lacked. The old store closed at 5 p.m., an hour before the new one opened.

When the store opened at 6 p.m., a crowd of more than 100 gathered outside waiting to be among the first to see what the new store was like. Shortly after, children gathered around for story time and customers milled through the stacks as snacks were handed out. Local author David Limbaugh also was on-hand to sign copies of his new book.

Jill LeGrand, community relations manager for the store, said 1,500 invitations were mailed and 900 e-mail invitations were sent for Tuesday night's event. She was hopeful that more than 500 would turn out, but worried that the St. Louis Cardinals World Series game would keep some at home.

LeGrand touted that the new store held 200,000 books and an enormous selection of music and movies. Mall manager Paul Dobbins said the new Barnes & Noble adds another dimension to the mall, which recently has seen new stores like Old Navy, Steve & Barry's and Macy's. The mall has been without a bookstore since Waldenbooks closed last year, citing the fact that B&N was coming.

When Barnes & Noble announced it was moving into the mall, some worried the mall wasn't the best fit for the bookstore. But new store manager Daniel Seiler said he doesn't believe that will be a factor.

"Barnes & Noble is Barnes & Noble," he said. "It doesn't matter where the actual store is. It's where they want to be. We think it's something they'll like.'

smoyers@semissourian.com

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