Fairfield University Bookstore

Not a fan of the multiple signs in the Magazines section, about «No Reading a Magazine Until You Pay For It». What is that all about ?
Even if I normally enjoy a certain magazine, it does not mean the current issue is good enough to drop $ 5-​$ 6 on until perusing the articles prior to purchase. And yes, I‘ll admit, sometimes I want to kill 5 minutes flipping through a random magazine that I likely will not buy. When this was Borders, either of those scenarios, the customers could do without any issues or off-​putting signs. Its tactics like this from retailers that simply discourage buying and loyalty… not a smart business move.

This bookstore doesn’t allow you to bring books into the café area. Their reasoning is that merchandise gets ruined by spilled drinks too often and customers leave the books sitting around so the staff has to put them back … and so they have banned books (pun intended) from the café.
I go to a bookstore for the experience– I like to shop, collect a huge pile of books, get a coffee and a snack, and relax by reading the jackets and covers, the first few pages… I always leave making a big purchase. Book-​addiction is definitely a problem of mine.
Have I left a few books hanging around the café in a few bookstores? On occasion. But returning merchandise to its rightful home is a pretty basic function of a retail store– having extensive background in retail, I can say this confidently. And if putting a few books back is part of the price to keep my business, I think that’s a pretty good deal.
Have I ever spilled my drink on any of the books? No, I haven’t. But if I did, I would expect to have to pay for the merchandise I ruined.
To conclude– bookstores are a dying breed, and if you’re going to have one, I think it’s important to make it as pleasant a place as possible. To me, shopping here is no different from shopping on Amazon, where I can get everything for 20% cheaper. I’ll save my money and get the books delivered directly to my door. And If I’m really in the mood to enjoy myself, I just go up the road to the Barnes and Nobles in Westport, where having a coffee while contemplating your book purchase isn’t a crime.

compelled to review this one. this is a rant review, just so you know if you go on reading: in the service industry one of the typical interview questions people get asked is «recall a time when you received very good or very poor customer service.» i cannot wait to launch my next job search so i can go in readily prepared with a response to this question. my dealings with the fairfield university bookstore are an example of poor customer service and there are numerous ways in which i would have handled customer relations differently and behaved in a more professional manner.
this is a nice, typical bookstore with basic selection and some interesting features. i like the people who work at the starbucks café and find it clean etc. so on a visit there i received some help finding a book for my boyfriend (i had the name but the guy who had offered to help me asked if i had the author too. can’t you just find it on the least amount of information i give you? this looks lazy to me). I purchased the book and the cashier was a sweetheart and i sat in the café. when i got home later that night i realized i couldn’t find the book anywhere and i must have lost it at the café. i called the bookstore the next day and a girl picked up the phone and i explained what happened. she checked with the café but they said they hadn’t found anything so oh well so sorry. ummmm… i was not okay with this i had just purchased a book and it got blown into the wind. when i have customers who lose personal belongings in my establishment i respond with compassion. I never leave a conversation without taking a name and number in case the item turns up. this little child working for the bookstore didn’t want to do anything else for me. i asked if there were any other recourse and she told me she could get her manager. this guy was pretty rude, he didn’t want to talk to me either. he decided to check the bookstores lost and found, something that hadn’t occurred to employee of the month. of course my book was there. they made it seem like they weren’t going to keep it on hold for me until i could make it in. i had already paid for it!!!
there are people who are rude because they are snobby, there are people who are rude because they are miserable. i cannot place my finger on why the people who work at fairfield university bookstore are rude. if i had to guess i would say it is because they are stupid. perhaps they should read some books.

I was thrilled to see another bookstore take over the old Borders location. Although the fiction selection is smaller than before, the staff have always been friendly and helpful. I recently bought a book with a publishing error and called to speak with a manager about making an exchange without a receipt. When I arrived later that day, she had a new copy of the book waiting for me and I was in and out of the store in less than 5 minutes. I also love the rewards system — looking forward to making my 10^th purchase and seeing the amount of credit available!

Disappointed when I realized this is now Fairfield U bookstore and not Borders but I decided to try it as my boyfriend was looking for specific books for his college course (not at Fairfield U). Surprisingly in this day in age you don’t expect to still be experiencing ignorance and racism but my boyfriend (who is black) and I (white) tend to (YES even in Fairfield) — sarcasm. My boyfriend went to ask if she could help him locate 4 or 5 books for his research paper. She gave him a side eyed look over her glasses for several seconds before asking him what school he «actually» attended and then taking a look at his list and asking if he was familiar with the «advanced» writing in the books he needed. My boyfriend is no stranger to treatment like this and takes it with a grain of salt, even though I was pissed, he responded jokingly «you mean english? yes yes I am». She led him over to a computer and typed away for a few minutes to inform him they carried none of the books except one and that he probably wouldn’t want it because its $ 45. I was already furious so I grabbed the list back and my boyfriend and I left.

Fairfield university pretty much reopened the Borders which used to be there. The setup is layed the exact same. Some upgrades though… They put a Starbucks in place of the Seattle’s Best. They expanded the electronics section.
They now force students to go downtown to the bookstore to get their textbooks. The bookstore also does not buy enough textbooks for students. It’s difficult to take classes without a store providing for students.

So, as the story goes…
Boy meets girl, girl goes to bookstore, girl meets boy reading Road and Track at the magazine rack, yadda X 3 and now shes in the contraception section… crying.
Ive seen it all back in my day, oh yes, when Old Post Road was just known as, believe it or not, Post Road. Stacy used to scour these hallowed streets for a place to buy Coffee, read books and buy Brooks Brothers stuff (NICE STUFF!) adorned with the likeness of LUCAS!
Bottom line, this place needs work. Coming from an Alum, FU has been half assing some of their recent renovations– mainly in the design category… AKA– DONT REGRESS TO THE 90s! CLEAN THIS PLACE — — UP!
Its not hard, just kick anyone off the board who is still watching VHS of Family Ties and Charles in Charge (keep the Mr. Belvedere fans– theres always room for some panache ’round here) and get some Mondrian lovin, crêpe eatin, granola makin artsy folks from BARD or somethin and spice this place UP!