It’s official — Naperville is days away from welcoming Barnes & Noble back to town after the retailer left its longtime downtown brick-and-mortar location early last year.
Wednesday marks the grand opening of the book store’s new Naperville location at 9 W. Jackson Ave. The occasion will be celebrated with the help of local best-selling author Mary Kubica, the company said in a news release.
“We’re very happy to return to Naperville, where for 25 years we were a community staple,” CEO of Barnes & Noble James Daunt said in the release. “Our longtime booksellers are as eager to be back in town as they are to welcome customers into their brand-new Naperville Barnes & Noble.”
The new store is located in a former Pottery Barn that closed in 2022.
Next week’s launch will commence at 9 a.m. with a ribbon-cutting by Kubica, the Plainfield-based author of “The Good Girl” and “Local Woman Missing,” among other titles. After doors open, Kubica will be signing copies of her latest release “She’s Not Sorry,” according to Barnes & Noble.
For years, the company — the country’s largest book retailer — had a location at 47 E. Chicago Ave. But in early January 2024, the location closed when its lease expired.
The 47 E. Chicago Ave. space is now slated to house locations for Fidelity Brokerage Services and Wells Fargo.
Including Naperville, the company has four new bookstores opening across the country this month. The other locations are in Florida, Nebraska and New York.
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“I feel privileged to be part of the team that brings Barnes & Noble back to Naperville,” store manager John Crum, a Barnes & Noble bookseller for 20 years, said in the release. “It’s an honor to serve our community this way.”
The 9 W. Jackson Ave. store will be on two levels, offering about 12,000 square feet for books, toys, games and other items customers expect, Barnes & Noble’s vice president of store planning and design Janine Flanigan said late last year.
Its return is the latest in downtown Naperville’s comings and goings.
Last fall, AltaVida closed at 16 W. Jefferson Ave. while a Jimmy John’s sandwich shop previously located at 19 W. Jefferson Ave. relocated a few blocks north to space at Ogden Avenue and Washington Street.
In December, Bev’s closed at 245 S. Washington St. but its location owner, Empire Restaurant group, plans to launch a new concept in the same property.
This summer Pronto Italian Sandwiches will open a new location at 221 S. Washington St., which formerly housed BD’s Mongolian Grill.
Warmer months will also bring The White Sheep to downtown Naperville, an Orland Park breakfast and brunch spot set to open a second location at 22 E. Chicago Ave. in Naperville’s River District by July.