Alibris: Difference between revisions
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'''Alibris''' is an on-line store that sells [[new book]]s, [[used book]]s, [[out-of-print book]]s, rare books, and other media |
'''Alibris''' is an on-line store that sells [[new book]]s, [[used book]]s, [[out-of-print book]]s, rare books, and other media through an on-line network of thousands of [[independent booksellers]]. Booksellers in many countries list their inventories on Alibris which in turn offers the books on its [[website]], as well as other channels such as [[Barnes and Noble]], [[Borders Books]] and [[BibliOZ.com]]. |
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Alibris saves small booksellers time and money by listing once with Alibris and having Alibris manage listings with well-known book retailers, who obtain access to out of print or hard to find books. Consumers benefit from a single point of access to books from many sellers. The company operates a separate site for libraries. It offers more than 70 million books for from a network of more than 10,000 booksellers in 65 countries. |
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Unlike other companies which aggregate numerous used book sellers, Alibris also maintains its own stock of used books, which are offered to buyers alongside the rest. Alibris has a policy of keeping for itself books returned by customers that had been priced under $100, instead of having them shipped back to the original seller. Alibris, in its early years, bought out the entire stock of many storefront used booksellers. These are probably the 2 largest sources for the Alibris-owned stock, which is warehoused in [[Sparks, Nevada]]. However, the Alibris-owned inventory is less than 2% of their total inventory with the other 98% coming from its independent bookseller network. |
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Most sales made through Alibris are fulfilled by the bookseller directly to the end customer. Sales to libraries or other institutions or books needing transoceanic shipping are consolidated in a distribution center in Sparks, Nevada. Alibris also has a similar network for music (albums, [[cassette tapes]], and [[CDs]]) and movies ([[VHS]] or [[DVD]]). |
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Alibris was founded in 1997 by Martin Manley, who raised venture funding to acquire Interloc. Interloc was a pioneering online company founded by antiquarian bookseller Richard Weatherford and was one of the earliest successful efforts to centralize used book data online. Interloc remained a private network until 1996, when the company launched its website. |
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While one of the older and larger companies who combine the listings of many sellers, Alibris has larger and smaller competitors such as [[Abebooks]], [[Amazon.com]] and [[Biblio.com]]. In addition, sites that search many bookseller sites (i.e., metasearch sites), such as [[AddALL]] and [[BookFinder.com]] also compete as services which allow buyers to find a new or used book and compare offerings among many booksellers. |
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Alibris was backed by venture capital until 2006, when it was purchased by Oak Hill Capital Partners, a private equity firm. |
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Alibris also has a similar network for music (albums, [[cassette tapes]], and [[CDs]]) and movies ([[VHS]] or [[DVD]]) although they appear to mostly focus on the used book market. |
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==External link== |
==External link== |
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Revision as of 19:43, 20 March 2007
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| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail (Specialty) |
| Founded | 1998 Emeryville, California |
| Headquarters | Emeryville, California |
Key people | Marty Manley, CEO Brian Elliott, COO Michael Schaffer, CTO |
| Products | Mainly used books, out-of-print books, rare books. Also features used or collectible music and movies (albums, cassette tapes, compact discs, DVDs) |
| Revenue | $49M (as of 3/31/04) |
Number of employees | 55 (as of 3/31/04) |
| Website | www.alibris.com |
Alibris is an on-line store that sells new books, used books, out-of-print books, rare books, and other media through an on-line network of thousands of independent booksellers. Booksellers in many countries list their inventories on Alibris which in turn offers the books on its website, as well as other channels such as Barnes and Noble, Borders Books and BibliOZ.com.
Alibris saves small booksellers time and money by listing once with Alibris and having Alibris manage listings with well-known book retailers, who obtain access to out of print or hard to find books. Consumers benefit from a single point of access to books from many sellers. The company operates a separate site for libraries. It offers more than 70 million books for from a network of more than 10,000 booksellers in 65 countries.
Most sales made through Alibris are fulfilled by the bookseller directly to the end customer. Sales to libraries or other institutions or books needing transoceanic shipping are consolidated in a distribution center in Sparks, Nevada. Alibris also has a similar network for music (albums, cassette tapes, and CDs) and movies (VHS or DVD).
Alibris was founded in 1997 by Martin Manley, who raised venture funding to acquire Interloc. Interloc was a pioneering online company founded by antiquarian bookseller Richard Weatherford and was one of the earliest successful efforts to centralize used book data online. Interloc remained a private network until 1996, when the company launched its website.
Alibris was backed by venture capital until 2006, when it was purchased by Oak Hill Capital Partners, a private equity firm.