When Margaret Clevenger was 8 years old, a trip to Follett’s Orange Bookstore meant getting pom-poms to cheer on the Syracuse University basketball team or choosing a Beanie Baby from the store’s display.

When she returned to SU as a college freshman, a trip to Follett’s meant purchasing textbooks for a new semester and finding gifts for her family.

But on Wednesday, a trip to Follett’s meant seeing empty shelves and browsing a small rack offering lanyards, binders and a few T-shirts for 75 percent off.

Follett’s, located in Marshall Square Mall, closed permanently after more than 20 years on Wednesday. Several factors, including competition from the SU Bookstore in the Schine Student Center and online textbook sellers, were responsible for the closing.

For Clevenger, a sophomore public relations major who lived in Syracuse for one year as a child, the closing was unfortunate for both sentimental and practical reasons.

Because she often went there with her family before basketball games or to meet her father for lunch, she said she bought her family members Christmas presents from the bookstore as a student.

‘It was funny to be like, ‘This is from Follett’s!’ because we’ve always gone there,’ she said.

She said her family was surprised to hear the bookstore was closing because it had been in business for so long.

‘It kind of sucks for students,’ she said, ‘because now we only have one option.’

Amy Jensen, a junior linguistics major, said having only one bookstore on campus could be problematic as well. She said she bought textbooks at Follett’s because the SU Bookstore often didn’t carry the books for her major.

‘I just hope Schine gets their act together and buys my books now that there are no other options,’ she said.

In terms of physical location, Follett’s also provided a convenient alternative option for many students.

Joanna Wang, a freshman marketing management major, said she stopped at Follett’s about once a week to buy novels or magazines because it was located between campus and her home downtown.

Jacob Bergman, a senior finance and accounting major, said he went to Follett’s often when he lived on East Genesee Street last year. Bergman said he also liked that Follett’s was conveniently located next to the Martin J. Whitman School of Management.

The closing has already had an effect on students, said Andrew Pellicciotti, a senior marketing management major. He said Follett’s sold casebooks, which contain compiled information on one subject, that the SU Bookstore does not sell. Because Follett’s was closing, however, it did not order the casebooks Pellicciotti needed for a class this semester, and he eventually had to print more from online.

He said the SU Bookstore now has a monopoly on campus and could potentially price books higher without Follett’s as competition.

‘Teachers might have to think about not changing their book every semester or every year,’ he said.

Clevenger said she will try to buy her books online next semester.

‘It’s not that I would always buy my books (at Follett’s),’ she said. ‘I just liked to have the option.’

nagorny@syr.edu 

Published on February 22, 2012 at 12:00 pm