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Bookstore clarifies myths
By Regina Eckes
No student likes to spend hundreds of dollars on textbooks at the beginning of the semester, and many believe that the Husky Bookstore, located in Centennial Hall, over-charges students to make a profit. Store Manager Ted Mears said that is not the case.
"The bookstore does not determine the price of the books," Mears said. "The publisher determines the price of the books and there's not much you can do about pricing."
Mears has been the store manager for over three years and previously worked at Bemidji State University. He said the Husky Bookstore's prices are fair and similar when compared to other college bookstores.
The Follet Corporation, specifically the Follet Higher Education Group, owns the Husky Bookstore. Follet serves over 600 campuses nationally, including Notre Dame and Purdue.
By contract, the bookstore is obligated to supply every book requested by professors for the upcoming semester as opposed to the off-campus bookstores that are independent from the school.
Once the bookstore places its orders for a particular book, it raises the price, but by no more than 25 percent. Mears said marking up the price is just part of running a business.
"We obviously have to mark it up to pay for the staff and to be here on campus, as would any business that sells anything," Mears said.
Mears also said the Husky Bookstore is the only bookstore that gives money back to the university. The percentage of sales that goes into the university is used mostly for student scholarships. The money used to buy a particular book is dispersed to the author, publisher and delivery system. In addition, the bookstore needs to pay for the return of unsold books back to the publisher, so it does not benefit as much as some students may think.
"I agree with the fact that books are priced high," Mears said. "All I can assure you is that the profitability is not being made on this end."
Regardless of where the money goes, students often feel the off-campus bookstores are cheaper. Mears said this might be because off-campus stores have a larger amount of used books to sell, therefore students feel they are priced lower. The Husky Bookstore runs out of used books quickly and students are left to purchase new books at the full price.
When dealing with student complaints, all employees can do is explain how the system works and hope the customer will understand.
Fourth-year student and bookstore employee Melissa Lindahl said the two most common complaints are that the books are too expensive and that the bookstore does not have used books of a certain title.
"That's not really our fault, especially the employees," Lindahl said. "If it's a new book and we don't have used copies, it's either because the used ones have already sold out or it's a new edition so there aren't any used ones available at all."
Toward the end of the semester, students often get agitated when they try to sell their books back to the bookstore and do not get the amount of money back that they expect.
"If we can't buy them back, it's either because the book isn't being used again on campus so we have no need for it, or there is a new edition coming out," Lindahl said. "If there's a low price, the book is usually going to a wholesaler and they set those prices."
Another reason some books cannot be returned is that the professor requests a book that comes with a unique code or CD. If the code or CD is used, the book loses all value when trying to sell it back.
With all the bookstore frustrations that students have, many turn to selling their books on the internet. Mears said that is good if students want to sell books among themselves, but there can be risks. Students may end up paying for the wrong edition or the wrong book altogether and other stores do not have limits on how much it can mark up the price. Even with the annual student complaints, Mears said sales have been up this year.
"We stand by ourselves and we do our best," Mears said.
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