A Brief History of OSU Bookstore

The Oregon Agricultural College Cooperative Association, known as "The Co-op", was organized in 1914 by a committee of six subscribers.  Two clerks operated the Co-op in what is now the OSU Women's Study building.

In 1915, a new building was constructed at 16th & Jefferson which housed the main store until 1928.  Since then, the bookstore has leased space in the Memorial Union building.  Beginning in the early 1940's, additional properties were purchased for warehousing and expansion of retail space.  Over the years, the bookstore has grown to become a diversified corporation with over 140 employees.

In 1998, the bookstore changed from a cooperative (OSU Book Stores, Inc.) to a non-profit corporation (OSU Bookstore, Inc.).  As a cooperative, the bookstore returned profits in the form of rebates.  As a non-profit corporation, profits are returned up front in the form of sales discounts.

Today, as in 1914, the bookstore is governed by a Board of Directors composed of faculty, staff, and students of Oregon State University.