NEW YORK, NY/8/21/2008--Barnes & Noble Inc., the largest U.S. specialty bookseller, said on Tuesday that Marie J. Toulantis, the chief executive of its online business, has resigned, and E-Commerce vice president tom Burke and CFO Kevin Frain will assume her duties. Barnes & Noble said Toulantis, who has been with the company since 1997 and since 1999 as BN.com CEO, will remain as a consultant.
The shakeup comes only a week after rival Borders became public and launched a spectacular new web site. Reaction to Borders new site has been extremely favorable, and Barnes & Noble announced it would not be able to finance a long-rumored buyout of Borders.
"Barnes & Noble's decision not to bid reflects in part the tight lending markets that likely would make it difficult to arrange bank financing," according to Massachusettes investor and market analyst Todd Sullivan. "The retailer was also known to be concerned about the length of some of the leases that Borders has signed." he said.
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