As Sales Fall, Borders Shakes Up Management

Troubled bookstore chain the Borders Group announced a management shake-up on Monday while disclosing that holiday sales had plunged more than 11%. The company replaced chief executive George L. Jones with Ron Marshall, a former principal at a private equity firm and also appointed a new chief financial officer. Only a few hours after the news, Marshall was making calls to New York publishers to reassure them that the retailer is still viable as the store has recently been selling assets, slashing costs and laying off employees in an effort to reduce debt to avoid filing for Chapter 11, reports the Wall St. Journal. Book publishers and retailers are being forced to change the way they do business as readers buy more books online or switch to digital e-books.