Bookstore prepares for buy-backs

By Travis Fick
News Editor

The Saint Mary’s University Barnes and Noble bookstore has started to buy back textbooks from students in anticipation for the next semester, said Donna White, bookstore manager.

Each year, the Barnes and Noble bookstore buys back a certain percentage of textbooks from students in anticipation for the next semester. White said the bookstore purchases textbooks from students if the class is offered the next semester and if the professor has indicated that he or she would like to use the same textbook.

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After receiving professors’ book orders, the Barnes and Noble staff then enters the information into a sales database that tells them the quantity of each textbook that was sold to students. “We will buy back a certain percentage of textbooks because we know that a certain percentage of students will keep their textbooks,” said White. “The average buy-back percentage is between 70 to 80 percent.”

The price the students receive is based on the prices from wholesalers, said White. Students who choose to sell their textbooks back to the bookstore will generally receive about 50 percent of the purchase price. However, if professors will not be using the textbook and if the edition has not changed, then students will receive 25 percent. Students are also able to check to see if their textbooks will be bought back by going online to the bookstore’s website.

Major concerns that White hears about the bookstore include that textbooks are overpriced, that the editions change too often and that the high ­­prices are a way for the bookstore to get extra money from students. White said textbook prices are set by the books’ publishers and are immediately marked up by the Barnes and Noble system. Other factors, such as the quality of paper, the printing process and ink used for photos and charts, can account for price markup on textbooks.

White said that edition changes are one of the most frustrating aspects of textbooks because students will often blame the bookstore and their professors for the new edition. “The common misconception is that publishers switch around chapters and call it a new edition,” said White. “Professors do not want the textbooks to change because they have formed their curriculum to the older edition. In certain areas, such as the sciences, new information and technology comes out that is added to the textbook.”

White has implemented the policy for employees to treat the customers the same way they would want to be treated, which is to show respect for the customer.

The bookstore would like to hear from students if they have any concerns.