Product details

Alex Beaver arrived on campus with aspirations to become an engineer however his entrepreneurial passions quickly led him down a new path. His first year at the university, he began carrying a notepad full of business ideas that he still carries today. His entrepreneurial passion combined with his frustration of high textbook prices caused him to develop a business model similar to Netflix where students could rent a textbook for a fraction of the bookstore price. With a USD17,000 cash advance and USD15,000 in credit, Alex launched TXTBookRental in 2008. Early on, his business faced significant cash flow problems, because the textbook industry is highly cyclical with peak periods coinciding with the fall and spring semesters. The rapid expansion of TXTBookRental convinced Alex to expand to Bloomington, Indiana. Alex hired his staff and began operations from a distance. However, the staff didn't share his work ethic or accountability and the business was a failure. Reluctantly Alex closed the Bloomington location and focused on the Evansville location. As the textbook industry is evolving Alex faces a strategic inflection point with the industry and his business. Historically, the textbook industry was slow to change and dominated by a few larger competitors. However in recent years, technology is changing the business environment. With sales of Kindle Fire and iPad growing exponentially, the opportunity for eBooks is evident, although the market share for e-Textbooks remains low. As the textbook industry faces an uncertain future, Alex must decide whether to stay and compete, change the business model, or get out altogether.