Barnes & Noble Is Selling More Toys Than Ever

Books, Nooks, music and… toys?

Barnes & Noble, struggling to compensate for slow book sales at its brick-and-mortar stores, is delving deeper into sales of games, dolls and Legos in order to draw customers at its more than 650 locations. The company’s toys and games businesses grew at a rate of 19.5% in the most recent quarter ending in August, according to Barnes & Noble’s earnings call on Tuesday, as competitors like Toys “R” Us have reduced locations and KB Toys has closed up entirely.

“People now understand after the last two holidays that we’re in that business, and we’re in it in a big way,” Mitchell Klipper head of the New York-based company’s retail group, told Bloomberg. “And we have stuff you can’t find in other retailers.”

Klipper told Bloomberg that the toys and games make the retailer a place for companies to spend time and linger in the story.

Barnes & Noble’s Nook sales have failed to pose a real threat to Amazon’s much more popular Kindle, and the company plans to spin off the unprofitable division.