The Oberlin College Bookstore, Oberlin, Ohio, will close in June and be replaced by a merchandise and gear store, the Oberlin Review reported.
The college bookstore, which is operated by Barnes & Noble College, is located in a space on Main St. After it closes, the Campus Store, which will be operated by University Gear Shop, will open in a smaller space in Oberlin's Mudd Center.
The Campus Store will not carry physical books, though students will be able to order them there. University Gear Shop will work in partnership with eCampus.com, the school's online bookstore provider.
"The old College Bookstore occupied retail space that was much larger than its retail merchandise needs; this was necessary in part because the bookstore required extensive space for basement textbook organization and storage," Oberlin v-p for finance and administration Rebecca Vazquez-Skillings told the Oberlin Review. "With the launch of our new online bookstore, there is no longer a need for such a storage space."
The new store will be open for the Fall 2025 semester.