New food vendors, bookstore part of summer campus center renovation

Kim Chaudoin | 

 

Lipscomb University recently announced several additions and changes to the Bennett Campus Center, a retail, social and food hub for the campus.

Sodexo, which has provided food service for the institution for more than 30 years, will now manage the university’s bookstore as well as all of its campus services and retail facilities beginning this summer. As part of this partnership, the Bennett Campus Center will undergo a variety of improvements and renovations this summer including:

  • Renovating the existing bookstore facility and moving it to the lower level of the Bennett Campus Center;
  • Expanding the size and product offerings in Uncle Dave’s Convenience Store and combining it with the university bookstore on the first floor of the campus center. This area will also be the textbook pick up area for the new online ordering system for students;
  • Adding two new eateries to the main level of the campus center. These include:
    • Zebi, a soup, sandwich and salad shop that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. It also offers fair trade coffee, organic teas and a give back program that supports Feeding America; and
    • Auntie Anne’s Pretzels, which offers a variety of hot pretzels and hot dogs; and
  • Renovating the current bookstore area on the main level of the campus center to include a student lounge, a student study area and a small event/meeting area.

Construction began June 18. The renovated facilities will reopen in mid-August.

“We are very pleased to be making these changes,” said James Perry, Sodexo district marketing manager for Tennessee/Kentucky. “We believe this will make the experience in the campus center even better for students and the entire Lipscomb community. Sodexo is committed to ensuring that we are aligned with the university’s mission by providing a diverse, talented and customer-focused team to deliver on our brand promise of ‘making every day a better day.’”

Perry said that Sodexo officials researched dining and retail facilities at other universities across the country when developing the plan for Lipscomb.

“We took some of the hottest trends we saw at other universities and have added them here,” he said.

Perry said students will notice several changes in the textbook ordering process and offerings. Students will have more options for ebooks, renting books and purchasing used books as well as new books. They will also now pre-order books online, then come to the retail location to pick up their packet of books. A mobile phone app will also soon be available for students to use when ordering textbooks online.

For more information about the university bookstore visit http://lipscomb.textbooktech.com/ or http://facebook.com/lipscombbookstore.  Visit www.lipscombdining.com for more information about Sodexo Campus Services at Lipscomb or call 615.966.5367.