Students who entered the campus bookstore at the beginning ofthe year to pick up a copy of a monstrous Biology 13 required textand their very own "Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice" may havenoticed a few changes on their way downstairs.
Sparkly flip-flops, colorful notebooks, totes, paper lanterns,pajamas, and pink decorative pillows embroidered with the words"Sisters Forever" are just a few of the new products introduced atthe book store this year.
"We just figured we'd sell more products students are lookingfor," Assistant Manager Frank Moore said.
A few new name brands have also been recruited to providestudents with more variety as well as boost sales. The recentlyintroduced, recognizable brands include David & Goliath,Levi's, Sketchers, and Glamour Girl.
"The bookstore is managed by Barnes & Noble," Moore said."They have marketing sessions and make all the buying decisions. Wehave the option of selecting what lines we bring in."
According to the Higher Education Retail Market Facts &Figures of 2004, released by the National Association of CollegeStores (NACS), "other merchandise" --
like the aforementioned sparkly flip-flops-accounted for 6.27percent of product sales in the entire college store market, or$675 million in sales. This figure is higher than sales of "studentsupplies" (6.25%) and "general/trade books" (4.29%).
Many bookstores, banking on a student's appreciation ofconvenience, have begun expanding the "other merchandise" slice ofthe pie graph, introducing an array of products besides coursematerials to better meet students' needs.
Moore is optimistic that the new items will do just that. "Sales[of the new products] have been fairly well," Moore said.
It seems that the change is not exclusive to the Tuftsbookstore, either. Two T stops away at the Harvard Coop, shopperscan find a golf department as well as a Clinique counter as theystroll through the usual university-themed gear.
However, though there may no longer be an issue of availability,the small detail of expense may still persist. On their way toclass, Juniors Divya Arora and Nivedita Gunturi briefly browsedthrough the sandals displayed near the front of the store. "They'renot reasonable," said Arora, flipping over the price tag. "But it'sgood for them to have."
Gunturi agreed. "It's good to have if you're in a crunch andneed something fast, but the only ones that are reasonable arethese," she said, pointing to a row of "Gummy Bear" flip-flops.(The multicolored pair will only set students back $3.98.)
Though junior Melissa Marver has not purchased any of the newproducts, she does admit that convenience can be a factor inshopping. "I don't generally buy those anyway, but if I needed themI might, because it's right there," Marver said.
"I've bought some school supply things [at the bookstore], butmostly out of convenience because I don't have a car," Marver said."I wouldn't by choice because it's so overpriced."
"You just don't 'shop' at the bookstore," sophomore ErikJorgensen agreed. "And if you did, you'd end up spending as much on[the merchandise] as you do on tuition. It's usually more expensivethan buying it elsewhere."
The question is thus raised: just how much is convenience worth?The kitten-heeled, neon sandals will put a $17.98 dent in yourpocket, whereas a similar version can be found at Old Navy, pricedat $4.99 in neon green, and $12.50 for a black or white pair.
Nonetheless, sophomore Danielle Cunningham, a salesrepresentative at the bookstore, has found that "sales [of the newproducts] have been really well, especially of the flip-flopsbecause it's still relatively warm weather."
As Cunningham works the register, she notices that "the hairaccessories and the cosmetics have also been successful." JuniorJohn Valentine, a fellow sales representative, agreed. "The skincare products have been doing very well, surprisingly," Valentinesaid.
With all the hustle and bustle of a new semester, not everyonehas noticed the difference to the Tufts bookstore, however. "Youmean they have stuff that doesn't say Tufts there?" junior Liz Ooasked.
"I didn't really notice," Jorgensen said. "When I go to thebookstore it's usually a mission -- get in, get out."
"The only thing I really get there is books," Jorgensenadded.
Though she believes the new products to be a successfulinvestment, Cunningham observes that it's really the Tuftsmemorabilia that students look for, and believes it to be thesteadiest seller. "The sweatshirts and sweatpants always do well,"she said.
In fact, NACS reports that 9.96 percent of college sales isdevoted to insignia merchandise, a percentage higher than that"other merchandise."
Valentine noticed that the store had to restock on many insigniaitems after the rush period. "Last year was a big year for anythingin brown and blue," he said. "We're also bringing in a lot of[insignia] stuff with a vintage look for this year."
Though it is not the sole distributor of fashion flip-flops, theTufts bookstore does have a virtual monopoly on all insigniamerchandise. "All the Tufts memorabilia is [at the bookstore], soif I wanted to showcase my Tufts pride on my clothes, drinkbottles, or pens, just think of all the Tufts Nalgenes out there,"Oo said. "The only place to get them is the bookstore."
Students seem to be receptive to the school spirit-inspiredoutfits. "At the beginning of this year, I realized I owned noTufts paraphernalia, because I didn't bother last year," Jorgensensaid. "So, I bought a t-shirt and I wear it now with pride."
Oo believes the Tufts gear to be popular among fellowundergrads. "I see people wearing 'Jumbo' sandals. They're cute,and you can't go wrong with flip-flops," Oo said. "A littleoverpriced, but we love them!"
Oo admits, however, that her Tufts apparel purchases can be fewand far between, estimating her trips to the bookstore as being "afew times a year, whenever I wanted something else that says'Tufts.'"
Marver agrees that she purchases Tufts gear infrequently,especially now that she is in her third year at the university."I've bought a couple of sweatshirts, but not for a while," Marversaid. "I feel like generally apparel shopping is a freshmenthing."
Though he hasn't purchased a great deal of non-course relatedproducts, Jorgensen does wish the bookstore would work on its"really slim selection of bath stuff, such as shampoo. I always endup having to travel far for that kind of thing," Jorgen said. "Itwould be nice if the bookstore had more of that."
The bookstore is hopeful that it has made the right decision inexpanding its inventory. "I think this is definitely going to be apermanent change," Moore said. "Next semester, you'll probably seea lot more stuff."
