The University Shop is an institutional asset under the auspices of the Alumni Association and the Communication and Stakeholder Liaison division which can contribute to brand development as well as third stream income generation. The Shop’s mandate is to sell affordable good quality branded products to popularise the university brand.
The University Shop was established in 2005 by the Alumni Association as an investment in the future of the university. The investment was significant because alumni of the former institutions recognised the value of a specialist self-sustaining retail outlet to advance brand development. The new name and new institutional identity offer a unique opportunity for this young new generation university to reposition itself nationally and internationally.
In essence the Shop’s mandate remains the same but the renaming of the university as Nelson Mandela University after an internationally respected icon and statesman, offers the shop an opportunity to reposition and recast itself as an essential component of the strategy to build and enhance the new identity and brand strategy, as well as contribute to the realisation of the university business remodelling and sustainability strategy.
The University Shop surplus is used to reinvest in business development as well as to contribute to worthy university and Alumni Association programmes such as bursaries. Alumni are encouraged to buy branded items in support of their alma mater and the University Shop. More details are available on the website
http://shop.mandela.ac.za