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| - This is my main Barnes & Noble and I've come here since 2008. They have a very overpriced CD/DVD department that I can't imagine ever buying from, which is par for the course with B&N.
They also have the obligatory Starbucks affiliated cafe, which is not actually a true Starbucks but a B&N department that's licensed to sell Starbucks' products. As a result, their menu isn't as large. The food and drink are certainly acceptable but you'll never walk away from it saying "Wow, that was as good as any Starbucks I've ever been in!"
Of course, the main reason anyone goes in a bookstore is for the books, so on to the main course. You'll find a very large selection of books in pretty much any category you can think of, aside I guess from a few really specialized ones. It's a simple reality at this point that they simply can't compete on price with Amazon but I assume you already knew that.
The main sales associates are located at a "help desk" or around the store putting up books, etc. They range in age age from about 18-25 and all seem to go to ASU, so they're pretty much part-timers. They do a decent job on customer service, with the aid of their computer system.
The turnover rate is typical enough of retail but some of them are real gems. For a long time, there was a very pretty and charming young lady named Molly or Maggie who worked there and was always a delight to deal with but I think she's moved on (maybe she graduated from college or something).
The managers are a bit older; probably 30-50. Their turnover is a lot less (better pay, after all) but the store is open close to 100 hours a week, so you can never be sure one of them hasn't moved on.
If you can get a manager for customer service, definitely do so, as they know the stock a lot better and may even have inside info. It's always nice to find out that the hardback you were about to buy is coming out in paperback in two weeks or that the hot book they're sold out of should be in "by Thursday" or whenever.
One strange thing, though, is that the male managers seem to be better than the female managers, a distinction that doesn't exist with the sales associates. I have private nicknames for all of them. The best is "Ace", who is in his 30s, with brown hair and glasses. He knows the most and is very friendly. Then there's "Shy Guy", who is friendly and knows his stuff well enough but you can tell he's shy and he's soft-spoken. "The Professor" is older (maybe 50?) and is tall and balding. He hasn't been there as long but also seems like he does good work.
With the women managers, there are a lady I call "Bertha B." who I think is the top manager based on attitude and age (around 50 but I've seen her boss The Professor around). One way you can tell she's the top gun is she'll try to run for cover and escape when it comes to customer service. The worst manager is "Lady I'm All That", who seems to know the least of the group. On very rare occasions I've seen her be friendly but usually she's professional at best and as rude at worst. However, even she will know more than the typical sales associate, so if you can stomach her attitude she's okay. There are also one or two people who I think may be managers but I'm not sure.
Over all, I'd say that this place is as good as any of the B&N's in the East Valley. It's definitely better than some and is no worse than others. It's also a good way to check out the eye candy from ASU, most of whom seem to take the view of "Wear clothes? You're so old fashioned!"
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