Word: cooped
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
This semi-annual shopping ritual always provokes a string of questions from student shoppers. How much of the Coop's merchandise is available elsewhere in the numerous smaller shops in the Square? How do Coop prices compare with those of other retailers...
This weekend, a team of Crimson reporters went to the Coop and some of its nearby competitors, and compiled comparative prices in four general categories: books, records, and office and drugstore supplies. What follows are the general findings from our excursions, Keep in mind that the Coop sends its members an annual rebate--last year's was 9.7 percent. In other words, when list-prices are the same at the Coop and another store, members get a better deal at the Coop...
...Everyone who goes to college thinks textbooks are priced too high," says James Argeros, the Coop's general manager. But he insists that prices are set by the manufacturers, not the retailers. Argeros cites the store's policy (posted in the textbook section, on the third floor of the back building) of selling texts at list price. He also notes that in a recent study conducted by the store's board of directors, Coop book prices were comparable with, if not slightly lower than, eight other Ivy and area colleges...
...Coop's adherence to this pricing policy, combined with the annual rebate, means "we lose money on books." Argeros adds...
Selecting about 100 books from 21 popular classes, our reporters found that the Coop almost always charges the price listed in Books in Print, an annual publisher's guide. Searching the shelves of other major bookstores in the Square--Harvard Book Store on the corner of Mass. Ave. and Plympton St., Paperback Booksmith on Brattle St., WordsWorth on the corner of Brattle and Mt. Auburn, and the WordsWorth 2 discount outlet down Mass. Ave. toward Central Square--we found that, in almost all cases, the Coop is the only supplier of textbooks in the area...