The lineup of businesses near campus is changing a little more rapidly than usual, according to some longtime, local businesspeople.
Jerry Martin, owner of Campus Shoe Shop at 843 E. 13th Ave., said the assortment of businesses near campus has changed since he opened his store 20 years ago. He said that there used to be fewer restaurants and coffee shops and that his former neighbors included men’s and women’s clothing stores, a travel agent, a small bookstore and a video arcade.
“It was more a mix,” Martin said.
Several businesses have closed in the last year, such as the music store Face the Music and the restaurant Aunt Dot’s, and new ones have been established.
Opening this week in the building that was most recently home to Aunt Dot’s, the next addition to the campus business community will be Shanti Indian Restaurant.
“It takes an open-minded community to eat Indian food,” co-owner Yakir Thar-ler said. He added that he finds the whole city of Eugene open-minded but chose to locate the business near campus hoping to have 20,000 University students as customers.
In January 2006, the business lineup on the strip will change again when Campus Shoe Shop closes.
“The property has been sold, and I’m retiring,” Martin said. Martin plans to spend the first few months of his retirement traveling in Mexico and may sell leather goods at the Saturday Market in the future.
Jim Williams, general manager of the
University Bookstore for the past
29 years, said some aspects of campus retail have remained constant over the years, such as having many pedestrians in the area.
“The foot traffic outside the bookstore rivals a major metropolitan area,” Williams said. Martin agreed that foot traffic in the area is an enormous advantage, although he noted that lack of parking in the neighborhood is a disadvantage for some customers.
Another aspect of campus retail, Williams said, is the transience of the customer base.
“The business is here eight to nine months of the year, and then summertime comes,” Williams said, explaining that many small merchants don’t have the financial backing to survive when the majority of the students leave. He said the bookstore, which owns its own building, land, off-site warehouse and a neighboring building, is “reasonably insulated” against such difficulties.
“We really respect the neighborhood,” Williams said. “We try to help other merchants when we can.”
Williams said rising tuition and rent rates for students can add up to decreased business for local retailers.
“We sense it here at the bookstore that people have less discretionary money than they used to have,” Williams said. Williams said campus-area stores also have to deal with increasing competition from big-box stores and Internet retailers.
Some of the difficulties confronting merchants change over time. Williams said in years past, panhandling used to be a problem that discouraged people from shopping at campus-area stores until merchants banded together with the University and the City of Eugene to step up police patrols in the area.
“We’re stronger as a merchant group total than we are individually,” Williams said.
Williams said the task of merchants is to figure out what the customers’ needs are and adjust to the changing marketplace.
“I think the potential for success is here,” Williams said. “You just have to work harder at it than you did 10, 20, maybe 30 years ago.”

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