Overpriced dining options unnecessary

October 1, 2007 —

Want a salad? That'll be $7.50, please. Students and staff alike have probably noticed that ever since the Quizno's on campus has started selling pre-prepared salads and subs, a case of sticker shock has set in. Never known to sell the most reasonably-priced products, Quizno's will soon be joined by a Starbucks franchise, the sub chain's gratuitously overpriced spiritual brother.

And the arrival of Starbucks signals the beginning of a worrying trend on campus: the enfranchisement of SVSU's eateries and drinkeries, and with it, the gradual rise in the cost of living and working at the University.

It's not that the Aramark-branded stuff is all that cheap to begin with, but the company has worked with the institution for years, and the eateries it has operated at SVSU have become part of the campus culture. Moreover, and more importantly, the company has to be responsive to the student body. That, and it's still cheaper than anything Quizno's or Starbucks peddles.

Aramark's business model relies entirely on working with larger businesses and institutions, like colleges, big corporations, and public facilities like prisons. Unlike Starbucks and Quizno's, the company doesn't have anything to fall back on should it alienate its primary customers in government and industry.

Whereas the Quizno's and Starbucks of the world have a billion non-attached franchises to fall back on should an institutional venture fail. This gives those companies a competitive advantage vis a vis Aramark, and it results in what can only be called price gouging, that is, $7.50 salads.

Despite their liberal spending habits, college students aren't all loaded. And despite their expensive suitcases, college professors don't necessarily enjoy forking over $10 for a soda and a sandwich.

The University must closely monitor how it uses third-party franchising to serve its constituents. It would be naive for SVSU's decision makers to assume that students and staff at the college vastly prefer the name brands simply because they are name brands. More than anything else, people eat and drink on campus because it's convenient. Not because the flashy lights and pretty menus pull them intractably towards Quizno's.

Any university's primary mission revolves around service - service to students, community, state, and even country. For the most part, Aramark's relationship with SVSU has fulfilled that mission. The food one finds in the RFoC or Einstein's is normally of high quality, and the prices, while not Tony's-esque by any means, won't put that much of a dent in your wallet. Aramark needs to make money off its relationship with the University, but it is also obligated not to take students for all they're worth.

Starbucks and Quizno's, on the other hand, are obligated to their shareholders and to their franchisees. They are companies focused with near-exclusivity on making lots and lots of money. Their pricing reflects that.

The University must be careful when inviting companies to take part in its mission. The fusion with the private sector is harmless when it serves the merging institutions better, but worrying when there seems to be little point other than bringing a recognizable name on campus.

Do we all really need to pay more for coffee than is necessary? Is the extra bacon on a sub worth it?