Midd students' new best friend

Author: Scott Kleiman '06

Among the reasons I came to Middlebury was its location in a small, but vibrant, community. As a senior, I've spent nearly four years munching on late-night pizza from Neil & Otto's, buying Reefs and Carhartts from Forth N' Goal, and getting lots of random necessities from Ben Franklin. Most of these local businesses rely on Middlebury students to survive, and between the big-box stores of Williston and Rutland and the online behemoth of Amazon.com, it's getting more and more difficult for many of them to remain profitable.

This past J-Term, I was an intern with Middkid.com and saw first hand how the site recognized this problem early on and set out to figure out how to encourage more students to look closer to home when shopping around. Founded in 1999 by two Middlebury students, Middkid.com is a student-to-student Web portal and home to the popular online course evaluations and other resources for Middlebury students.

The Middkid Card was born in 2004 and it has grown ever since, with over 25 businesses now offering discounts to students when they present the card with a purchase. Caitlin Littlefield '07.5 is the Campus Manager and face of Middkid around town. Since her 2005 summer internship, she has been responsible for maintaining relations with local merchants and adding new businesses to the ever-increasing rolls of those offering discounts to those with the Middkid Card.

For students, the benefit is great deals year-round, at places most of us already shop. Also, when students are on Middkid's e-mail distribution list, they often receive notification of special, time-sensitive offers (just a few weeks ago, five of my friends and I ate at Roland's place for dinner and received 50 percent off all of our entrees with my Middkid Card!). In addition, the card highlights some of the lesser-known businesses in town.

As valuable as it is to all members of the Middlebury community, creating awareness of the card and the associated discounts, not to mention getting the card into the hands of students and reminding them to use it, has been one of the biggest challenges Middkid has faced in trying to make the partnership work. Many of the business owners have been happy with the increased amount of foot traffic brought in by the card. However, when I see the number of boxes in the mailroom from L.L.Bean and Amazon, there are clearly a lot of students not shopping locally.

Part of the reason may be that while the card is free, the College limits the number of mass mailings that can be sent to students, so Middkid has had to be a little creative in its distribution of the card. Currently, students can request a card at the Middkid Web site.

Middkid founder Ted Adler '99.5 commented, "It's important for students to understand the buying power they have in the Middlebury community. Local businesses rely on student dollars, and our goal with the Middkid Card is to encourage Middkids to shop in town. A lot of the same products available from box stores or on the web can be found in town. The Middkid Card helps make the local option price competitive, and encourages students get to know a lot of the cool shops and friendly local business owners in Middlebury."

With nearly two successful years under its belt, the Middkid Card is sure to grow in the years to come (discounts, not size…it will always fit comfortably in your wallet). To get one of your own, or to add your business to the roster of Middkid favorites, visit www.middkid.com or email info@middkid.com. Happy (discounted) spending!