The Weber State University Wildcat Store serves a diverse student body. Providing students with a variety of course material formats ensure the store can supply the materials that best fit student budgets and learning styles. Recently, we spoke with Wildcat Store Academic Supply Manager Sarah Tooker about how an MBS Premier Partnership benefits her store and helps them achieve their goals.
“We have everything from inclusive access to regular books, ebooks and OER. We believe really strongly at Weber State in supporting academic freedom and supplying enough format choices to serve all of our students. We have a very diverse population — people from all over. Everybody, from all walks of life, can go to Weber State, and we do everything we can to support them,” Tooker said. “We need to have a variety of materials for all kinds of learning styles and financial means. I have people come in who tell me ‘I cannot learn electronically. Can you help me?’ That’s where MBS comes in. I know I can get what I need for an affordable price for my students. If we don’t already have the book, I can always rely on MBS to have it. It is tremendous to be able to have service like that.”
MBS’ commitment to providing college stores with outstanding service was one of the main factors in choosing a Premier Partnership.
“MBS goes above and beyond. As a college bookstore, we work with a lot of publishers and wholesalers. To me MBS’ service is way above what anyone else does. Our rep understands the college store and reminds me of things like when there is the two-day shipping window. She doesn’t just let things fall by the wayside,” Tooker said. “Getting shipments from MBS is always quick and so accurate. I have been in my position for three years. I think we have had one book sent to us by mistake the entire time I have worked with MBS. There are other companies that we have had problem after problem after problem getting the right order. Having little to no problems with the products that we get is a huge benefit.”
For Tooker, the personalized attention and service she receives from MBS representatives helps her best serve her campus community.
“The entire time I have been here, we have had a really good relationship with MBS. We always have great customer service from our rep and the team that comes with her. Everyone is prompt about getting back to you when you email them — it’s not days later. Everything is really clear, and they communicate well,” Tooker said. “When we were discussing the partnership, they came in and we talked about it. They gave us an overview of what the Premier Partnership entailed. It really enhances the outstanding service we were already getting.
“I am most excited to start working with MBS’ Textbook Management Services (TMS). Right now, it is just me trying to figure everything out and our rep helps me, but I think working with TMS to hone those processes a little bit is going to be tremendous,” Tooker said. “We already get such great service right now. I’m excited to have a larger MBS team to work with. If they live up to the standard set by our rep, it will be game changing.”
As Tooker started to plan and prepare for buyback this term, she discovered a unique benefit of the Premier Partnership that she didn’t expect.
“The aspect of the Premier Partnership that I didn’t really anticipate was the marketing allowance. I think it is fantastic. Just the quantity of marketing materials available, the quality of the materials and how they are put together is phenomenal,” Tooker said. “There is such a wide array of materials to choose from. I had no idea that it was that extensive. When I first saw that there was a marketing allowance, I thought ‘Well okay. They are going to send us a little poster or something.’ It is so much more. There are so many choices. The marketing program is really cool. I don’t know how I am going to pick just one. They are all so great.”
