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The Follett Textbook Rental Program
In Fall 2009, Follett launched a new pilot rental program at select schools based on their campus profile, offering tremendous up-front savings to our student customers - over 50% savings over the cost of purchasing a new book. Today, Rent-A-Text is the nation’s largest and fastest growing bookstore rental program in the industry.
The Fall 2010 - Strong Results
By The Numbers
The growing trend toward rental has driven demand through Follett's multiple sales channels, including independent bookstores and virtual bookstores in the higher education and K-12 markets. In only its first month of availability, Follett has seen demand for textbook rental surpass expectations:
- Textbooks rented for Fall 2010: 1 million+
- Average number of textbooks rented each day: 47,000+
- Student savings across Follett bookstores: $45 million+
- Follett-managed bookstores offering textbook rental: 750+
Strong Satisfaction with Rental
Students expressed value in textbook rental and found the process to be simple and policies to be fair. In fact, the most common feedback from Follett’s online survey was that students wanted more textbooks available for rent. Following are additional highlights from the survey:
- Students like renting textbooks from their campus bookstore: 99 percent of students said they would rent again from the bookstore. Additionally, of students who have rented textbooks both from the bookstore and from another source, 83 percent said renting from the bookstore was the same or better than renting elsewhere.
- Cost-savings are significant: 96 percent of students agreed or strongly agreed that renting textbooks saved them money.
- Students are using their savings to further their education: 40 percent of respondents said they spent part or all of the money they saved on other items in the bookstore. Of these, 76 percent said they bought more course materials.
Advantages to Students
In addition to the attractive up-front cost-savings, Follett has applied over 135 years of industry knowledge to add value to our rental pilot and our student customers. Unlike other rental programs, students will have the option of returning to the store and converting their rental into a standard sale until the end of the refund period. The student will receive a refund of their rental fee and be charged regular retail price based upon the original condition of the book rented (new or used). Also, Rent-A-Text allows highlighting, taking notes, and the normal "wear and tear" associated with coursework - and also presents a sustainable choice, extending the textbook life cycle.
Advantages to Your Institution
Follett's Textbook Rental Program answers the growing demand for cost-saving programs. As we've seen, pressures from both the global economy and pieces of legislation like the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) have created a growing demand for both transparency and affordable course materials. In addition, we have seen a downward trend in sell-through (the amount of copies sold based on total enrollment of a class.) We're confident this new purchase option will drive sell-through of course materials, and thus could positively impact the number of students per class equipped with course materials to maximize their education. By adding another low-cost option for students, the bookstore can become a more competitive resource and will also reinforce the bookstore's position as provider of choice for students' course material needs. While competition has increased, only a student's college store guarantees them the correct textbook and accompanying supplemental material that a faculty member may require. Follett's Textbook Rental Program provides the lowest up-front cost to students - directly on your campus - with potential to recapture student customers who have left the bookstore channel to acquire their materials.
Have Questions? Contact CampusRelations@fheg.follett.com