Brentano's
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Brentano's was an American bookstore. In addition to the numerous locations in the United States, there was a Brentano's on Avenue de l'Opéra in Paris, at the same location for 114 years.
Brentano's became a part of the Waldenbooks subsidiary of Borders Group, Inc., an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based book and music retailer.
History
Brentano's was founded as an independent bookstore in New York City in 1853 by August Brentano, who established a newsstand in front of the New York Hotel. From its headquarters at 586 Fifth Avenue, Brentano's became a publisher, with a specialization in French literature that led it to publish under the imprint "Éditions Brentano's" many titles by French writers in exile during the Vichy France period.
In 1985, Kmart's Waldenbooks subsidiary acquired Brentano's and nine years later, in 1994, Brentano's and its parent company Waldenbooks were merged into Kmart's other book subsidiary, Borders. Borders re-gained independence through a stock buyback in the mid 1990s to once again become an independent company known as Borders Group, Inc.; in 2011, Borders Group filed for bankruptcy and began to wind down operations, closing all remaining locations.
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