Denver’s Tattered Cover may no longer be an independent bookstore soon.
Barnes & Noble, one of the country’s largest booksellers, plans to buy Tattered Cover for more than $1.8 million, according to court filings Monday.
Once the sale closes, it will be the end of its indie bookstore era, though the Denver institution will still keep its name, according to the deal. Barnes & Noble is expected to keep all of Tattered Cover’s locations open.
Tattered Cover has locations in Aurora, Littleton, Denver’s Union Station and Colfax Avenue. It also licenses its name to shops at Denver International Airport.
Barnes and Noble did not immediately respond for comment.
How the deal came about
The big-box retailer, which has been bucking trends against declining brick and mortars and is expanding nationwide, seeks to bring the Denver-based indie bookstore out of bankruptcy. About $1.6 million of the purchase price will be used to pay off Tattered Cover’s debts.
Tattered Cover had at least eight interested parties in a confidential bidding process, and Barnes & Noble put in the highest offer, the Denver Gazette reported Thursday.