University Bookstore sales take slight drop

TigerTech sales have helped keep overall revenue from dropping.

By Jared Grafman

Published Dec. 11, 2009

University Bookstore's sales are down 5.7 percent from last year due to a number of reasons, Student Auxiliary Services spokeswoman Michelle Froese said.

In addition to the new location's lack of walk-through traffic, Froese said clothes sales were down this year and departments were buying in bulk to save costs.

"We don't want to blame athletics, but when you have a high-performing athletic team you sell more clothes," Froese said. "And that hasn't really happened this year. The better the team does, the more people buy."

Froese said another reason for the decline in sales is a general drop in spending at MU.

"Spending has declined from departments across campus," Froese said. "Everybody's watching their budget, so that affects sales of supplies and technology from the bookstore."

Although the bookstore's overall sales figures are down, some types of products' demand have increased.

"Used book sales are up, but new book sales are down," Froese said. "That's good, but obviously, because used books cost less, it's going to affect our overall sales figures."

TigerTech hasn't experienced the same drop in sales as the bookstore, mainly due to peripheral items, such as iPods, Froese said.

"On accessory items you have a 10 or 20 percent profit margin compared to about 5 percent for computers and we've sold a lot of accessory or peripheral items," Froese said.

TigerTech Assistant Manager John Adams said certain programs have kept the store's sales stable.

"Our Summer Welcome sales period remained strong, thanks in part due to programs like 'Let Your Major Be Your Guide' and to our strong partnerships with department leadership across campus," Adams said.

He said TigerTech also attributes its decrease in sales to the state of the nation's economy and a reduction in spending from other departments.

"In compliance with the chancellor's recommendation to reduce spending, we have seen a decrease in business from departmental fund sources," Adams said.

Freshman Miriam Merens said increased advertising of sales could cause more people to visit the bookstore.

"They could have more sales besides those just on game days, because the clothes are expensive," Merens said.

Adams said TigerTech already has had some advertised sales throughout the semester.

"This fall we've had several events and sales, including our 'Call of Duty' tournament in conjunction with the release of 'Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,'" Adams said. "We've had sales and giveaways for each of these events and are already planning more events for the next semester."

University Bookstore is one of five university bookstores run under the UM system. One bookstore is located at Missouri University of Science and Technology, one at Stephens College and two at UM-Kansas City.

The University Bookstores as a whole returned 9 percent net income last year, with University Bookstore at MU returning 15 percent.

"We pride ourselves on being able to return a higher percentage of net income than other schools bookstores, which is typically 3 to 4 percent," Froese said.