New York, NY, 2016-Nov-02 — /EPR Retail News/ — Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS), the nation’s largest retail bookseller and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products, today (10/31/2016) announced the fantastic event lineup for its second annual Mini Maker Faire at stores nationwide the weekend of November 5-6. Barnes & Noble’s second Mini Maker Faire (www.bn.com/makerfaire) will once again deliver the authentic, incredible experiences that Maker Faire attendees have historically come to expect as they participate in interactive product demonstrations, take part in collaborative hands-on experiences designed to stretch their imaginations and creative thinking, and “Meet the Makers” as stores across the country showcase local and national Makers:
Make Workspace- November 5 & November 6 at 11 AM, 1 PM, 3 PM, 5 PM
Four times each day during the Mini Maker Faire at Barnes & Noble, stores nationwide will host a “Make” Workspace, which is a tech-educational expo space where customers of all ages can participate in content-driven sessions where booksellers and Makers will demo some of the leading products in modern technology. Customers will experience the latest in virtual reality, augmented reality, 3D printing, pen-invent technology, robotics, coding, programming, and more:
- Coding & Programming for All Ages– Children of all ages will get to experience programming firsthand with Sphero’s SPRK, a robot simple enough for beginners, yet sophisticated enough for seasoned programmers; Ozobot and Dash Robot will give children ages six through eight an up-close look at how learning to code can lead to custom programming; and Fisher-Price’s Code-a-pillar™ will introduce children as young as three-years-old to the fundamental constructs of coding.
- Discoveries in Pen-Invent Technology– Customers will get to participate in a special demonstration of the CreoPop 3D Pen with cool ink technology, which lets users create amazing 3D designs; and the Moleskine Smart Writing Set, which provides the hands-on immediacy of putting pen to paper, teamed with all the advantages of digital creativity, by allowing users to digitize handwritten notes and sketches that are editable and easily shared with smartphones and tablets.
- Exploring Mechanical and Motorized Building with a First-Look into Digital Gaming– Customers will see first-hand the principles of engineering at play with VEX® Robotics Pick & Drop Ball Machine by HEXBUG®!, which turns kid-powered manual motion into working machinery; and Bloxels from Mattel, a first-of-its-kind digital gaming system that enables users to build, capture, design, and tell stories through their very own video game creations.
- Intros into Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality– Customers will become familiar with augmented and virtual reality as they participate in demonstrations of the ReTrak Utopia360° 3D Virtual Reality Headset, which allows users to transform their smartphone into a 360° ever-changing experience thanks to the hundreds of apps available for them to explore; and Air Hogs Connect, a revolutionary RC gaming platform in the form of a hover drone offering an immersive experience that combines the best of physical and digital play.
- The Latest in 3D Printing– Booksellers and Makers across the country will demo the da Vinci Jr. 1.0 WiFi 3D Printer created by XYZprinting, which is a simple plug-and-play 3D printer featuring wireless capabilities for new Makers getting into the world of 3D printing.
Make & Collaborate, then SHARE!- November 5 & November 6 from 12 NOON-5PM
At the Mini Maker Faire, Barnes & Noble customers of all ages will have the opportunity to visit their local store and get hands-on experiences around the art of designing, handcrafting and constructing, in the spirit of collaboration, cooperative learning and teamwork. “Making Materials” featured in this portion of the event will include products from some of the leading vendors in science and technology such as littleBits, LEGO®, Magformers, Squigz, Strawbees and Brackitz.
- Little Makers Ages 3+– Little Makers will get to enjoy LEGO DUPLO® bricks that are specially designed to be safe for little hands; award-winning Brackitz, which bring real-life art, math, science, architecture, and engineering principles into play; MAGFORMERS®, the industry leader in magnetic building toys for children; and Squigz, fun little suckers, always up for playful experimentation and defying gravity.
- Junior Makers Ages 8+– Junior Makers will get to experience six primary collaboration activities involving littleBits, a platform of easy-to-use electronic building blocks for creating inventions large and small; a DK Bridge Making Challenge and DK Offline Computer Coding from DK Publishing, a top publisher of general reference and illustrated non-fiction books with a reputation for innovation in design for both print and digital products; Strawbees®, an amazing 3D prototyping toy and tool for Makers of all ages; and more.
- Teen & Adult Ages 13+– Teens and adults will participate in LEGO Capitol Build, which will provide them with the tools to create a LEGO brick model of one of the world’s most architecturally impressive and symbolically important structures; LEGO Architecture Studio, where they will be able to bring their architectural creations to life using LEGO bricks; and The Creativity Hub’s The Extraordinaires® Design Studio PRO “Design the Extraordinary”, which is a Barnes & Noble Exclusive and an innovative, engaging activity that allows design interns and those in design-based careers to progress and build their skill-sets.
Meet the Makers
Throughout the Mini Maker Faire, Makers, educators and authors dedicated to changing the way people learn, ideate, design, create, build and embrace the future will visit stores nationwide to speak about the Maker Movement, present their creations and more. Customers should contact their local store or visit www.bn.com/storelocator to find out which of the over 2,500 Makers and special guests are participating in their local Barnes & Noble Mini Maker Faire.
And new this year, customers can also experience our Mini Maker Faire online at www.bn.com/makerfaire, a comprehensive “site within a site” that is an extension of the experience in stores where Making, Learning and Doing can happen year-round. The site will feature rich and relevant blog articles, video content, behind-the-scene looks into the world of Makers and Maker projects that will refresh regularly.
“The extraordinary lineup for our second annual Mini Maker Faire is a testament to our booksellers, our customers, and the relationships we have built in communities across the country in support of tech literacy and the inherent desire to learn, create, build and make,” said Kathleen Campisano, Vice President of Toys & Games at Barnes & Noble.”
“Barnes & Noble has once again created a never-before-done schedule of events, interactive activities and speakers, to provide the best possible experience for customers as they enjoy access to tools and resources, learn new skills, discover their personal Making passion, and are inspired by local Makers in their communities,” said Dale Dougherty, founder and CEO of Make: and Maker Faire.”
About Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS) is a Fortune 500 company, the nation’s largest retail bookseller, and a leading retailer of content, digital media and educational products. The Company operates 638 Barnes & Noble bookstores in 50 states, and one of the Web’s premier e-commerce sites, BN.com (www.bn.com). The Nook Digital business offers a lineup of popular NOOK® tablets and eReaders and an expansive collection of digital reading and entertainment content through the NOOK Store®. The NOOK Store features more than 4.5 million digital books in the US (www.nook.com), plus periodicals and comics, and offers the ability to enjoy content across a wide array of popular devices through Free NOOK Reading Apps™ available for Android™, iOS® and Windows®.
General information on Barnes & Noble, Inc. can be obtained by visiting the Company’s corporate website at www.barnesandnobleinc.com.
Barnes & Noble®, Barnes & Noble Booksellers® and Barnes & Noble.com® are trademarks of Barnes & Noble, Inc. or its affiliates. NOOK® and the NOOK logos are trademarks of Nook Digital, LLC or its affiliates.
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Contact:
Mary Ellen Keating
Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications & Public Affairs
Tel: (212) 633-3323
Email: mkeating@bn.com
Alan McNamara
Senior Director, Corporate Communications
Tel: (212) 633-3379
Email: amcnamara@bn.com
Source: Barnes & Noble