Use your Borders gift card NOW

There are no guarantees how long it will be good, and every moment you wait, the pickings get slimmer.

By MSN Money Partner Jul 19, 2011 3:03PM

This post comes from Dan Ray at partner site CreditCards.com.

Run for the Borders!

I told you back in January and now I really mean it: If you have a Borders gift card you've been meaning to redeem, do it now.

Now. Let the dog walk himself. Skip the weekly lunch bunch. Tell your boss you have to leave early because you have to meet the sprinkler guy. Whatever. But go as soon as you can, either directly to the store, or online, and cash out that card.

Borders, the long-troubled bookstore, announced Monday it was ending its effort to sell off its assets and would begin liquidation under Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, with stores closing as early as Friday. The liquidation process will run through September. Post continues after video.

For now, the company's websites still cheerily promise that its business operations continue as normal, but that's only because it hasn't updated the pages since it began to seek a buyer for itself. Borders' gift cards terms and conditions page online, for instance, hasn't been updated since October.

So get in gear if you have a Borders gift card. There are no guarantees how long it will be good, and every moment you wait, the pickings get slimmer. History says there's a chance another store may honor them in an effort to win the loyalty of former Borders buyers, but don't count on it.

We wrote a story in late 2008, as the recession was really deepening, about how to get the most from bankrupt retailers' gift cards, and the advice still holds. The most important advice: Act fast. There's likely to be a run on the Borders merchandise.

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7Comments

Best

Jul 19, 2011 4:51PM

Great! Sure wish I hadn't been a sucker and upgraded to the Borders Rewards Plus back in December. At least I got 7 months out of it! Too bad they weren't able to find a buyer - I liked Borders. Now Barnes and Noble will offer even fewer deals with another competitor down the drain... :(

Previous replies

RIPBorders

Jul 19, 2011 6:42PM

It is unfortunate for the people who just recently upgraded their rewards cards, but they weren't "suckered" into it. Employees did not know that this was going to happen and they were doing what their job required them to do. It is a huge loss to the literary world that Borders is going out of business. This hurts authors too. When people go into redeem their gift cards and do their liquidation shopping they need to keep in mind the almost 11,000 people losing their jobs because of this. Try to show some compassion and sympathy when doing your shopping at the sales.

Previous replies

Texas.Rancher

Jul 19, 2011 8:05PM

I had a 100 dollar gift card given to me from this place .. i know it was good as i had checked the amount and verified it about 2 weeks ago .. yesterday i drove about 50 miles to the nearest store and picked out about 105 dollars of stuff .. well guess what .. at check out all of a sudden they couldn't find the card number on the computer .. and said i would have to pay Cash .... even though i had a print out of the card / number and balance ...

Previous replies

Realist8

Jul 20, 2011 3:22PM

It may be that most employees were only "following orders", but they most certainly knew the company's credit was going down, and discount cards would become worthless. You may have compassion for those losing their jobs, but also show some compassion for those suckered by Borders to buy the cards! They actually expected to get something of value for their money!

Previous replies

mr silverado

Jul 19, 2011 9:09PM

I spent $20 to upgrade my Borders Reward Card last winter, and it's proven a sound investment - purchasing an average of $30 worth of books/ mags/ CDs per month, I accrued $5 - $8 in "Borders Bucks" every 6 wks or so, and saved 30-40% on new titles.

So, why buy printed/recorded media @ a brick & mortar store, instead of just on-line?

'Cause those "cheap books" (& discs) for sale on the 'Net also cost you shipping & handling fees, and in most cases, they will increase your bottom-line by 40 - 60%, whether it's Amazon, or eBay, or Alibris, or Barnes & Noble . . . not to mention the dubious 'pleasure' of waiting for delivery of your purchase, which at media-mail rate can take up to 3 weeks, and the suspense of discovering how carefully it's been "handled" by good ol' USPS.

Not to mention the simple satisfaction of holding a potential purchase in your hands as you make up your mind whether or not it's worth a slice of your paycheck.

My bottom-line; arguably, the American consumer might never have deserved the sprawl & blight of Wal*Mart, but I firmly believe we don't deserve to be losing the smart, frugal alternative of Borders . .

Previous replies

Cindylou0416

Jul 19, 2011 6:18PM

I just upgraded to their rewards card a couple of weeks ago not knowing that they were going to close all of the rest of their stores. They have a store that stays pretty busy close to my house. Now what? Do I lose out on the money I just spent to upgrade to a worthless card???? I am upset that I got suckered into upgrading the card!

Previous replies

bethyann35

Jul 19, 2011 7:18PM

why would anyone PAY to have a rewards card???? with all the free or cheap online books why would you go buy a book anyway?

Previous replies

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