One of the new additions to the Den is a new smoothe machine, Smoodi, with each smoothie costing 4.99-6.99 dollars, a change from the previously priced 3.99 dollar smoothies.
BlueCard will no longer be used as a payment method anywhere on campus, including Susie’s. The change to Andover’s payment system comes alongside student reports of changed products and price inflation at Susie’s.
Andrew Gagnon, Director of Finance and Comptroller, described the reasoning behind the switch from BlueCard to Clover, a payment processing system that accepts major credit and debit cards. Gagnon also explained that the change enables broader compatibility with off-campus venues as well as more convenience with campus transactions.
“The decision to discontinue the BlueCard payment system was driven by a focus on enhanced convenience, broader acceptance, and streamlined operations based on feedback heard from the community. By transitioning to widely accepted debit and credit card payments, students no longer need to reload a campus-specific card to make purchases on campus. This change also improves the technological capability to accept electronic payments through systems like Apple Pay, further enhancing the ease and flexibility of making transactions on campus,” said Gagnon.
David Porto ’26 voiced his feelings about the switch from BlueCards as a payment method. He expressed his appreciation for the new for removing the required use of BlueCards to make campus purchases.
“[Removing the BlueCard payment system] is more convenient because before if I ever ran out of money on my blue card, I needed to either ask my parents or go through refilling it myself, but just having it all like I have my regular card and just paying with that makes it so much simpler and especially since they streamlined the process like using that. I feel like it got more convenient,” said Porto.
The payment switch means BlueCards are no longer accepted at Susie’s, which has undergone its own changes with the disappearance of its smoothie machine and student reports of increased prices. Eric Choi ’27 expressed his disapproval of the changes.
“[The price inflation] is very upsetting. I can feel the money seeping out of my card more and more every day. There used to be these chocolate ice cream cone ends that [Susie’s] used to sell, but now the cones are smaller and they somehow cost more, which is absurd,” said Choi.
Similarly, Carter Aime ’25 noticed these significant price changes for items sold by Susie’s. He notably disliked the replacement of the old smoothies with Smoodi, a smoothie product line that is made with whole fruits as well as features reusable bamboo straws and a customized blender.
“[The prices of] a lot of the snacks I normally [got] last year [and] a couple of years ago have definitely gone up. So it’s hard on my pockets… I don’t really like the new smoothies. I like the old smoothies [because] they had a lot more sugar. I don’t really enjoy the new smoothies, but I miss the old ones. I’d probably suggest maybe [that Susie’s] just [have] cheaper snacks, because sometimes when I get multiple snacks, the price does run up,” said Aime.
Alessandra Woo ’27 stated that while Susie’s does have good products, it would be beneficial and more feasible for students if Susie’s kept more of these products and decreased their prices.
“One time I went to [Susie’s] and there was this nice pho thing in an instant noodle cup. It was good, but I didn’t seem to find it after that. I don’t know if it’s there now, but it was really good. If I had to change anything, I would make things cheaper. That would benefit the welfare of all the students. I think there should be more food options too, preferably meals down there because Commons is not it,” said Woo.
Karen VanAvery, Director of Food Services, commented on student concerns on item selection, explaining the process used to decide which products will show up in Susie’s. She also specified factors that go into the pricing of items.
“Changes to food and drink items in [Susie’s] stem from many factors, including supply chain availability and seasonal availability. [Susie’s] adjusts its menu to align with current trends and to offer fresh selections for our community. We also rotate in new items, when possible, based on student requests. For example, just this week based on student requests, [Susie’s] brought in Boba Tea and BareBells protein bars. Pricing is then based on cost of product, shipping, fees, and comparable regional market pricing,” VanAvery wrote in an email to The Phillipian.
