Facilities

R.C. Barclay Reference and Retailing Resources Center
Located in the Business Library & Collaboration Commons, the Barclay Center was created through generous contributions given in support of retailing education

The Barclay Center, opened in the Business Library & Collaboration Commons in 1994 and honors the late R.C. Barclay, a founder of Randalls Food Markets, Inc., who believed in both higher education and the Center for Retailing Studies. Even though he never personally attended Texas A&M University, the “Spirit of Aggieland” lived in his heart.

Today, over 12,000 students use the Business Library & Collaboration Commons daily. Its facilities, anchored by the Barclay Center, utilize state of the art technology to provide students and researchers access to the most current information available. The Center is a fully electronic business and retailing reference library.

In 2006, Texas A&M announced that all patent and trademark records will now be held and accessible for users at the Barclay Center. This acquisition further adds to the resources available to business students.

The Patent and Trademark Resource Center (PTRC) at Texas A&M University is located in the R.C. Barclay Reference and Retailing Resources Center

Key databases for the R.C. Barclay Reference and Retailing Resources Center:

Mintel Reports
This license provides unlimited access to on-campus and off-campus users.
This database provides timely and unique information about the b2c marketplace. It has valuable information for research on consumer behavior, market research, marketing management, and entrepreneurship. New market research reports are made available monthly, which contain consumer trends, brand share dynamics, market drivers, and more.

Simply Analytics
This license provides access to on-campus and off-campus users.
SimplyAnalytics is a web-based mapping, analytics, and data visualization application that can be used to create interactive maps, charts, and reports using 100,000+ data variables. This resource can be used to rank locations (by state, congressional district, city, county, ZIP code, census tract, or block group) in the U.S. using variables which may include consumer behavior, transportation, health, business counts, and many more.

eMarketer
This license provides unlimited access to on-campus and off-campus users.
This integrated database brings together company profiles, brand information, market share and business rankings, company histories, industry overviews and international market research. It offers dynamic, accurate, and topical business information in addition to company and industry intelligence on thousands of global companies. This resource is especially useful to retailing students to learn more about visiting speakers and their companies, as well as for career seeking undergraduates and graduate students.

Factiva
This license provides unlimited access to on-campus and off-campus users.
Dow Jones’ Factiva database offers flexible searching of a collection of news and business information from over 36,000 authoritative sources from 200 countries, in 28 languages. This collection includes the Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, and Dow Jones and Reuter’s news wires. Factiva was the 2009 and 2010 recipient of the CODiE Award for Best Content Aggregation Service.

GlobalData (formerly Product Launch Analytics)
This license provides unlimited access to on-campus and off-campus users.
This database provides a comprehensive view across several industries with access to gold-standard market data and intelligence. It includes industry-specific databases, market sizing data, and sentiment-based datasets that allow users to uncover trends driving discussions and decisions in the marketplace. Product Launch Analytics is one of many databases included in this newly remodeled resource.

Simmons OneView
This license provides unlimited access to on-campus and off-campus users.
Simmons National Consumer Surveys database enables the creation of customized cross-tabulated spreadsheets on “target market” demographics and “targeted media.” Data is available for the years 2004-Present.

Alton Withers Library
The Center for Retailing Studies houses the Alton Withers Library of Retailers for student and faculty research.

It offers current print and video information on participating companies. The library contains company literature as well as career-path and general retailing information. It is an invaluable resource for students preparing classroom assignments and anticipating job interviews. Company representatives update the information frequently, ensuring a strong organizational presence on campus.

Gallery Furniture Lobby
Graciously donated by master merchant, Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale, owner and founder of the largest single-store furniture showroom in the world, the Gallery Furniture Retail Education Lobby was formally dedicated on Tuesday, March 29, 2011.

To inspire a new generation of students to discover the world of retailing, the Gallery Furniture Lobby in Mays Business School provides students the opportunity to relax, study and stay to learn more about retailing.