Guide to Campus Store Models

Since the inception of collegiate retail dating back to 1745, campus stores have traditionally offered a wide range of products and services that included: 

“Course Materials” 

Required and recommended textbooks and essential course-required supplies.

“General Merchandise” or “GM” 

Emblematic clothing and gifts decorated with the school name or logo, “trade books” (not required for class), school and office supplies, electronics and technology products, graduation products, and convenience items such as snacks, candy, beverages, and health and beauty aids.

"Campus Services” 

Typically anything that the store offered that was not a “product” with a cost and retail, such as gift cards, event tickets, bus passes, and rentals.

Regardless of the campus store operational model, the campus store plays an important role in supporting the institution’s academic mission and contributing to student success. 

Traditional Store Management Models 

There have been three basic management models in the past and these still exist today serving a majority of colleges and universities:

Independent Stores

These stores have a direct relationship with the college or university served and include stores that are owned and operated by the institution as well as those operated as a cooperative, or owned by an auxiliary services corporation within the institution. These stores may also be known as “institutional stores”. 

Outsourced Stores

Also known as “contract managed” or “leased” stores, these stores are operated contractually on behalf of an institution by a private for-profit corporation that typically pays the institution a financial commission or rental fee. These chain store companies take advantage of uniformity, economies of scale, and centralized resources to generate a return on investment to shareholders or owners.

Private Stores

Whereas independent and outsourced stores operate as the “official” bookstore and serve an institution directly, private stores – also known as “off campus stores” – serve one or more schools indirectly as a private enterprise. Private stores are typically located conveniently adjacent to a campus of an institution with larger enrollment where the marketplace offers greater competitive opportunity.

Within each of these models, most stores offer an in-store and eCommerce shopping experience for customer convenience. Many stores also provide lockers for secure online order pickups and vending machines that can sell a variety of products. 

Financial Models

In addition to understanding the prevalent management models as described above, another important context is financial model under which a store operates.

Both outsourced and private stores necessarily need to generate a positive net income, or they risk insolvency. Independent stores operate within the much larger organization – the college or university it serves – so other financial models can apply.

According to the CAS Campus Store Standards[1]:

“Campus stores must collaborate with the campus administration to define the store’s mission by affirming the financial model and expected outcome of the store to generate net income, break-even, or receive institutional support for provision of valued services.”


[1] Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS), 2024 (V11.1), “CAS Standards & Guidelines: Campus Stores, p. 6.


Independent store financial models include:

Generate Net Income 

The expectation is for the campus store to generate a positive net income after expenses. The net income is commonly reinvested into the institution since there are no owners or shareholders.

Break-Even 

The campus store mission is cost recovery – neither earning a net income, nor requiring institutional subsidy.

Subsidized

For varying reasons, a store may not be expected to generate net income or achieve break-even, and receives a subsidy from the institution. This is an intentional strategy by the institution, often to achieve a higher level of service than would otherwise not be possible.

Many factors can affect the financial model an institution chooses for the campus store’s mission, including the type of institution, the size of the student enrollment, the popularity of the athletic teams, and the socioeconomic status of the alumni, the students, and their families and supporters. For example, campus store serving a large enrollment university with nationally recognized sports teams has a much better opportunity to generate a positive net income.

Hybrid Store Management Models

Traditional collegiate retail has evolved from physical “bricks & mortar” stores to a combination of physical stores with online sales channels, also known as “click and mortar” or “bricks and clicks”. 

This has led to alternative “hybrid” campus store models with many potential variations, such as:

A man is standing behind a counter in a store.

Independent GM-Only & Virtual Course Materials

This model combines an independent store that sells general merchandise in a physical bricks & mortar store and an eCommerce site with an outsourced virtual store component for course materials (CM).  

The virtual CM store can fulfill all course material needs, including both digital and print or exclusively sell digital content with the GM-only store responsible for selling minimal print materials, as needed.  

Ideally, the physical GM-only store also plays an integrated support role for the virtual CM store, providing customer service and order distribution for the convenience of students and faculty and to enhance foot traffic in the store.

Institutionally & Outsourced Jointly Managed Stores

One portion of the physical and online store operation is managed by the institution – typically general merchandise – and another area – typically course materials – is outsourced to a business partner who may also operate both physical and online sales channels. This model is less common.
A man is sitting at a desk in front of a laptop computer writing on a piece of paper.
Two women are posing for a picture together and smiling for the camera.

Outsourced GM-Only Store & Virtual Course Materials Store

An outsourced partner manages the physical GM-only campus store and eCommerce site. A second outsourced partner provides course materials in a virtual-only store online.

100% Virtual

This hybrid model eliminates the physical store entirely and replaces those services with one or more online only ordering portals for all categories of merchandise. Typically, no inventory is maintained on campus nor is there a campus pickup location. This could include one or multiple outsource partners for the virtual stores. This model is much less common due to the reduced convenience, lack on on-site services, and because most customers prefer to “touch and feel” most merchandise before making a purchase.
A man is sitting at a desk in front of a laptop computer writing on a piece of paper.

Evaluating Campus Store Models

Because every situation will have unique qualities, it’s best to consider the advantages and disadvantages of a campus store model. Typical questions to ask include:

  • Pricing & Textbook Affordability

    How well does the model strategically keep prices as low as possible for students? 


    Does the solution guarantee effective use of key techniques, including online price comparison tools, rental textbooks, and quality digital options, as well as customized special ordering services for other merchandise. 


  • Service Delivery

    How well do the services delivered meet the needs of the campus, including delivery time for items needed that are not sold off the shelf? How might delivery delays impact student learning?


    Beyond offering consistently excellent customer service, the biggest factor when comparing alternatives is having the items when customers need them; remote fulfillment models will affect this.


  • Staffing

    Since the staffing levels directly impact service delivery at critical times (rush) and the on-site expertise of staff will influence the quality of services provided, how will these be accommodated? 


    To ensure the delivery of excellent service, will the on-site staff have the expertise and authority to adjust staffing levels to match the business cycle and meet the needs of the customer, supported by sufficient and qualified remote staff (where applicable)?


  • Flexibility & Customization

    Large corporations generate efficiency and profitability in part through uniformity, so how important is the need for a solution that can adapt to any unique needs a campus may have? 


    The term “cookie cutter” is often used to describe a corporate chain because the efficiencies and productivity come from the uniformity that is replicated across multiple stores. How well can variations be accommodated?


  • Inventory Investment & ROI

    While selling retail inventory to a business partner may be an attractive option for a cash-strapped institution, how can the true cost recovery of this sale be evaluated? Will the ROI of this one-time gain exceed the potential profitability of traditional customer sales? 


    Independent stores are as capable of effectively managing inventory and reducing risk as a large corporation, given the appropriate expertise and resources. When evaluating the ROI of an inventory sale, there are many aspects that must be considered in advance such as the cost basis that will be used, if there are any exclusions, and how the potential gross margin earned compares with an alternate investment of the same equity.


  • Branding & Communication

    Since any potential business partner will be representing the school, how will the branding and public image expectations of the institution be monitored and enforced?

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