[InclinedPlane]

Indeed. I live in an area (Seattle) that has multiple excellent local bookstores (specifically Third Place Books and Elliott Bay). What sets them apart is they have a good selection of books, they have an environment that is conducive to hanging out and reading (Third Place especially), they have lots of recommendations from staff and local book clubs, and they have regular events like book signings and author Q&As, etc. I just checked the closest B&N and they have one non-kids author event between now and the end of March, in contrast the local Third Place has 15, Elliott Bay has even more. Stepping into a B&N it just feels like a generic, lifeless experience, there is basically nothing to recommend it over simply buying a book online. But there's still money and life in selling books at retail, you just have to do it well.

(And yes, for the record Powells is a world class bookstore, every time I visit I always enjoy it and it's always packed.)