Changes coming to MRU campus bookstore
The evolution of the publishing industry has caused the campus bookstore to continually adjust their business model to keep up with the times. “I’ve been in this industry a long time and there’s always something new on the horizon,” said Kathy Galbraith, Mount Royal University BookStore manager.
Textbook rentals
This could be handy for students who still haven’t peeled the plastic off their first-semester textbooks. Rental periods of 30, 45, 60, 90 or 125 days are currently available. Depending on the rental period, students could save up to 45 per cent of the cost of a new book.
Printing on-demand
The BookStore is hoping to have licenses for different publishers by mid-January. The licenses would be set-up through publishers and they would allow students to legally print copyright material on-campus. Proposed legislation, such as Bill C-32, will influence this process.
Custom publications
Students frustrated with paying for full textbooks will be happy to hear that the BookStore is looking to expand the number of custom publications available. The custom publications would combine chapters from other books and they would be used like the current coursepacks. “I think that’s the biggest complaint about textbooks right now is that you don’t use the whole thing,” Galbraith said.
Ebooks and online access codes
In the future, the BookStore may have more room to sell sweaters as sales of Ebooks and access codes for online material increased by more than 350 per cent last semester. Galbraith said the library would keep up with the growth of electronic learning materials.
