The new Student Union building opened this semester and now the Los Medanos College Bookstore has moved in.

“I’m really excited because the bookstore has come a long way,” said Frank Ramirez, the last student to purchase anything in the old location.

Bookstore manager Robert Estrada explained the process of moving into their new home.

“We had initially packed a bunch of non-essential items in December because we thought we would be moving then. But the move was put on hold at that time.”

He went on to explain that things were “touch and go” from there, because they also believed they would be moving in January. This unfortunately was not the case, but it gave them time to plan out how things would go when the day finally came, and it did on Feb. 13.

“We started moving things while still keeping the [old] store open,” said Estrada. “With the help of the four day weekend, we were able to have 90 percent of the merchandise packed by Friday. The rest we finished over the weekend.”

The new store’s layout is more open than the previous location, containing no pillars or large shelves that obstruct the view of the rest of the store. It has a nine-door fridge with access from the back to restock. The 14 rows for merchandise are more accessible than ever now. The Bookstore will be adding a kiosk with a printer so students can print their schedules.

With eight registers, the Bookstore is well-equipped to handle a large amount of students. The new location also has a larger shelf for students to put their belongings in while they shop.

“It’s great to see the reactions of the students when they walk into the new store for the first time,” said Estrada. “Makes the hard work we did while moving worth it.”

Michelle McQuaid, the Operations Manager for the bookstore, agreed with Estrada that the new store has a much better layout.

“I’ve worked for the bookstore for 10 years, and I love how open the new store is.”

The students are also responding well to the new layout. Alyssa Compton, a student employee at the bookstore said, “I think it’s really pretty. It feels a lot like a UC campus would when you walk in.”

Though it is a new location, the Bookstore will continue to have the same hours. It will be open from 7:45 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and Fridays from 7:45 a.m. to 3 p.m. If you would like to shop online or contact the bookstore, visit https://www.lmcbookstore.net.