Name: Howard Ballein

Age: 71

Business: Student Book Store, 421 E. Grand River Ave.

Years with the store: 45

Education: Bachelor's degree in animal science from The Ohio State University

How he started working with books: In college he was hired at a local bookstore. When he graduated, he was asked to stay on staff and buy and sell textbooks until he graduated.

Number of books in stock: More than 5,700 different MSU and Lansing Community College books

Business ups and downs: August, September and January are the most profitable months for SBS. He says the rest of the year the store loses money. "We need the busy times," he said.

Future changes to the store: He would like to freshen it up by remodeling.