Seton Hall's bookstore has implemented a new system for ordering textbooks this semester which is meant to increase the availability of books for students.
Follet Higher Education Group, the company which supplies the bookstore with textbooks, has created a new backup sys- tem which makes available the inventories of over 900 bookstores nationwide in order to minimize out-of-stock scenarios for students, according to Follet's Seton Hall campus representative, Elio Distaola.
"Students at Seton Hall now have the reinforcement of 900 plus stores inventory to fulfill their orders," said Distaolo. All bookstores, that Follet manages, are now connected electronically, allowing students to receive books from them. The new system in place, it will ultimately save students time if a book is out-of-stock, according to Distaolo.
Some students have expressed concern over their book orders this year, as they are not used to waiting for books that are listed as "in-stock." "We should have been made more aware of the new system," said sophomore Matt Roome. "I ordered books online which were listed as 'in-stock,' and when it took nearly a week for my order to be ready for pickup, I assumed the books had been out- of-stock."
The new system notifies students that those books will be coming from elsewhere, and they may have to wait longer.
"With our new system in place, books might be coming from our warehouse, or even an- other bookstore, to the Seton Hall store for pickup," said Distaola. "We do notify customers of this potential fulfillment time in their confirmation email, but only a small percentage of those emails ever get read in detail."
Follett is aware that students have been facing issues with the new system, and are working to correct any issues that students may have, according to Distaola.
The company has assured students that it will ultimately be an advantage, bringing new options for ordering online.
"Since this was the first season of implementation, we're on the heels of an intensive review," said Distaola. "I'd say the bulk is simply getting used to a new process." There are some students looking forward to the convenience of the new system.
"Now that I know how the new system works, I'd be more inclined to order books online from the bookstore in the future," said sophomore Devin Joyce.
Follet encourages students to contact them in the event of any discrepancies in their orders.
Ethan Arnowitz can be reached at ethan.arnowitz@student.shu.edu
