MSU Bookstore Updates to Spacious, Contemporary Look Photos (from top): General manager Mark Frisby shows off the newly remodeled bookstore. Students browse the spacious display area for MSU gear. Photos by Stephen Hunts. The Montana State University bookstore has been renovated from an outdated, shopworn landmark to a glamorous facility that bears little resemblance to its old self. "It looks pretty spectacular," said a proud Mark Frisby, general manager of the university-affiliated facility. Frisby calls the $1.4 million bookstore remodel "a vast departure" from the former store. From the remodeled entry with its new cashier-area design, to the polished lighting and bookshelf detail, to a reading nook in the retail book section, the bookstore now has a spacious, contemporary feeling. Frisby says people are often surprised that the bookstore has not been enlarged. "We have the same footprint, with the exception of less than 100 square feet added in the entry," Frisby said. Frisby said the illusion of spaciousness is created by the traffic aisle and floor design, made for optimum organization. "Each department has its own look and feel, its own set of colors, high-tech lights and fixtures," Frisby said. For example, the electronics department looks high-tech and nearly industrial, sporting holographic floor tiles. The trade books area is luxurious, with cherry-wood end caps and seating for students who wish to browse a bestseller. Throughout the store, light fixtures are contemporary and merchandise is more attractively displayed. "Even at the height of the (book buying) rush, it took only about 20 minutes from the end of the line to out the door," Frisby said. The project began in March, with a limited area of the store open throughout construction. The store opened in time for the new textbook rush, about a week before the university started classes in September. "We came in on time and under budget," Frisby said. "In the process, the look of the store jumped many decades." The bookstore was last remodeled in 1975 when MSU's student enrollment was less than half of today's 12,000-student enrollment. Frisby says proudly that the $1.4 million renovation was paid for with cash and no debt encumbrance. Frisby said the MSU Bookstore's dramatic new look is the talk of the bookstore industry, with write-ups coming in the industry's trade journals.