Textbook delivery agency launches with few orders

Starting this semester, students can bypass chafed fingers and sore arms when they buy textbooks — for a price.

For 15 percent of the total book cost and $5 for delivery, students can fill out an order form from the newly formed Textbook and Pequod Delivery Agency website to have their books delivered to their dorm rooms.

Dave Baker '08 and Claire Rein-Weston '07 conceived of the idea after a summer brainstorming session. They launched the agency this semester with the support of Sean Weaver, who is the director of student agencies/special projects, and Elizabeth Soles, Weaver's assistant. Eugene Gokhvat '07 of the Princeton Computer Agency designed the website.

"There wasn't necessarily a large demand," Baker said, "but we felt that it would just make life a little easier for the students."

Since the agency went public, nine orders have been placed, according to the two managers. They said they might have to hire more employees to assist with deliveries once demand increases.

By letting students skip lines and avoid "the mad rush in the U-Store, which can be really busy and hectic," the agency hopes its services will appeal to students, Rein-Weston said.

Students opting to use the service can order used or new books and may use the agency's invoice as a receipt to return books, though they can't recover the additional delivery costs.

Most of the agency's customers hail from notoriously distant areas of campus like Forbes College. The managers said they anticipated their service would cater to such clientele.

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Baker added that the timesaving perks of the service might also prove useful "for seniors bogged down in their thesis work."

But the idea has encountered some skepticism from students who feel that textbooks are already expensive enough without the additional surcharge.

"Fifteen percent on my book bill is a lot of money," Mathey resident Anna Bialek '09 said.

Cost aside, other students said they are not as averse to the book-purchasing process as might be expected. "Even if it were free, there's a certain joy to shopping for my books," Bamidele Otemuyiwa '08 said.

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Bialek agreed. "I like going and picking out books myself, and I'm not sure whether [the agency] is filling a huge need," she said.

As word of the agency spreads, some students also worry that the service reinforces the view that Princeton students are upper class and accustomed to luxury.

Albert Wang '07 said the agency might be perceived by some people as "very Princetonian."

"It almost confirms the stereotype that Princeton students ... need other people to fetch things for them," he said.

Other students said carrying their books have practical benefits. "I don't go to the gym as it is, so I feel like I should be active enough to carry my own books," Sara Viola '08 said.

Baker and Rein-Weston emphasized that this semester is still a "trial run" for the agency. They are still making changes and improvements, which will include streamlining and clarifying the online-ordering process.

At some point, if the demand rises sufficiently, the managers expect that costs will probably fall.

"We're still working out all the kinks," Rein-Weston said.