This semester the BYU-Hawaii Bookstore tried a new process of selling textbooks. The bookstore decided to open a window where a worker pulled books from shelves for students. The adjustment eased the searching process for students.The bookstore typically keeps the books inside the store, stacked on shelves with tags that label the book name, class number, teacher and other information a student needs to identify their book. The Bookstore managers plan to transform the store. Their strategy for change includes a possible entrance from the Seasider. To prepare for this future change, the bookstore has moved the textbooks into the storage closet behind the buy-back counter. Bookstore textbook buyer, Sharyn Asuao, explained, “We are thinking of actually having the capability of an online store where students can purchase their textbooks online.” She went on to say the counter this semester was a big change and hard for students to get used to, but as the days wore on, they started to give better feedback. Daniel Cooley, a senior in business from Washington, was a student who didn’t attempt to use the bookstore this semester. Instead of buying his books on campus, he said he preferred to purchase them on the Internet. “I think that they should just have a list and links online to buy all of our books. You can get them a lot cheaper that way,” said Cooley. However, the new book-buying process was well received by some students, including Leena Kilpelainen, a junior studying education from Calfornia. She said, “I thought the line was really efficient. I knew all of the books I needed before hand so it was easy to just tell them which ones I needed and then they got them for me.” She also said she was glad the store had all of the books she needed so it was a one-stop shop.Other students didn’t favor the new way of book buying, saying it seemed to make things more confusing. Payton Jones, a senior in hospitality and tourism management from Arizona, said, “I thought that the line was really long and they didn’t get me the right book right away. It just seemed to take longer than if I could have gone and picked the books myself.”
Writer: Lauren Steimle ~ Multimedia Journalist
