Comments on: Beware the Going Out of Business Liquidation Sale

By: Jerry Robertson

Jerry Robertson — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 05:03:16 +0000

Your article has great information about the large companies going out of business, but is false when talking about liquidation sales run by reputable companies for small businesses.

We do not buy the the inventory and the owner has final say. We try to end the sale as quick as possible. Yes, we try to make as much for the owners as possible, but there are good deals for the smart shopper. The key is to shop the first day of the new discounts.

One last thing, I have never raised a price or suggested an owner or employee to do so. When I catch one doing it, I change the price back and talk to the owner about the credibility of the sale and they have a lot to lose by doing that.

By: shoppinshack

shoppinshack — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:30:53 +0000

When ever I tell my husband what a great deal I got – like …”It was 75% off!” He always reminds me that it is 100% off if you don’t buy it. Good to remember when considering buying something you don’t absolutely need.

By: pacedes

pacedes — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 13:40:16 +0000

I concur with this article! I went to Circuit City looking at their MP3 players and IPODS. What a shock when I saw that the IPODs were $61.99 AFTER the 20% discount had been added! I told the clerk that at C-mas you could get IPODs for $45 anywhere. His explanation was that there was very little mark up on IPODs and the like–whatever!

Thanks for the education on this type of thing!

By: taxrascal

taxrascal — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 05:22:30 +0000

I guess the general rule of thumb is: a sale, discount, or limited-time offer is basically marketing; regardless of what something used to cost, or what it’s going to cost, the only useful criterion is whether or not it’s worth the price.

By: Miss M

Miss M — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 23:04:59 +0000

Expo design center is going out of business and has several things I’ve wanted for years to redo our bathroom. I know the pre-liquidation price so I’m not worried about getting a good deal, if the price is too high I’m not buying. But I’m wondering if I should buy early when they are just a little bit on sale or wait for the bigger sale towards the end. If I wait, I risk what I want selling out…

By: Kristy @ Master Your Card

Kristy @ Master Your Card — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:23:45 +0000

I’m so glad you’ve posted this! I work at a credit union in a major little shopping area and there’s a Circuit City right in the same area. The day everything went “on sale,” we got slammed with people coming in for cash. I talked to at least 50 people about this that day.

The thing is, retailers do this almost anytime they do a sale, not just liquidation. But, most consumers don’t price their products and do their research beforehand and that’s where the problem lies.

The only thing I would have been remotely interested in from Circuit City would have been a PS3…yeah right, like they’d discount that puppy! Regardless, they went out the first day…and they were $50 more than MSRP – at least here. I had to shake my head at all those poor teenagers that got ripped off!

By: thomas

thomas — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:04:40 +0000

yeah, GOOB sales are for the most part horrible. The only real discounts to find are on smaller items. That linen place (or things?) was a total crapfest but I did manage to get a funny spoon rest for $3. Stainless trashcans? those were “discounted” to $60.

By: the weakonomist

the weakonomist — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 02:05:53 +0000

Circuit City won’t have any deals. Accessories are overpriced because that is where the profit is. TVs, computers, and the like will never be able to compete with the online retailers. I see no point in scoping out liquidations unless you are looking for one specific item and won’t feel the need to buy other things because of a big SALE sign (I’m looking at YOU Kohls).

By: Craig

Craig — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 19:20:56 +0000

All sales are like this. Bottom line is don’t buy unless you need, regardless. Even with a sale or liquidation you still have to spend money. And most of it like you mention are inflated prices to begin with. Do research and compare before heading in to one of theses. also, usually the sales are final, no returns.

By: Jeff - StretchyDollar

Jeff - StretchyDollar — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:47:44 +0000

Yeah, isn’t this what Circuit City is doing? Follow these steps and you might just come away with a steal.

By: Carrie

Carrie — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 16:41:01 +0000

Those last days can be fun though. At Linens N Things, I stopped in on the last weekend and managed to snag a few pillows for around my house, a few lead dust tests and a zillion little wedding present gift tags, mostly at 90% off. It’s true, I did get one thing that turned out to be crap — a silly-looking external speaker that I wanted to plug into my laptop. But the speaker had even worse sound than my built-in speakers, so that $3.50 “investment” ended up in the Goodwill bin.

Knowing your prices is a definite must. I ordered off the LNT Web site during the clearance too, but only because I KNEW that the Fiestaware place settings I wanted are rarely discounted below $20 each. The shipping charge brought my total purchase up to about that, so it wasn’t a jaw-dropping deal, but I didn’t have to drive to a department store sale to get them and I urgently needed them for Thanksgiving so I was happy.