1. Staying Independent: What to do when
you campus considers outsourcing
Presented by:
Tom Bauer,CCR, Director, SMCCCD Bookstores
Nancy Wichmann, Director, SDCCD Bookstores
CACS Mega Regional Meeting
November 5-8, 2006

2. OFFICIAL DISCLAIMER
This is NOT an anti-lease operator presentation.
We realize that there are bookstores that
operate successfully as outsourced auxiliaries.
However, it is our contention that the best run
college bookstore is the self operated,
independent college bookstore. The intent of this
presentation is to arm self-op store managers
with as much information as possible to keep
their store an independent auxiliary.

3. THE REALITY…
 “As the Vice-Chancellor of Business
Services or any person in a like position,
you cannot be afraid to ask the question if
outsourcing would be good for the campus
or district from a financial and service
perspective”.*
*James Keller, Vice Chancellor for Business Affairs, San Mateo
County Community College District

4. The best defense is a strong offense
YOU AND YOUR STAFF ARE THE BEST DEFENSE TO OUTSOURCING
• As you prepare for another successful semester, focus on what you and
your staff do for your campus community everyday.
• You are the expert.
• You have the relationship and know your faculty, staff and students better
than anyone, especially an outside company.
• You know the edition changes and which packages will work for your
campus.
• You know which course related supplies are appropriate.
• You know where students will be looking for alternative purchase options.
• You hold the hold information.
• You know the Why, Where and How for you campus. You know because
YOU are the expert!

5. What is my role in this offense?
• Educate, educate, educate...you are the expert
on bookstores. If you are getting the info out
there, there is no reason to look anywhere else
for answers.
• Get involved at all levels-Board meetings,
student meetings, department presentations.
You have to be out there in the public eye at all
times.
• Know your business, know your numbers, brag
about your successes…constantly. If you don’t,
how will anyone know how good you are?

6. What meetings should I and my staff
be attending?
Board Meetings
President Cabinets
Finance Meetings
Dean’s Councils
Department Meetings
Faculty Training Sessions
Faculty Senates
Academic Senates
Student Governments
Sporting Events

7. What More Can I Do?
• Know your business, your numbers, what you
give back to the college and the students.
• Know how much money you have, where it is,
how it is spent; share that knowledge with all
relevant groups if possible.
• Have a business plan and a budget, publish it on
your website, share it with as many people as
possible.
• Talk about the benefits of your store to the
community as often as you can.

8. What Services do you provide?
Make a list of the services you provide.
Think about it, share it with others. How
many of these services would be provided
by a lease operated store given the fact
that many of the services are low revenue
generators if at all?
Here is a list of services provided by the
San Mateo District Bookstores:

9. Services of the SMCCCD Bookstores
• Quality Customer Service
• On-line Bookstore
• Textbook Rental Program
• Interdepartmental orders are delivered to the offices
• We pay for Trustees graduation regalia each year
• Assist with Graduation ceremony
• Special Promotions and Events year-round
• Underwriting the Loan-to-Own program (an interest free
computer purchasing program for SMCCCD employees)
• Apple and Dell Computer Sales at Educational Prices

10. Services of the SMCCCD Bookstores
• Software at Educational Prices
• Donations and Support to Campus Events, Scholarship
Funds, etc.
• Bookstores pay for armored transport of college
business office deposits
• Bookstores financially supports the Public Library
System and augments the CFO salary
• Bookstore funds have been used for District needs ( one
example is; 1992 bookstore funds were used for
planning and designing Skyline building #5 when it was
going to be the student union with bookstore included)
• Transport/sell books for off-campus and weekend
courses (evenings and weekends)

11. Services of the SMCCCD Bookstores
• Author Presentation Book Sales at Lecture/Reading
Location
• Custom Publishing/Copyright Center
• Books-In-Print Accessibility
• Special Ordering
• Photo Copies
• Faxing (send and receive)
• Transparencies (black and Color)
• Laminating
• Rubber Stamps (Customized)
• Catalogue sales and mailings
• UPS/FedEx Shipping

12. Services of the SMCCCD Bookstores
• Recycle toner cartridges (after handling expense donate
remaining funds to donor campus)
• Check Cashing – with Floor Limits
• Cash Back on Debit Card – with Floor Limits
• Offer books for multiple campuses at Cañada (4 colleges
currently and more expected)
• Notary Public
• Donation of basic class required textbooks to the
campus library each semester
• Loan funds to library for purchase of copy machines
• Postage stamp sales with no margin

13. The Point
You do far more than you realize! Once
you put it all on paper, share it with
everyone. The self-op, independent store
does many things for a campus that
generate little revenue but provide
exceptional service. You have to be your
biggest cheerleader.

14. Ten Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing

15. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #1:
Lease operators will offer the community
better prices on textbooks, supplies,
clothing and convenience items than the
self-operated, independent campus
bookstore.

16. Misconception #1-The Fact
Independent Bookstores operate as non-profit
auxiliaries that are intended only to cover their
costs. Lease operated stores are for-profit; they
need to pay the university AND they need to
make a profit. Numerous pricing surveys have
shown that textbook prices at the vast majority of
leased stores are significantly HIGHER than the
self operated, independent store. The self-op
store and the college make the final decision
about margins. Leased stores observe margins
on textbooks up to 30%.

17. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #2:
A lease operator will provide better
customer service than the self operated,
independent store because they are
focused on customer service.

18. Misconception #2-The Fact
The self-op, independent store has college
employees devoted to the college
success. Service should be infinitely better
in the self-op, independent bookstore.
Leased stores have an incredibly high
turnover rate in management and an even
higher turnover rate in bookstore
assistants. The majority of their labor force
are part time, lower wage employees.

19. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #3:
Self-op, independent bookstores cost the
university more money than they bring in;
they are not self supporting and are a
financial drain on the university.

20. Misconception #3-The Fact
Self-op, independent bookstores are cost
covering auxiliaries. They pay for all costs
related to operation and support college
activities. Most self-op bookstores actually
contribute to the college's discretionary funds or
cover expenditures that the college would
otherwise have to cover. Whatever financial
surplus that remains goes back into the campus
community; a lease operator pays the rent and
meets its contractual obligations. Their surplus
goes back to the bottom line of the company.

21. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #4:
A lease operated bookstore will provide
more used books than the self-op,
independent college bookstore.

22. Misconception #4-The Fact
Barnes & Noble, Follett and Nebraska
Bookstores each own wholesalers that are
the primary and in many cases the only
source of used textbooks for the
bookstore. The self-op, independent store
sources from as many wholesale
companies as they deem appropriate.
Self-op, independent stores have more
access to used books and oftentimes,
higher used book sales and inventory.

23. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #5:
Lease operated bookstores have
expertise in textbook management. They
do a better job at procuring and managing
a textbook department and invest in
educating their staff in textbook
management.

24. Misconception #5-The Fact
Self-op, independents stores have
numerous educational resources for the
staff; NACS, CACS, Regional
Associations, C2O, ICBA, Context. Self-
op, independent stores invest a great deal
in educating their staff. The stability of the
independent store staff insures the
knowledge of the campus, the faculty, the
booklist…you have the history; they don’t.

25. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #6:
A lease operator will provide better
buyback prices for students.

26. Misconception #6-The Fact
As with the procurement of used books,
lease operated stores buy books for their
own wholesale company. Wholesale
prices at a leased store are often LOWER
than at the self-op store for the same
wholesaler. One has to wonder… why?
The self-op, independent store can use
multiple guides for buyback to offer
students the best prices for non adopted
textbooks.

27. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #7:
The variety and quality of general
merchandise will be improved with a
leased store.

28. Misconception #7: The Fact
Self-op stores buy from vendors that offer
the best price and quality. They often buy
from local vendors. Leased stores buy
from vendors that are corporately
approved based on a variety of factors;
savings to students not being the primary
factor in that choice. Pricing comparisons
are noted in both RFP’s. The comparisons
consistently show the self-op store has
lower prices than the leased store.

29. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #8:
Lease operated stores have unique,
independent websites that are interactive
and provide the students with state of the
art web ordering capabilities.

30. Misconception #8-The Fact
Leased stores all have the same basic
template for their websites, they are not
unique or innovative. Many provide only
textbook reservation capabilities and have
very limited merchandise offerings. Self-
op, independent stores have a number of
choices in providing e-commerce and
have much more interactive websites that
are managed by the store and not by a
corporate office.

31. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Myth #9:
If a store is leased and the community is
unhappy after a period of time, they can
always return to self-op status.

32. Misconception #9-The Fact
Once a university sells all the inventory to the
lease operator, sheds the staff salaries and
benefits, reapportions the financial reserves and
assets the bookstore owns and accepts the cash
of a lease operator at signing, it is almost
impossible to go back to self-op status. The
amount of money required is oftentimes more
than a university can spend on any auxiliary.
The only remedy is to lease to one of the other
two operators and hope for the best.

33. Common Misconceptions about
Outsourcing
Misconception #10:
A lease operator will provide the campus
with a brand new bookstore at no cost to
the college.

34. Misconception #10-The Truth
Nothing is free! Renovations are routinely
depreciated over the term of the contract as a
yearly expense. The store staff is required to
manage their sales and expenses so that it
optimizes profit for the company. In order to do
so, the store will have to cut salaries and
essential expenses in times of declining
enrollment or increased competition resulting in
reduced service to the campus community.

35. Ten Reasons for Keeping your Store
Self-Operated and Independent

36. Top Ten Reasons to Stay Self-Op
1. Your college bookstore exists as more than just a
profit-making arm of your institution. It is a unique part
of the institution. Its’ mission is to serve every student,
faculty and staff member. The campus store is an
academic, cultural and public relations resource as
well as a financial one.
2. Given that a lease operation's primary interest in
colleges and universities is running a successful, for-
profit business, it follows that service may be
secondary. Your bookstore can provide both profits
and service and you can control the balance of the
two.

37. Top Ten Reasons to Stay Self-Op
1. Your store provides many services to your institution, for
example: caps and gowns, alumni gifts, copy services, check
cashing, book buy back, and many others. Will a lease operation
provide these same services? Will they provide them with the
same genuine concern for the students, faculty and staff of your
institution?
2. Your bookstore supports various student organizations,
publications, campus and athletic events. Will a lease operator do
the same? Do they care about your students as much as your
own employees would?
3. The chain store mentality of the lease operators is simply not
compatible with a serious academic environment. Chain stores
systematically eliminate individuality and reduce operations to the
lowest common denominator consistent with their planned profits.
The interest of the contract management company will come
before that of your institution... students, faculty and staff.

38. Top Ten Reasons to Stay Self-Op
1. To be an exceptional campus you need an exceptional
bookstore. Chain stores do not generally produce
exceptional bookstores; they produce uniform ones in many
cases! To have a bookstore that maintains the diversity and
individuality of your campus, you must retain control!
2. Control is key to a successful bookstore. By keeping your
bookstore as an institutional/self-op concern, you control
pricing, hours, service and institutional image. You control
who is hired and how they are trained and managed. Prices
and profits can be managed at your discretion.
3. When a lease operation takes over, product selection can
decrease. By maintaining control you can provide a greater
"mix" of products which meets your students' needs and
you can respond quickly to changing trends!

39. Top Ten Reasons to Stay Self-Op
1. Shopping comparisons consistently show
leased stores charging more than institutional
stores for identical products. Are your prepared
to address the issue of increased prices with
your students and their parents?
2. Your Store identity and staff loyalty is crucial to
your success. Are you prepared to have a
revolving door of managers and store staff with
no real concern for the well-being of your
institution?
Remember...loyalty cannot be
contracted!

40. The Ball is in Your Court
• You need to dispel the myths on your
campus.
• You are not alone; there are numerous
resources to help an independent store
where the question of outsourcing has
come up. Store can contact NACS, CACS,
C20, ICBA and….

41. Your fellow stores that have survived
OTHER STORES THAT HAVE SURVIVED
• San Mateo Community College District
Bookstores-students and faculty turned
out in record numbers to defend the
stores.
• Contra Costa Community College District
Bookstores
• Brown University Bookstore-great website!
www.savethebookstore.org

42. Let’s Hear from the Resident Experts
Q&A with those who have been
through their own RFP.