Preying on the throngs of first-years, and returning students as well, are wave upon wave of vendors' tables set up in a few choice locations on campus and flyers from Wings, Antonio's, D.P. Dough and just about every eatery in the valley other than Valentine plastered on bulletin boards, slipped under doors and taped to vending machines, hoping to suck up every spare dollar not spent on books, supplies, clothes or cologne.
Passing the tables in and outside Valentine where a local merchant peddles his Amherst apparel, I am reminded of the oft-asked question "Why don't we have a campus store?" As an RC in South, I've already fielded questions from first-years and parents alike as to whether there is a store on campus or whether the vulture-like vendors outside the campus center and Valentine are affiliated with the College. The smiles on the faces of new students coming bright-eyed to campus often sag when told that in order to buy anything, they have to go into town or down Route 9 to the commercial mecca known simply as "Hadley."
Indeed, I ask myself, why don't we have a campus store? Why can't we spend our hard-earned AC Dollars on pencils and notebooks? Why must we take out the Fleet or FirstMass card when we run out of staples? The Hungry Newt, Schwemm's and The Option have all had one or another degree of success. Why not start to sell other essentials in a similar setting, or even add pencils and pens to The Option's inventory? Even Hampshire, with a smaller student body and its alternative approach to just about everything, has a store in the basement of their library.
Despite all of these sometimes obvious and often highly compelling arguments in its favor, a campus store would likely hurt the College rather than help it.
The strongest (or at least the loudest) argument in favor of an on-campus store is the desire for students to be able to conduct all of their purchases without having to trek into town or hop on the PVTA. While it would be more convenient for some students to have a sort of general store somewhere on campus, such an option would only add fuel to the argument that Amherst is essentially an autonomous body, isolated from the rest of the world. If people think A.J. Hastings is too far from campus to even walk, heaven forbid those same students ever live outside a major city. They need to realize that not everything will be delivered to them on a silver platter, as is so often the case here.
Also, prices at a campus store would likely be higher than at Staples, Walmart or any national chain. The hypothetical campus store would not be able to buy in as large quantities as national chains can, due to the smaller sales volume and customer base of a whopping 1600. While Schwemm's has proven that students are sometimes willing to spend outrageous amounts of money for late night munchies like Snapple, Chicken Roma or a bagel, I doubt that students would be willing to pay similar markups for a pencil, an ink cartridge or a notebook that they could get cheaper with just a little legwork, or even from the comfort of their own dorm room by ordering online.
For some students, a trip to Staples, Radio Shack or Big Y is their only reason to leave the confines of the Amherst campus. By giving the students the same resource on campus, the College could potentially remove a student's only impetus to interact with the community. While a simple trip down the road away from the College may not seem like much, for some students holed up in their rooms, especially during finals, a change of scenery and interaction with some unfamiliar faces can be welcome relief.
A campus store would likely generate little revenue for the College, even potentially losing money due to start-up costs and employee wages. In the wake of the recent 250-some-odd-million-dollar Capital Campaign, any profit would simply be a drop in the proverbial bucket.
Finally, to bring all commerce on campus would further the notion that the College simply mooches off the community. Amherst is widely held as one of the nation's most sheltered, isolated colleges, with students often feeling that their campus is a sovereign nation. It would be ill-advised to facilitate that isolation with an on-campus store. What would be the next logical step? On-campus cornfields to stock Valentine? Our own on-campus tobacconist or package store for those so inclined? Amherst community interaction is strained as it is, and we should do what we can to keep intact what little interaction we now have.
Despite the seemingly logical and well-thought arguments in its favor, the excess baggage that would accompany a campus store, most notably the increased isolation of the College from the town, is enough to dissuade all but the most adamant proponents of such a plan. So as we stand outside Converse staring longingly at Route 116, waiting for the PVTA bus to round the corner, wondering "why can't I take care of these errands without leaving campus?", we should remember that the less dependent we are on the on-campus resources, the more prepared we will be for "real" life when commencement rolls around.