There has been much speculation recently about the future of the U.S. book chain Borders, which has been on hard times. Most of the rumours focussed on a possible sale of the company to competitor Barnes & Noble, but the Los Angeles Times revealed today that the big news is not a sale at all, but mass layoffs.

The financially troubled Borders book chain said Tuesday that it would lay off 274 corporate employees, representing 20% of its corporate workforce, as part of a planned $120-million cut in annual expenses.

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Borders Group Inc., the nation’s second-largest book chain, said last month that it would be making these cuts “to put us in a better place for the future and because our overhead expenses are not in line with the nature of our business today,” corporate spokeswoman Anne Roman said. “We’re going to be turning over every stone and looking at every opportunity to reach this financial goal.”