Shake Smart, a chain smoothie, juice, coffee and food shop, once operational in the University of Oregon Student Recreation Center, vacated the space after the end of its rental agreement with the Rec and licensing agreement with The Duck Store.
The location in the Rec opened officially in October 2018.
According to The Duck Store’s Chief Financial Officer Andrew Moreland, Shake Smart’s location agreement with the Student Recreation Center ended in June.
“After evaluating the profitability of the location and future investment into the location, we made the difficult decision to not renew the rental agreement for the location,” Moreland said.
Moreland said that rising food and labor costs as well as declining sales volume were the reason behind The Duck Store’s decision to vacate Shake Smart’s operations in the Rec.
“By closing the location, the organization could focus on our primary goal of providing course materials to students without having to supplement losses occurring from operations,” Moreland said.
Shake Smart was founded by two college students in 2011 and exists in recreation centers on other college campuses all over the United States to provide healthy and convenient food options to college students, according to its website.
According to Moreland, the space has been turned back over to the Rec and The Duck Store will continue to offer student supplies in one vending machine.
Sofia Torgerson is a senior student who visited Shake Smart “probably once a week.”
“I liked the bowls, and I would sometimes get the shakes,” Torgerson said.
According to Torgerson, she is saddened by Shake Smart’s departure from the Rec.
“[Shake Smart] was just a good, easy thing to get on the way home,” Torgerson said. “I heard that they weren’t making enough money. But then it’s also like, whenever I saw it, it was always packed.”
Ava Christofferson is a junior who also was an occasional Shake Smart customer.
“I really liked their Pink Cadillac [shake],” Christofferson said.
Christofferson said the space in the Rec was not only a place to buy food, but also other items, such as textbooks and UO merchandise.
“It kind of sucks. I really liked it. I kind of miss it. I mean, the vending machines were always there, but they also had, like, a lot of other things that you could get too,” Christofferson said.
Lynn Nester, director of physical education and recreation with the Office of Student Life, said that Shake Smart’s absence will have an impact on the Rec.
“It may impact the foot traffic in the lobby of the SRC, as some people may have come in solely to buy something from The Duck Store or Shake Smart,” Nester said.
According to Nester, vending machines have been relocated and added to the space, and the Rec is searching for an entity to fill the space.
“We are exploring options on use of that space and potential entities that might be interested in renting it that align with the mission and core values of PE and Rec and is something that UO students will want [and] use,” Nester said.
