By Max Pivonka and John Poe

This quarter, the DU bookstore started a promotion which allows students to price match their textbooks.

According to the details of the promotion, students are allowed to price match their books within seven days of purchasing them if they find the same book from a competitor like Amazon, Barnes & Nobles or Chegg at a lower price.

The offer is not valid on peer-to-peer marketplaces like eBay or Amazon Marketplace. Also, the product, including the possible rental period, must be completely identical. For example, a 30-day rental from Chegg is not equal to a quarter-long rental from the DU Bookstore and the books must be the exact same edition. After showing proof of the lower price, the DU Bookstore will refund the difference in the price onto a non-expiring gift card that can be used at the bookstore.

“The whole program will build the customer base and make sure the customer feels confident that they can pay the lowest possible price for their materials at the bookstore,” said Tomi Hulkko, the bookstore manager. According to Hulkko, the program will also increase customer loyalty to the bookstore.

The launch of the program already has some students very excited. “The new price matching service saved me both my money and time,” said Alex Solorio, a first-year computer science major from Davis, California. “I didn’t have to wait for my textbooks to ship here like last quarter, and I was able to save $40 that I can now use for textbooks or anything else at the bookstore.”

The initial promotion was piloted by Follet Higher Education Group in fall of 2014 in smaller stores across the United States. The success of the pilot stores prompted the nationwide launch of the promotion.

Additional questions about the bookstore’s price matching program can be emailed to du@bkstr.com.