AFTER 10 years as one of the biggest players on the local bookstore scene, Borders is finally expanding.

The American bookstore chain, which threw open its doors at Wheelock Place in 1997, opens its second Singapore outlet today at Parkway Parade shopping mall in the East Coast.

The new site is, at 17,000 sq ft, about half the size of its flagship store at Wheelock. It carries around 200,000 titles in all the genres currently available at the first store, and will also carry stationery, CDs and DVDs.

But unlike the store in town, this one will not have a bistro due to its smaller space. However, as Borders' regional manager in Singapore Ricardo Rodrigues points out, there is a Dome cafe next door.

The new store features a beefed-up children's section, which is slightly larger than the one at Wheelock. It includes an atrium in which children can sit and read.

"Children's books is a growing market that makes up about 13 per cent of our yearly revenue," says Mr Rodrigues, 57, adding that the family-oriented nature of Parkway Parade also influenced the store's decision.

He says setting up a second branch in Singapore has been long in the planning for the bookstore giant. This year, its Wheelock Place outlet became its No. 1 performing outlet for the second straight year, based on its revenue per sq ft, beating out 1,200 stores in its global network.

"During the course of 10 years, we had been looking around but we couldn't find the perfect site. But when this place in Parkway Parade came up, we felt it would be a good place to bring the Borders concept to," he says. The space was formerly occupied by Malaysian bookstore chain MPH.

Mr Rodrigues, who joined Borders last year after working at fashion and retail groups like FJ Benjamin and Dickson Trading, says the book industry here is vibrant and growing. Insiders estimate that the industry here is worth $300 million in book sales.

Although he declined to release figures, he says Borders' annual profit here has been steadily increasing, despite the entry in recent years of new players like Page One at VivoCity and Harris, owned by the Popular bookstore group.

Borders, B-155 Parkway Parade. Opening hours: 10am to 10pm (Sundays to Wednesdays), 10am to 11pm (Thursdays to Saturdays).