Terrific new Chestnut Street location replaces the Rittenhouse Square store. It is bright, airy, and very well laid out with clearly marked sections. Second floor has the most sections and there are escalators to get there. Its great to see actual human beings once again browsing books and buying. There is a super kids section and a few easy chairs scattered about to sit down and decide on a book purchase.
THEY WILL RACIALLY PROFILE YOU. I went to the store with my bf and we were followed the entire time by security guards. One security guard in particular, with blonde and black braids, followed us the entire time and this was our first time in the new store. I’m extremely disappointed by this blatant harassment. We walked to different places in the store to make sure we weren’t crazy. She followed us everywhere…even downstairs. She followed another girl as well. Once the girl said, “I don’t need help,” the guard had an attitude like the girl shouldn’t be agitated by someone following her This is disgusting. Do not shop here.
I went to the new location for the first time to look specifically at art books. The art section is small and about 1/3 of the books are shrink wrapped. I was told that these books can''t be opened and they have no open copies. Pretty hard to shop for books that you can't look at. The other issue that I had was they have closed off the elevators - you have to ask for access, which is a disservice to anyone who can't or doesn't want to take the escalator.
I am so happy they opened this place. Shopping for books online is fine, but nothing beats going into a book store and stumbling into an unexpected find. Also, getting support and recommendations by a fave to face person is awesome. Support this place! It even has board games and similar to buy. This is their first day and they had a book signing, Eagles cheerleaders, etc. Very fun and upbeat atmosphere
Beautiful new store! Visited on opening day to see the store and meet Emily Hampshire for a book signing. All of the staff are as friendly as they always were, and the store is gorgeous. So well laid out and bright and beautiful. I'm excited to continue stopping by! I am very much hoping to escalators work at this location way better, but a worker told me they don't, haha. I do agree that not having a public restroom makes it tough to shop here for very long, but will just aim to do very short trips here. There's nothing that they can really change about that since the space is leased.
The new store is absolutely fabulous! I enjoy the new design of the store and the ambiance when you walk in is incredibly warm and friendly. The employees are very helpful; their customer service skills are higher than subpar. It is the only store I will ever go to for literary purchases because the staff are always on point and the inventory of books is constantly bountiful and fruitful. I know many people complain about the absence of a bathroom, but it is not missed by people who actually go to the store just to shop. There are many stores surrounding Barnes and Noble that have public restrooms and even offer amazing food and a sitting for people to enjoy their purchases. It is amazing store that deserves over a thousand stars!
The smell as soon as you step into the store been wanting to go to barnes&noble for a while and finally went it was so fun. They had kpop albums lowkey overpriced tho a lot of broad games, legos to build, vinyls, coloring books in the romance section, a few mugs, and bookmarks and obviously a lot of books manga, manhua, and I think they have Manhwa too not sure tho They also had like ‘301 things to draw’ which it looked really fun so probably the next time I go there I’m gonna buy it It’s like an 10-20 minutes from city hall
The old one at Rittenhouse was way better. No more cafe, no more bargain tables with fun random eclectic stuff. Games section worth much less variety and the books are squished into smaller space. Lost its appeal for us. Went twice and couldn't recapture the joy.
An amazing place to get a good read, the street is always busy with countless shops near the store. But the stores interior is welcoming and surprisingly sound proof to the exterior The building is a lot bigger on the inside and there is always something new due to the great team updating the selection.
At first I thought I was being dramatic or overthinking but after seeing other reviews about the security, I knew something was off. The lady followed me everywhere to the point I felt uncomfortable and it became awkward, we even made eye contact multiple times. I came back again the second day and the same security guard was following me even though she saw I made a purchase! I was there for hours on both days from 3-8pm and spend time on both floors. Only when I went to the second floor did she go up and stay there for hours until I went back down again. I give 3 stars because the store is amazing and the other staff were very helpful and kind. It was just the horrible security that makes me feel like a criminal when all I wanted to do was enjoy some books. It really made me upset.
