A SQUARE DEAL

According to popular myth, high retail prices in Harvard Square are a pitfall of Harvard life, but like most myths, it's a mix of fact and fiction.

In an informal Crimson poll, 75 percent of students said they believed prices in the Square are higher than in other parts of Cambridge and downtown Boston.

"I think prices in Harvard Square are ridiculously higher than the prices in Boston," says Michael J. Giordano '02.

But a survey of local businesses shows that the Square is a more expensive place to shop only if you shop at independent stores. Chains tend to keep their prices more or less uniform in the same area--in fact, in many instances chain prices are lower in the Square than elsewhere in metropolitan Boston.

So while "chain creep"--the replacement of Mom-and-Pop stores with national chains--may raise the ire of local residents, it could lower the cost of living for students who find shopping in the Square more convenient.

The Band Plays On

No dorm room would be the same without a CD collection. The only question is where to buy it, and the answer is mixed. On some counts, the Square defies myth and has lower prices. At the very least, prices are competitive.

The Crimson compared prices on 12 CDs and two movies at HMV: the prices of two are higher in the Square, the rest are equivalent to the store near Newbury Street.

According to Lisa Goren, store manager at HMV in Harvard Square, prices are not always consistent across the HMV chain, and individual HMVs have their own store sales.

"There are certain things that are nationwide and certain things that are local," she says. "If there were something on sale [at one store at not at the other], and someone wanted it for the same price, it wouldn't be a problem."

At Tower Records, of the six CDs and a movie, three CDs are cheaper by about $1 in the Square than on Newbury Street. One of the movies is more expensive, however, by about $10.

"We have corporate sales which are for all Tower stores in America. But sometimes...[individual store buyers] will put stuff on sale," says Adam C. Standish, supervisor at the Harvard Square Tower Records. "There are occurrences where a CD is on sale at our store but not at another store."

The Clothes Make the Man

The No. 1 tourist destination in the state, Faneuil Hall is a mecca for mainstream clothing stores like the Gap, Ann Taylor and Express. So is Harvard Square, the No. 2 destination, and home to those stores as well Structure and, soon, Abercrombie & Fitch.

The Gap at Faneuil Hall, Cambridge-Side Galleria and Harvard Square have the same regular prices on all four items chosen at random.

At Ann Taylor and Express, both women's clothing stores, Structure, Express' male counterpart, and Aldo shoe store the prices are also same regardless of location.

As at the music stores, managers at the chain stores said prices tend to be the same across a city, if not the nation, due to corporate policy.

Our Daily Bread

But several chain food stores break the trend of consistent prices in the Square.

At Porter Square, for example, one Dunkin' Donuts donut costs $0.57. At the Harvard Square location on Mass. Ave., it costs $0.67. A No. 1 Value Meal--two donuts and a medium coffee--costs $1.99 at Porter; at Harvard Square, $2.63. As for coffee, in Harvard Square, a medium cafe blend is $1.50; at Porter, $1.29.

Students looking for something a little more upscale might visit their local Pho Pasteur for some Vietnamese cuisine. But at the local Dunster Street branch, several items chosen at random are more expensive than at the Washington Street location in Boston, Pasteur II.

Two spring rolls in Boston cost about 20 percent less than at the Square location.

Curried chicken with vegetables is 40 percent cheaper, and lemongrass tofu is 27 percent less expensive.

Van T. Che, manager at the Harvard location, acknowledges the price difference.

"The reason the prices are different is that prices in Harvard Square are generally higher," he says. "We are also in a shopping complex, so that is probably why."

The good news is that students craving dessert or an after-dinner jolt of java can enter Herrell's Ice Cream and Starbucks in the Square and it won't make a difference. A scoop of ice cream or a latte cost the same at the heart of Boston's Newbury Street as it does right outside the Yard.

Mom, Pop and Price

While prices among chains are generally the same inside the Square and out, there is truth to the myth that Harvard's stores are more expensive than their competitors outside the Square.

For example, prices at Rigs hardware store in Porter Square are significantly lower than at Dickson Bros. Hardware on Eliot Street in Harvard Square. A Black & Decker Dustbuster costs $39.99 at Dickson Bros. while at Rigs, the same item costs $32.99. A standard Masterlock costs 4.89 at Dickson Bros. compared to $3.99 at Rigs.

This price difference applies to foodstuffs as well. The Star Market at Porter Square is much less costly than Sage's on the corner of Church and Brattle Street. A box of Tiger Woods Wheaties at Star Market is $2 flat; at Sage's the "Breakfast of Champions" costs $2.99. Finally, Spicy Nacho Doritos at Star Market are $1.79, a full $0.40 cheaper than at Sage's.

Breaking Chains

Students complain that part of the problem with prices in the Square is the absence of cheaper alternatives. In place

of Central Square's McDonald's, for instance,Harvard Square boasts the flagship Au Bon Pain.

"I would pick McDonald's over ABP almost anyday. It's quicker, cheaper and better, I think,"says Nader R. Hasan '02.

Yet while students and their wallets mightwelcome the changing, corporate face of theSquare, local residents have long resisted whatthey call "chain creep."

According to Gladys "Pebble" Gifford, presidentof the Harvard Square Defense Fund, escalatingrents are forcing out Mom-and-Pop stores andallowing chain stores with more financialstability to move in.

"You can't control the market forces," Giffordsays. "[Mom-and-Pop stores] don't have the deeppockets."

"What I'd like to see the students do is keepthe Mom-and-Pops in mind. Go to the AlgiersCoffeehouse in the Brattle Building instead ofgoing to a Starbucks for a cup of coffee," Giffordsays.

But students say it's price and quality thatmatter.

"Chains tend to have better prices and betterdeals overall," Giordano says. "It's not that Idon't care [about Mom-and-Pops]. I feel thatchains offer a wider variety of everything andbetter prices, especially for college students,who tend to be a little short on money.

of Central Square's McDonald's, for instance,Harvard Square boasts the flagship Au Bon Pain.

"I would pick McDonald's over ABP almost anyday. It's quicker, cheaper and better, I think,"says Nader R. Hasan '02.

Yet while students and their wallets mightwelcome the changing, corporate face of theSquare, local residents have long resisted whatthey call "chain creep."

According to Gladys "Pebble" Gifford, presidentof the Harvard Square Defense Fund, escalatingrents are forcing out Mom-and-Pop stores andallowing chain stores with more financialstability to move in.

"You can't control the market forces," Giffordsays. "[Mom-and-Pop stores] don't have the deeppockets."

"What I'd like to see the students do is keepthe Mom-and-Pops in mind. Go to the AlgiersCoffeehouse in the Brattle Building instead ofgoing to a Starbucks for a cup of coffee," Giffordsays.

But students say it's price and quality thatmatter.

"Chains tend to have better prices and betterdeals overall," Giordano says. "It's not that Idon't care [about Mom-and-Pops]. I feel thatchains offer a wider variety of everything andbetter prices, especially for college students,who tend to be a little short on money.