What Some People Are Saying
The best places on campus to get Purdue merch - July 30, 2025
Discount Den is a classic stop for students and anyone looking to get some fun Purdue goodies with unique designs. They’ve got a nice variety of stuff for sale. A lot of official Purdue related shirts and hoodies you won’t really find anywhere else. It’s one of the few places where you can find funnier shirts that say “IU Sucks” and “BTFU.” And if you’re not sure what that stands for, well…
Beyond that, there are plenty of hats, pants, shorts and whatever other kind of clothing you can imagine. You can also find keychains, flags, playing cards, foam fingers and every other sort of memorabilia you can think of!
Discount Den to stop selling colorful, vintage merchandise - September 30, 2024
t’s Friday evening and there’s a crowd at Discount Den that isn’t just there for the Den Pop sodas the store is well-known for. The crowd is there to get the last remaining colorful and vintage Purdue merch after the university announced the store would not be able to sell them any longer. “In order to best uphold the visual brand identity of Purdue and comply with Purdue University’s Brand Guidelines, we will no longer be carrying apparel colors that are not black- or gold- supporting, nor designs that are considered 'vintage.' Once these items are sold out in the store, they are officially gone," Discount Den said on an Instagram post Friday afternoon.
Casual Encounter: Clara Fleetwood - September 1, 2023
With the weather finally dipping below 80 degrees and the first home football game next weekend, many students are flocking to the Discount Den. On Sunday, Clara Fleetwood was almost overwhelmed by customers seeking den pops and merch. Fleetwood, a senior majoring in English and professional writing, said she started working at the Discount Den about a year ago. “I came in here all the time for sodas. I bought all the clothes,” she said. “I was looking for a job, and I was like, ‘Why not work somewhere I love?’”
Refilling on Tradition: Discount Den introduces reusable soda cups - April 9, 2023
Purdue alumna Lauren Schotts, 29, saw an Instagram ad for the new reusable Discount Den cups last week and immediately sent it to her husband, Kegan Burns. Burns, also a Purdue alumnus, ordered them immediately for her upcoming birthday. Saturday, they visited the Den to fill them up. “We miss college and come back often,” Burns said. “We get lunch at Harry’s, walk around the engineering fountain.” The couple, who now live in Indianapolis, met while Schotts was still in college and bonded over their mutual love of Purdue. They had their first kiss and got engaged, on separate occasions, in the Clapping Circle.
2021 BGR - August 19, 2021
High temperatures on the 3rd day of Boiler Gold Rush saw BGR groups waiting in long lines at Discount Den for their famed Den Pops as well as groups relaxing in the shade across campus, learning this year's BGR Dance.
Purdue traditions and other oddities - July 15, 2021
If you’re feeling thirsty on a hot summer’s day, need something fun to do with friends or just want something to drink, head over the Discount Den on the corner of Northwestern and Stadium avenues. There you will find a soda machine with more than 20 different beverages, and dozens of drink combination ideas on the wall behind it. Try one of the Discount Den’s classic flavors, or create your own. But don’t steal anything unless you want your picture posted on the wall of shoplifters.
PSG pushes for reusable 'Den Pop' cups - November 11, 2019
Discount Den’s popular “Den Pop” sodas are a new focal point for Purdue Student Government, which is pushing to make the drinks more eco-friendly by implementing reusable cups. “Right now, we have selected the cup size and what it would look like,” Garofalo said. “Now, it’s more the aesthetic of what will be printed on the cup, the graphic design, that we are still working on.” PSG and the Discount Den have been working together to host a design contest for students to submit their own designs for the cup.
Discount Den has left the (Chauncey Hill Mall) building - September 26, 2019
When Paul Griggs and Matt Garofalo posted on Instagram at 6:45 p.m. Wednesday – “One. Last. Time.” – things were fairly quiet at Discount Den, a convenience shop-turned-Purdue institution a few blocks from campus at Chauncey Hill Mall. The rest of the post, embedded with a snippet of Semisonic’s 1998 hit, “Closing Time,” brought lines to the soda fountains at the back of the store, all vying for last call on Den Pops, a staple so popular that they’ve been woven into the freshman orientation sessions of Purdue’s Boiler Gold Rush.
Discount Den launches '151 Small Steps' campaign - April 11, 2019
After 150 years of “giant leaps” at Purdue, the Discount Den, home of the famous Den Pop, has decided to take a sarcastic spin on the University’s campaign by announcing its “151 Years of Small Steps” campaign. While places like the Foundry work with young entrepreneurs to launch startups and provide mentorship, the Den is aimed at providing real-world testing for these products and services.
Discount Den to move north, announce new campaign soon - March 18, 2019
That’s how co-owner Matt Garofalo described the personality of the Discount Den, the nearly 40-year-old hole-in-the-wall shop frequented by Boilermaker students and alumni alike, which announced its upcoming relocation over Purdue’s spring break last week. “It’s a brand that’s not afraid to poke fun at anything, even itself,” Garofalo said. He works with business partner Paul Griggs to run the Den.
Discount Den, a Purdue icon, picks a spot for life after Chauncey Hill Mall - March 11, 2019
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The fact that Discount Den, a Purdue student destination since the earliest days of Chauncey Hill Mall, was going to move was no secret. The tongue-in-cheek bravado of recent months – “The new Chauncey Hill development is just going to have to build around us,” co-owner Matt Garofalo said at one point – wasn’t going to put the brakes on plans, still being developed, to replace the slowly emptying, 1979-era Chauncey Hill Mall a few blocks from the edge of campus.
Bangert: Countdown to a new Chauncey Hill Mall begins near Purdue - May 15, 2018
Long-awaited plans for Chauncey Hill Mall, a property suddenly surrounded by cranes putting up high-rises in West Lafayette’s Village area, should start coming together this summer. This week, officials from Trinitas, a Lafayette-based developer, met with city leaders and the two dozen retail tenants in the elbow-shaped strip center three blocks from Purdue University, to outline a set of public planning sessions in July to help guide what will replace Chauncey Hill Mall, a near-campus staple since 1979.
The next step in the city's new downtown - October 2, 2017
Three buildings in West Lafayette’s downtown will be seeing a change of ownership to keep them up-to-date with the new changes coming to State Street. The abandoned building on the corner of State Street and Northwestern Avenue is one of three buildings that will see changes. The second is the Chauncey Hill Annex, where Jimmy John’s and AJ’s Burgers & Beef are, and the last is the Chauncey Hill Mall, the strip mall including the Discount Den, Taco Bell and more.
Purdue graduate opens doughnut shop on Chauncey Hill - August 21, 2017
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — There are a lot of late night food options for Purdue University students around campus. Cheesy slices, burgers and milkshakes abound. Now you can add doughnuts to the list. Hammer Donuts opened Thursday at Chauncey Hill Mall, inside the Discount Den.
Discount Den Changes Hands - May 23, 2017
LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The Gold Pearl, The BGR and the All American Marching Band are just a few of the Den Pop varieties offered by the Discount Den, a convenience store just off campus from Purdue University.