National City, Calif. April 28, 2008 — Borders will celebrate the grand opening of its newest concept store beginning Friday, May 9, through Sunday, May 11, at its new store in National City, Calif., located at the intersection of Sweetwater Road and Plaza Bonita Road in the Westfield Plaza Bonita mall. The 23,214-square-foot concept store represents a significant enhancement over existing Borders stores inside and out and fulfills the company’s mission to be a headquarters for knowledge and entertainment.
Throughout the weekend-long celebration, Borders will be highlighting its newly created Destinations within the new Borders concept store—Cooking, Travel, Wellness, Graphic Novels and Children’s— with special activities, in-store performances and prizes. These categories are so popular and rapidly growing that Borders has designated them as special Destinations and given these categories their own “shop within a shop” look and feel.
During the grand opening and all year-long, customers can explore the Digital Center – marked by a three-dimensional, 12-foot fixture with multiple computer kiosks and stations dedicated to digital services – and do everything from download music on demand using Mix and Burn™; trace their family roots via Borders’ exclusive “Discover Your Family History” by Ancestry.com®; create personalized photo books with Shutterfly.com; and publish their own books using “Borders Personal Publishing Powered by Lulu.com®.”
Borders will give away such prizes as Borders digital services certificates, a collection of cookbooks, Seattle’s Best Coffee mugs and six Nickelodeon Cuddle Pillows® for the kids. In addition, customers can enter to win one of two $250 Borders gift cards or a $200 Paperchase gift bag filled with stationery, cards and gifts from the new store.
All weekend: The Nickelodeon prizes will be given away on Saturday and all other winners will be drawn on Sunday, May 11 at approximately 2:30 p.m.
· Enter to win a “Go Digital!” gift package - includes select Borders digital services certificates for five lucky winners.
· Enter to win one of two $250 Borders gift cards.
· Enter to win a Paperchase $200 gift bag filled with stationery, cards and gifts.
· Enter to win a Seattle’s Best Coffee $200 gift basket.
· Enter to win a $300 collection of current cookbooks.
· Enter to win a $230 collection of current wellness books
· Enter to win a copy of Neil Gaiman’s “The Absolute Sandman Vol. 1”
· Sunday morning, six lucky children will win Nickelodeon Dora and Diego Cuddle Pillows®.
· 2 p.m. Ballet Folklorico Tapatio de San Diego. Members of the troupe share the history of Mexico through the art of traditional regional dance.
· 3 p.m. Danny’s Dinosaur Storytime. Kids can join in a reading adventure and meet Danny’s Dinosaur. Bring your camera and have your picture taken with Danny’s Dinosaur.
· 5 p.m. San Diego-based travel writers David Rottenberg and Howard Hain tell how you can save money while having a great vacation without traveling far. They’ll also recommend the best travel guides for the area.
· 5:30 p.m. Satisfy your sweet tooth with free chocolate and confection samples.
· 7 p.m. Col. Oliver North signs “American Heroes.” The “New York Times” best-selling author discusses the heroism of those fighting against radical Islam. North addresses issues of defense against global terrorism, Jihad, and radical Islam from his firsthand perspective as a decorated military officer, national security advisor and Middle East war correspondent.
· 8 p.m. Enjoy the classical guitar sounds of Aaron Spoor in Seattle’s Best Cafe.
· 10 a.m. Storyteller Steven Gregory and musician Reiko Obata bring to life Japanese, African, African-American and Latin American folktales using authentic ethnic instruments such as the Japanese koto (13-string zither), African drums, shakers and other instruments. Join the discussion and singing as you broaden your understanding of other cultures.
· 11 a.m. Hear stories in Spanish and English with storytellers Panchita Acevedo and Patti Christensen.
· 12 p.m. Fabulous face painter Betty Lovegren adorns kids’ faces for free.
· 12 p.m. –. Ingrid Croce, widow of the late singer Jim Croce and restaurateur, discusses and signs “The San Diego Restaurant Cookbook,” “Thyme in a Bottle, an Autobiographical Cookbook” and “Time in a Bottle: A Photographic Memoir of Jim Croce.”
· 1 p.m. Satisfy your sweet tooth with free chocolate and confection samples.
· 1 p.m. – Gil Sperry discusses and signs his book, “Mariachi for Gringos.” Sperry tells how you can achieve a greater appreciation for Mariachi music.
· 2 p.m. Put some of your newfound Mariachi knowledge to use as San Diego’s premier Mariachi band, Mariachi Real de San Diego, performs. They’ll include songs discussed by Sperry and sign copies of their CD, “Ultimate Mariachi.”
· 4 p.m. Erin Manning, the professional photographer and author of “Portrait and Candid Photography,” gives tips on taking great pictures with your digital camera.
· 7 p.m. – Karen Halligan, DVM and head of Animal Services for the Los Angeles Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and author of “Doc Halligan’s What Every Pet Owner Should Know,” discusses pet care and demonstrates pet CPR. Please do not bring your pet to the store.
· 8 p.m. – KEV, a solo artist, inspires audiences with his acoustic guitar playing in Seattle’s Best Cafe.
· 12:30 p.m. – Meet Dora the Explorer during this Nickelodeon Storytime followed by Nickelodeon games.
· 1 p.m. Tai Chi Master Henry Cheng demonstrates Tai Chi, the ancient Chinese art of moving meditation, and tells of its health benefits.
· 3 p.m. Caitlin Rother, a former “San Diego Union Tribune” reporter, is the author of “Twisted Triangle,” which tells the true story of a love triangle involving two married FBI agents and a best-selling author that leads to kidnapping and attempted murder.
· 3 p.m. Fabulous face painter Betty Lovegren adorns kids’ faces for free.
· 4 p.m. –Hear a variety of musical styles played with the mandolin including Swing, Latin, Tango and traditional/popular melodies from around the world performed by 2nd String Mandolins.
· 4:30 p.m. Haunani Chong, certified Yoga trainer, discusses the health benefits of Yoga and demonstrates Yoga techniques.
· 7 p.m. Listen to the acoustic folk/pop music of Dawn Mitschele as she serenades you with her remarkable vocals and soothing melodies.
Throughout the grand opening weekend and all year long, the new Borders concept store will offer customers in National City, Calif., and the rest of the San Diego area, community benefit days, educational discounts, diverse events, great selection, special features and a wonderful place to simply explore. Borders is dedicated to enhancing the lives of customers through knowledge and entertainment.
Borders is a subsidiary of Borders Group, Inc., a $3.8 billion global retailer of books, music, movies, periodicals and gift and stationery items with over 30,000 employees and more than 1,100 stores worldwide primarily operating under the Borders® and Waldenbooks® brand names. Currently, there are
over 500 Borders superstores in the U.S. that carry up to 200,000 titles. Customers enjoy a comfortable shopping experience, as well as a host of in-store events and community-centered activities when they visit their local Borders stores. For more information, visit www.bordersgroupinc.com.