Purdue students looking for a good deal on their textbooks now have an easier way to find them, thanks to a partnership between Amazon and Purdue University.
The two organizations teamed up to create the Purdue Student Store on Amazon, a specially-branded homepage that’s designed to give students a portal to online shopping. While there, students will see Purdue branding as they shop, and the store’s homepage features student essentials front-and-center, including Purdue branded clothing and accessories.
Right now, students can get their purchases shipped to them, but in the future, Amazon will run a number of staffed pickup locations on campus that will allow students to grab their items as a part of their daily routine.
Right now, the first pickup location is slated to open in early 2015. What’s more, students will be able to get free one-day shipping to those locations once they have opened, plus free one-day shipping to the campus area for their textbooks.
The program came about as a part of Purdue Moves, an initiative to make the university more affordable that has been spearheaded by President Mitch Daniels. He’s hoping that tapping Amazon for this job will help cut down on how much students at Purdue have to spend on textbooks.
In addition to helping students with lower prices, the move will also help Amazon get a firmer foothold on college campuses. The Seattle-based online retailer has already set up a pilot program with the UC Davis Stores in California to share a cut of any revenue it makes out of a special storefront for students at the University of California, Davis.
For campuses that don’t have a partnership with Amazon, students can still use the company’s Amazon Student service to get half a year of free Prime, followed by a discounted rate on the rapid delivery service thereafter.
