Barnes & Noble Greets Borders Customers With Letter From CEO

Now that Borders has gone belly-up, Barnes & Noble could totally sweep in and be all like, “na na na na na na!” But instead, it seems they’re taking the high road and being pretty cool to the formers Borders customers grieving over their bookstore.

Consumerist tipster and former Borders customer Sean was kind enough to forward a letter he received from William Lynch, the CEO of Barnes & Noble, not only welcoming him as a customer but also making sure he’s clear on how his account info has been transferred.

It reads, in part:

As part of Borders ceasing operations, we acquired some of its assets including Borders brand trademarks and their customer list. The subject matter of your DVD and other video purchases will be part of the transferred information. The federal bankruptcy court approved this sale on September 26, 2011.

Our intent in buying the Borders customer list is simply to try and earn your business. The majority of our stores are within close proximity to former Borders store locations, and for those that aren’t, we offer our award- winning NOOKâ„¢ digital reading devices that provide a bookstore in your pocket. We are readers like you, and hope that through our stores, NOOK devices, and our bn.com online bookstore we can win your trust and provide you with a place to read and shop.

It’s important for you to understand however you have the absolute right to opt-out of having your customer data transferred to Barnes & Noble. If you would like to opt-out, we will ensure all your data we receive from Borders is disposed of in a secure and confidential manner. Please visit http://www.bn.com/borders before October 15, 2011 to do so.

Pretty cool of Barnes & Noble to be so upfront, a rarity in many big chains. And just to make book lovers feel all warm and fuzzy about the whole thing, Lynch ends with this:

At Barnes & Noble we share your love of books — whatever shape they take. We also take our responsibility to service communities by providing a local bookstore very seriously. In the coming weeks, assuming you don’t opt-out, you’ll be hearing from us with some offers to encourage you to shop our stores and try our NOOK products. We hope you’ll give us a chance to be your bookstore.

It’s kind of like getting a marriage proposal, except with books and no ring.

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