CSC Update: June 2023
CSC Update is a regular communication from Campus Stores Canada to keep members informed of what is happening in the industry and what their national industry association is working on.
IN THIS ISSUE:
Update from Top Hat
On May 23rd, many of you may have received an update from Top Hat regarding their recently launched Top Hat eTexts. The communication caused a lot of confusion as it suggested that Top Hat was pulling their eBooks from 3rd party companies like CEI and VitalSource. A number of you have since followed up with Top Hat to seek clarification. Members discussed their findings in the Course Materials list in Member Space.
Here is a quick summary of the findings:
They are dropping the eBook format that is delivered in PDF/flat format and replacing it with an eText format which is a more interactive format of the book without instructors having to commit to use the interactive platform.
If you see “bundle” on the name, that means it is an eBook + interactive.
Billing works the same way.
Code redemption steps are changing to link student directly to the purchased eText instead of having them locate it themselves in their catalogue. Here are the steps if you do not have a Top Hat join code:
Find your textbook at https://tophat.com/catalog
Click on “Get eText”
Select Student: Purchase this eText or redeem using access key.
Follow sign-up instructions.
After sign-up is completed, select redeem access key.
We were encouraged to send our list of current eBooks and they would simply tell us the eText equivalent ISBN.
Some other information:
If the book has interactive components on it, the instructors will need a special link (works like course ID), so the students will be able to redeem their code that was purchased from the bookstore.
The reps said that they will reach out to the instructors to help set this up.
For eBook, no special link needed, they can just go to the Top Hat website and enter the code - no links needed.
For the print version (hard copy), it will be only print, the print is never bundled with the code.
If you want to talk to someone yourself, contact Sarah (sarah.saftich@tophatmonole.com) who can explain it to you and answer any of your questions.
Thank you to Madeleine Miller (Conestoga College) and Winarni Prajitno (Douglas College) for their great intel.
Bookware User Group Session
Madeleine Miller (Conestoga College) is organizing a Bookware Session on June 20th at 1:00 pm Eastern Time.
This will be a member lead session with no formal agenda. Representatives from Bookware will not be in attendance. This will be an open discussion to allow members to ask each other questions about the system, share projects they are currently working on, and talk about successful projects they have completed.
This session is also open to members who don’t currently use Bookware but want to listen in on the discussion and ask questions.
Campus Stores Conference 2024
As reported in the May Update, CSC’s 2024 Campus Stores Conference will be held in MONTREAL, QUEBEC on January 29 – February 1, 2024. The conference will be held at Le Centre Sheraton Montreal.
This is the first time since 2008 and only the 3rd time in CSC’s history that we have taken the annual tradeshow event outside of the GTA in Ontario. While we love Toronto and the GTA, CSC can no longer afford to host our show in the region. CSC has been forced to look elsewhere with Montreal being our destination of choice for the 2024 show.
CSC is in the process of putting its plans and schedule together for the show. We will have information available to members this month to help you start planning your attendance at the show. If you have specific questions now about the show, feel free to reach out to us anytime by emailing greg@campusstores.ca. We would be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Member and Industry News
This section of our CSC Update is a place where we can share your news. Share with us information including who is retiring from your store, who is new to your store, what is happening in the industry, share an interesting article you think other members should see. Please email greg@campusstores.ca information you would like highlighted in our next CSC Update.
News for this month!
Retiring this month
Congratulations to Debbie Job of John Abbott College who recently retired. We wish her much happiness as she enters a life of new experiences and leisure.
New Positions
Congratulations to Grace Quinn Cameron who is the new Manager at John Abbott College Campus Store.
Welcome to Jeffrey Matthews who joined the team at Camosun College Bookstore this month.
Welcome to Maria Santiago who joined the team at Fanshawe College Campus Store as their new GM Buyer.
Welcome to Jacqueline Gable who joined the team at Brock University Campus Store as their Lead Buyer & Customer Success – Course Materials.
Welcome to Erin Hall who is leading the team at Lethbridge College as their new Bookstore Manager.
Recent Posts in Member Space
Danielle Brown at Dalhousie University asked on the Course Materials List if anyone is collecting donation books from students. They previously changed from working with Better World Books to Textbooks for Change, but when inquiring about having them pick-up 2 pallets of books, they are being told they need to ship them at their own cost which is new. You can reply to Danielle by emailing danielle.brown@dal.ca.
Sam Willis of Lakeland College is asking if anyone has a good contact who deals with campus stores at UPS. You can respond to Sam at sam.willis@lakelandcollege.ca.
Burton Haggith at Fanshawe College asked on the Managers List if you have supplies or tech items (charging cables, headphones, etc.) in vending machines on campus. He’s looking for a vendor who has this type of vending machine. Please contact Burton at bhaggith@fanshawec.ca.
There was a discussion on the Course Materials List regarding the Top Hat Update. We reported on this earlier in this update.
Francois Beliveau at Fanshawe College had a question on the Managers List for members who still have buybacks. Do you ask for student ID? They asked for ID when they were still buying back 'cash' only. They have been buying back crediting credit and debit cards for years. They wonder if it is still necessary to ask for ID as there is a digital transaction. You can reach out to Francois by emailing fbeliveau@fanshawec.ca.
Sam Willis of Lakeland College asked the agriculture schools on the Members List where they are ordering custom sorting sticks. Please respond to Sam at sam.willis@lakelandcollege.ca.
Danielle Brown of Dalhousie university is wondering how others are dealing with the long lead times and no return policy for Thomson Reuters? If you have thoughts, suggestions, or techniques you’re using you can email Danielle at danielle.brown@dal.ca
Sam Willis of Lakeland College also posted on the Members List an issue where a repeat customer keeps purchasing the same item over and over online. They suspect they may be using a stolen credit card to purchase product to resell it. Has your store experienced this? How do you handle it? Is the merchant held liable if the cards are in fact stolen? Please respond to Sam at sam.willis@lakelandcollege.ca.
Executive Director’s Report
Board Strategic Planning Session
The CSC Board met virtually on May 15th and 16th to establish a Strategic Direction for CSC for the next three years. The new plan continues to focus on the same priority areas as the previous plan (Member Engagement / Vendor Relations / Institutional Advocacy), with the addition of a fourth priority focusing on Organizational Sustainability. Details of the plan are still being worked on by the Board. They will be made available to members once the plan is finalized.
One outcome from the planning process is that CSC will be producing an annual calendar for members. This calendar will include important dates and events, including dates for monthly virtual sessions starting in August. The calendar will be made available to members by the end of July.
Update Your Contact Information with CSC
Over the summer months, CSC will be updating our Member Space environment. Member Space was launched in 2020 with the goal of being a place for members and vendor partners to interact, engage, share information, and gain access to member documents. While our initial goals were accomplished, we realize we need to make some tweaks and enhancements to the environment to make it more user friendly for our members.
As part of this update, we are asking for your help! There have been a lot of changes within our industry in the past three years, particularly with the people who work in it. We need to update the contacts we have listed for your store. Please check your store's profile in Member Space and make sure the contacts you have listed under your store are correct. Email google@campusstores.ca if you can’t find your store’s profile and you want CSC to email you a list of your store contacts.
UPS AMERICA LABOUR NEGOTIATIONS
The end of the labour agreement between UPS in the United States and their Teamsters is on July 31, 2023. We hope for an amiable resolution of contract negotiations, but recognize its potential impact on shipping and logistics around the world. This action does not have a direct impact on UPS and its Canadian workers, though if no resolution can be found it will likely cause knock-on effects. We will continue to keep apprised of this situation but recommend that you examine your operations closely to continue to provide the level of service students, instructors, and administrators come to expect.
If you are a store manager or director overseeing your store, please email greg@campusstores.ca a list of store contacts who should have access to CSC’s Member Space.
If you don’t have access to Member Space, please email greg@campusstores.ca for assistance.