Barnes & Noble College

Leonard Riggio, chairman of Barnes & Noble, Inc., established the Student Book Exchange (SBX) in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village in 1965, after beginning his bookselling career as a student clerk at the New York University bookstore. SBX quickly became one of New York’s finest bookstores, known for its knowledgeable staff, wide selection and great service.

By the 1970s, Mr. Riggio’s business, which had grown to include six other college bookstores, acquired the flagship Barnes & Noble trade name and flagship bookstore in Manhattan. Within a few years, Mr. Riggio transformed the Fifth Avenue store into “The World’s Largest Bookstore,” with 150,000 textbook and trade titles.

Through the 1980s, Barnes & Noble experimented with different store formats and sizes, seeking to develop a suburban superstore version of the original Barnes & Noble store. In 1987, the company made its largest acquisition when it purchased B. Dalton Bookseller from Dayton Hudson. This acquisition of 797 retail bookstores thrust the company onto the national scene, making Barnes & Noble a nationwide retailer overnight and the second-largest bookseller in America.

In 2015, Barnes & Noble completed the separation of its Retail and College businesses. Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. became an independent, publicly traded company and parent of Barnes & Noble College, focused on the broader educational services market. Michael Huseby, former Chief Executive Officer of Barnes & Noble, Inc., was named Executive Chairman of Barnes & Noble Education.

This rich legacy of retail expertise, coupled with a deep understanding cultivated from serving more than 700 college and university campuses through the flagship Barnes & Noble College business, provides a strong foundation for Barnes & Noble Education to grow and serve the broader community of learners.