Why do the wholesalers only pay 10-30% for textbooks?
Used-book wholesalers base the price they will pay for a book on their perceived “marketability” of that particular book. Many risk factors enter into the value of a book, such as the age of its edition and the book’s demand on other campuses. In addition, wholesale companies must take into account the costs of shipping books to a central warehouse, processing them for resale, then selling and shipping them (hopefully) to other campuses at a low enough price that they will be competitive with new books. Used-book wholesalers play a vital role in the college textbook market by recycling books not needed on one campus to other campuses needing the books. At the same time, they offer cash to students wanting to sell unneeded or unwanted books, while making possible substantial savings to students who purchase used books we have obtained through wholesalers. About 25% of the used books sold in our store come from used-book wholesalers, and we would buy more if we could.
Used book wholesalers base the price they will pay for a book on their perceived “marketability” of that particular book. Many risk factors enter into the value of a book, such as the age of its edition and the book’s demand on other campuses. In addition, wholesale companies must take into account the costs of shipping books to a central warehouse, processing them for resale, then selling and shipping them (hopefully) to other campuses at a low enough price that they will be competitive with new books. Used book wholesaler’s play a vital role in the college textbook market by recycling books not needed on one campus to other campuses needing the books. At the same time, they offer cash to students wanting to sell unneeded or unwanted books, while making possible substantial savings to students who purchase used books that have been obtained through wholesalers.
