Published 2013-05-07T08:00:00Z”/>
Nicholas Carr
Management for the Wildcat Store asked for input from the campus last Tuesday amid concerns that textbook sales will continue to decline.
An email, titled “SOS: Save Our Store,” prefaced a survey sent to administrators, staff and faculty. Written by Wildcat Store Director Robert Meyers, the survey asked for answers to the ongoing question of how the store can reinvent itself now that textbooks no longer provide the majority of its income.
“It’s about finding what the campus wants and needs,” Meyers said. “We’re hoping our prices and services can reflect that.”
<strong>The money</strong>
Since 2010, the share of the store’s income made from textbooks has decreased from 56 percent to 44 percent. The 2013-14 budget finalized by the Associated Students on Monday estimates books will make up about 41 percent of revenue, equivalent to about $3.66 million.
“If we are to survive as a local, independent campus-supported operation, textbooks, while always remaining a vital part of our mission, can no longer be the primary focus of our contribution to the campus community,” Meyers wrote in the email sent to faculty and staff.
While it is anticipated the store will be contributing about $162,000 to the A.S. reserves at the end of the current term, the continued reduction of the store’s overall budget is an indication that innovation will need to replace the gap left by textbook sales, said Keaton Bass, A.S. vice president for business and finance.
The survey, along with the focus groups that will follow its completion, are ways to get the campus involved in that conversation.
“We may be a corporation, but we’re incorporated by you,” Bass said. “Students are our shareholders and stakeholders. It’s your business, and we want you to be a part of it.”
<strong>New textbooks</strong>
Since faculty, staff and administrators received the survey April 30, there have been about 460 responses, Meyers said. Students will receive the survey in the fall.
“We wanted to move it back so that finals wouldn’t be a distraction,” he said.
A majority of the responses received so far outlined pricing as a common concern, Meyers said.
Textbook prices are a leading contributor to the Wildcat Store being perceived as too expensive, A.S. Director David Buckley said.
Internet sales have enabled publishers to bypass traditional outlets and sell directly to students, leaving shops like the Wildcat Store unable to remain competitive with their pricing, Meyers said.
Customers may have to get used to the idea of losing ownership over course materials in the long run, he said.
Many publishers are offering rentals protected by digital-rights management services that would deactivate the product after a set time period.
“In some cases, whatever you rent will deactivate after six months,” Meyers said.
The growth of massive open online courses, or MOOCS, might accelerate this transition, he said.
In preparing for the shift to digital materials, the store is looking into expanding its tablet sales, he said.
<strong>Looking ahead</strong>
Most people think of the store as just providing textbook rentals, Meyers said.
“That model isn’t working,” he said.
The survey is a first step in assessing how the store can change its offerings to serve the campus, Meyers said.
In addition to the “O-Zone,” a section of the convenience store dedicated to health food, the relocation of the textbook department to the main floor may help customers see the greater range of what the store offers, Bass said.
“We definitely see some advantages to having textbooks at the heart of our store,” he said, “even if they’re not the heart of our store.”
<hr />
Nicholas Carr can be reached at
