The Bay Tree Bookstore is an institutionally owned auxiliary enterprise, established in 1965 by the Regents of the University of  California when UCSC opened in that year.

Our mission is to provide to the UCSC campus community books, related materials and supplies, and services which complement the academic environment and which support the diverse needs of the campus community. The Bookstore is non-profit and self-supporting, with revenues paying all salaries and operating expenses, and providing sufficient return for ongoing improvement of facilities and inventory. One of our on-going goals is providing quality products and meaningful services to students, faculty, staff and campus units in as economical and efficient a manner as possible.

The Bay Tree Bookstore began its operations in McHenry Library and later added a supply store in the Redwood Building, above the Whole Earth Restaurant. We moved into an adjacent building in 1971 upon completion of the new facility. In 1989, construction of a new Bookstore building was approved by the Regents, in recognition and anticipation of the planned growth for the UCSC campus, and of the need for the Bookstore to be able to continue to provide the level of services needed as the campus grew. On July 9th, 2001 the Bay Tree Bookstore opened the doors to its new store.