Leonard Riggio

About Leonard

• I was born and raised in New York City.
• After high school, I began attending night classes at New York University, where I majored in metallurgical engineering.
• I was too poor to attend college full-time, so I took a day job as a clerk at New York University's campus bookstore—this is what initially sparked my interest in business and retail.
• Feeling too confined and unable to make a difference at the NYU bookstore, I decided to drop out of college and use my savings to open up my own college bookstore: the Student Book Exchange.
• The store ended up being a huge success and we were able to open up more campus bookstores throughout New York, eventually expanding onto other college campuses.
• In 1971, I bought the struggling Barnes & Noble bookstore and began further expanding the company.
• In 1986, I bought B. Dalton—a chain of 800 mall bookstores—and we began to explore the concept of turning our bookstores into superstores that served as multifunctional gathering places.
• Since building Barnes & Noble into one of the biggest booksellers in the world, I’ve upheld a commitment to public service, serving on the boards of two dozen nonprofit organizations.