BATON ROUGE, La. (Map) - BATON ROUGE, La., Aug. 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Borders will celebrate the grand opening of its new concept store in Baton Rouge, La., beginning today, Aug. 29 through Sunday, Aug. 31. The 25,000-square-foot store in the Mall of Louisiana's new open air wing, The Boulevard, located at the intersection of Picardy Avenue and Bluebonnet Boulevard, represents a significant enhancement over existing Borders stores inside and out and fulfills the company's mission to be a headquarters for knowledge and entertainment.

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Throughout the weekend-long celebration, Borders will be highlighting its newly created Destinations within the new Borders concept store--Cooking, Travel, Wellness, Graphic Novels and Children's-- with special activities, in-store performances and prizes. These categories are so popular and rapidly growing that Borders has designated them as special Destinations and given these categories their own "shop within a shop" look and feel.

During the grand opening and all year-long, customers can explore the Digital Center -- marked by a three-dimensional, 12-foot illuminated fixture with multiple computer kiosks and stations dedicated to digital services -- and do everything from download music on demand using Mix and Burn(TM); create personalized photo books with Shutterfly.com; and publish their own books using "Borders Personal Publishing Powered by Lulu.com(R)."

Customers can enter to win such prizes as one of five Borders' Digital Services Certificates, one of two $250 Borders gift cards, a collection of hot new cookbooks and a copy of Frank Miller's "Absolute Dark Knight." In addition, Borders will also be giving away a collection of current wellness books and a $200 Paperchase gift bag filled with stationery, cards and gifts from the new store.

Grand opening events at Borders in Baton Rouge include the following:

All weekend: All prizes will be given away on Sunday at approximately 7:00 p.m. with the exception of the Nickelodeon(R) prizes, which will be awarded Sunday morning.

-- Enter to win a "Go Digital!" gift package - includes select Borders digital services certificates for five lucky winners;

-- Enter to win one of two $250 Borders gift cards;

-- Enter to win a Paperchase $200 gift bag filled with stationery, cards and gifts;

-- Enter to win a Seattle's Best Coffee(R) $200 gift basket; -- Enter to win a $300 collection of current cookbooks; -- Enter to win a $230 collection of current wellness books;

-- Enter to win a copy of "Absolute Dark Knight" by Frank Miller and illustrated by Klaus Janson and Lynn Varley;

-- Sunday morning, six lucky children will win Nickelodeon(R) Dora and Diego Cuddle Pillows.

Friday, Aug. 29th: -- 3 p.m. - Storytime and meet and greet with Curious George; -- 3:30 p.m. - Face painting fun for kids; -- 5:30 p.m. - Free candy sampling until 9 p.m.;

-- 5:30 p.m. - Chefs from the Louisiana Culinary Institute will teach customers the finer points of making delectable Southern fried chicken;

-- 6 p.m. - Recycle Rouge will lead a discussion on how to keep the environment safe;

-- 7 p.m. - Two if by Land performs live in our Seattle's Best Coffee cafe. Hear these rock tunes fill the store as the duo covers many of your favorite bands;

-- 7 p.m. - Local author Pam Kaster will discuss and sign her inspirational kids story "Molly the Pony";

-- 8 p.m. - Local musician Debby Landry will play some original acoustic music.

Saturday, Aug. 30th: -- 10 a.m. - Stop by to meet the crew from WFMF-FM; -- 10 a.m. - A stilt walker will provide excitement for the kids; -- 11:30 a.m. - Brunch and reading time with Winnie the Pooh; -- Noon - Dale Curry will sign her book "New Orleans Home Cooking";

-- Noon - Tour the high tech engines of the St. George Fire Protection District and learn about fire prevention and safety;

-- Noon - Louisiana Culinary Trails will educate customers about the extraordinary chefs, restaurants, festivals, and gumbo's the state has to offer;

-- 1 p.m. - Free candy samples will be provided in the cafe;

-- 1 p.m. - Sylvia Frank Rodrigue will sign her book "Images of America: Baton Rouge";

-- 2 p.m. - Author Danny Heitman will sign his newest book "A Summer of Birds," which details a summer he spent at Louisiana's Oakley Plantation;

-- 2 p.m. - Local cruise experts from Malcolm Travel and Cruise will provide pointers and advice on how to plan the perfect vacation to an exotic locale;

-- 3 p.m. - A talented group of teen's from Baton Rouge's Big Buddy Program will exhibit their poetry prowess during the Worldplay Poetry Slam;

-- 4 p.m. - Stop by the kid's section for a very special magic show with magician Tim Spinozza;

-- 5:30 p.m. - Learn the tricks of the trade for creating some spicy and flavorful dips and salsas from the chefs at the Louisiana Culinary Institute;

-- 6:30 p.m. - Lindsay Rae Spurlock will kick-off an evening of music in our Seattle's Best Coffee cafe with some soulful indie-pop;

-- 8 p.m. - Customers can listen to Blues tunes from the legendary Henry Gray, whose career has spanned over 60 years and includes a Grammy nomination;

-- 9 p.m. - Local Cajun band Tout Les Soir will perform. Sunday, Aug. 31st: -- 11 a.m. - A magical balloon artist will wow customers of all ages;

-- 12:30 p.m. - Join us for a storytime and a meet and greet with SpongeBob followed by coloring, games and more;

-- 2 p.m. - Chefs from the Louisiana Culinary Institute will show customers how easy it can be to create some intricately carved fruit and vegetable dishes;

-- 2 p.m. - Local author and journalist Danny Brown will sign and discuss his book "Shooting the Pistol," a photographic history of LSU basketball legend "Pistol Pete" Maravich;

-- 4 p.m. - Emmy Award-winning author Monica Pierre will sign her book "Found my Soul in a Sweet Potato Patch;"

-- 4:30 p.m. - New Orleans-based indie-pop band Big Blue Marble will perform;

-- 6 p.m. - Special music performances by the young and talented singers with Baton Rouge Music Studios.

Throughout the grand opening weekend and all year long, the new Borders concept store will offer customers in Baton Rouge, La., community benefit days, educational discounts, diverse events, great selection, special features and a wonderful place to simply explore. Borders is dedicated to enhancing the lives of customers through knowledge and entertainment.

About Borders Group, Inc.

Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., Borders Group, Inc. (NYSE: BGP), is a leading retailer of books, music and movies with more than 28,000 employees. Through its subsidiaries, the company operates more than 1,100 stores primarily under the Borders(R) and Waldenbooks(R) brand names and recently launched Borders.com for online shopping. For more information, visit www.borders.com/aboutus .