Teachers Store Is a Learning Experience

By Lawrence, Pat

With more than 50,000 items in stock and more than $1 million in inventory, Imperial Teachers Store and More in Wheeling gives teachers a full range of choices for enhancing student learning.

Owner Cathy Jackson said most of the books, banners, puzzles, educational toys and learning tools she displays are purchased by teachers out of their own pockets.

“Generally, schools provide teachers a small amount, from $50- $200, toward very basic supplies. But most teachers try to make their teaching more effective and their classroom more conducive to learning by adding a variety of visual aids and educational supplements,” she said.

“Teachers rely on us for access to the newest teaching technologies and ideas. The best teachers want the best and latest information for their students.”

Jackson said her customers also shop for the tools of their trade, such as lesson plan books and pocket charts, in their preferred colors and styles.

“Most teachers are women,” she said. “They want their classroom attractive; they want to feel at home when they work. Plus, students now tend to be visual learners. Teachers know that they can be more effective by graphically organizing material and working thematically.”

Jackson purchased the 30-year-old business in 2001. In 2004, she relocated the Main Street enterprise to a 100-year-old, three- story, 25,000-square-foot building in the warehouse district. She renovated the first floor at a cost of about $300,000. The second and third floors now are used for receiving and storage, although Jackson would welcome a tenant with a complementary business.

According to Jackson, sales have doubled since 2001.

“Business is great. The new location is easier to get to, customers can park next to the building and we have room for tons more merchandise,” she said. Because many teachers are parents, Imperial offers a children’s play area and provides shopping carts that accommodate small children. Customers also may order from the online catalog at the Imperial Web site.

The “and More” of the business’ name includes laminating, performing research, arranging teaching materials and setting up lesson plans for after-school programs for over-scheduled teachers.

“More” also refers to their seasonal in-house Christmas store, which sells trees, decorations and lights. A new service is on- request publishing. “We will gather, organize and publish information on specific topics for teachers to use in the classroom.”

This year, Jackson plans to make her Imperial store mobile with the purchase of a 40-foot touring bus being revamped as a teacher’s resource center on wheels. “We call it the Imperial Express. It will go to schools on the periphery of our area and to more rural areas. These teachers may have difficulty getting to us, so we’ll go to them. The bus will be stocked with things teachers need and want. Schools or teachers will be able to call and request the bus, when we find the right driver.”

Though most sales are directly to teachers and home schooling parents, local schools are beginning to take advantage of the special services Imperial offers. “We deliver right to the school and set up for them. Even for schools, customer service can be more important than the lowest price.”

Although Jackson is a registered nurse with a bachelor’s degree in landscape architecture and the former technology coordinator at Mount DeChantal Visitation Academy, the store is staffed by 10 former, current and future teachers.

“Our philosophy is to provide teachers and parents with the best possible service and affordable prices, seven days a week,” Jackson said. “We carry as many items as possible so that everyone who visits the store will leave satisfied.”

With more than $1 million of inventory from 1,000 vendors, inventory must be neatly displayed and merchandised properly, “frog stuff with frog stuff, telescopes and microscwopes together, videos accompanying each topic. It must be clean and well organized. Every teacher has a different perspective and different ideas, but teachers want these things because they enhance learning. We want to help them get the stuff they need.”

Copyright State Journal Corporation Sep 09, 2005