Stakbogladen bookshop goes bankrupt
Stakbogladen bookshop has gone bankrupt and is currently holding a closing-down sale, but students will still be able to buy books on campus. Aarhus University has announced that book sales will continue in Stakbogladen Bookshop’s premises under new ownership from 1 November.
The article has been updated on 21.09.26 with a comment from University Director Kristian Thorn.
Since 1991, AU students and staff have been able to find “knowledge in abundance” at Stakbogladen Bookshop on Nordre Ringgade in Aarhus, as well as at its smaller branches in Birk and on Ny Munkegade. But that’s over now. Stakbogladen Bookshop has been declared bankrupt. The Court in Aarhus issued a bankruptcy order on 14 September.
It has not been possible to obtain information about the reasons behind the bankruptcy. Mikkel Winther Løgsted, the trustee overseeing Stakbogladen Bookshop’s bankruptcy estate, told Omnibus in an email that the estate is still in its initial phase and that he is continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the bankruptcy.
He added, however, that at the time of the bankruptcy Stakbogladen Bookshop had a “substantial inventory” and that a closing-down sale has been launched, with prices reduced by 50 per cent for a limited period. The sale is also valid online.
The 2025 accounts show a profit of DKK 168,000. They also state that Stakbogladen Bookshop’s management negotiated with the university in both 2025 and 2026 “regarding future cooperation and the terms governing it, which are expected to be finalised in the second half of 2026.”
New owner takes over on 1 November
Students and staff at the university will, however, continue to be able to purchase course books and other academic titles from Stakbogladen Bookshop’s former premises. Aarhus University informs in a news article that the bookshop Academic Books will take over sales from Stakbogladen Bookshop's premises from 1 November. The news was published on the same day that the bankruptcy was announced in Statstidende.
In light of this, Omnibus has asked Aarhus University whether the university terminated its partnership with Stakbogladen Bookshop and, if so, on what grounds. University Director Kristian Thorn replies in an email:
“Even before the bankruptcy, Stakbogladen and Aarhus University had agreed that Stakbogladen Bookshop would vacate its leased premises on 1 November. Aarhus University had therefore also explored the possibilities for maintaining a bookshop on campus, which resulted in an agreement with Academic Books to take over the premises once Stakbogladen Bookshop had vacated them.”
The University Director thanked Stakbogladen Bookshop for “the collaboration over the many years” and wrote the following about the choice of Academic Books as the university’s new bookseller:
"Academic Books already collaborates with several Danish universities and has extensive experience with the task."
Academic Books is also responsible for book sales at Copenhagen Business School, the University of Copenhagen, the University of Southern Denmark and Aalborg University.
In the news article, the university states that it "is in dialogue with the bankruptcy estate to ensure that books will continue to be sold from Stakbogladen Bookshop’s premises and other locations until 1 November.” This is also confirmed by trustee Mikkel Winther Løgsted.
The director of Stakbogladen Bookshop, Jens Viltoft, declined to comment when contacted by Omnibus and referred questions to the trustee.
This text is machine translated and post-edited by Mie Skov Jeppesen.