Don't Wait For Sears Clearance Price Drops!

[Stuey]

So I was at Sears today to pick up some of the adapter sets that were on sale for $10.

I picked out a four plier set that was on clearance a few weeks ago. It had two of the newer Craftsman pliers, and two crappy mini ones. A few weeks ago it was $6-$7 or so on clearance.

There were FOUR sets available!! Guess what the price was.... $0. The Sears associate told me that he couldn't sell it to me or it would be his job, and that nobody above him could make up a price for the set either.

Later on when I checked out, a wrench I was holding had a $0 price as well. A different cashier offered it for $4 but I declined given that I was made aware that he could be fired from such a sale.

So yea... if you wait too long for a clearance price, don't wait too long; even if it's still available, you might not be able to buy one.

The guy said that products priced at $0 are "salvaged" and sent back for repackaging or something similar. For the most part, this particular Sears employee is one of the more trustworthy ones that I've dealt with.

 

[billymade]

This is what we call "zeroed out"; these usually end up coming up on lists that we have to "RTV"; return to vendor. As far as I know from a bookkeeping point of view they have lost their "value" and have to be sent back to the vendor. What actually happens to them or the process they go thru; I don't know but from our end, they can't be sold at that point. They have to be pulled off the floor and sent back to the vendor for credit. What the insider reality is, I don't know but from a associate on the floor point of view, that is what we do with the $0 value items.

 

[Uncle Buck]

This is what we call "zeroed out"; these usually end up coming up on lists that we have to "RTV"; return to vendor. As far as I know from a bookkeeping point of view they have lost their "value" and have to be sent back to the vendor. What actually happens to them or the process they go thru; I don't know but from our end, they can't be sold at that point. They have to be pulled off the floor and sent back to the vendor for credit. What the insider reality is, I don't know but from a associate on the floor point of view, that is what we do with the $0 value items.

In my town there is a salvage sales place that I think is almost all Sears stuff. Mind you in name, employees, etc. there is no link to Sears but almost all the products came from Sears.

When you walk down the aisles you see pallets shrink wrapped and tons of tools etc. crammed to overflowing having a hodge podge of products some tools and some not all intermixed on one pallet!

These pallets have black magic marker prices on them varying from $200-$500 or more. You just essentially roll the dice and buy your pig in a poke, having no idea really what 100% of the contents you are paying for is. Great supplier to flea mkts, eBay, etc.

I am not well heeled enough to take chances with this kind of money but obviously someone is for them to stay in business. I bet this where a lot of zeroed out merchandise ends up, in places like this!

 

[64merc]

I think it all depends on the manager, in regards to the $0 items. The other day I did a price check on a couple of cordless saw blades and they rang up as $0. The associate was nice enough to call up the manager and the manager offered them to me for $1 each. Needless to say, I bought them.

 

[Uncle Buck]

I think it all depends on the manager, in regards to the $0 items. The other day I did a price check on a couple of cordless saw blades and they rang up as $0. The associate was nice enough to call up the manager and the manager offered them to me for $1 each. Needless to say, I bought them.

Yup, a store by store thing definitely.

 

[Stuey]

The associate I spoke with said that if he sold it to me knowing it was zeroed out, it would mean his job, and that if the manager did the same, he would be similarly disciplined as well. I think he was just being overly cautious, but it suggested that such a scenario has happened before.

Oh wells... there are much bigger things to dwell on. Like Sears.com still oweing me some cash.

 

[Tbonekilla]

Contact you state's Department of Weights and Measure about price scans. In some states they have to offer it at that price or pay a fine.

 

[kythri]

Local Sears has a couple of unboxed 33-gallon Craftsman vertical compressors on clearance. I've been eyeing the new ones for quite a while.

Apparently nobody working there ever pays attention to the Craftsman Club sales.

Regular price is $349.00

Clearance price is $244.83 (with no free air tools or accessories)

Club price (with a bunch of free air tools, and it runs about every other month) is $290.00

That clearance price is gonna have to get better than $45.00 off the May Club price for a brand new one, in box, with accessories, for me to not wait until the May Club days.

 

[stricht8]

I bought a thumbwheel rachet and an 8" prybar the other day from Sears. The prybar rang up as $0. The salesperson asked me if there was some kind of promotion. I replied, I don't think so and he gave it to me for free.

 

[Abodyracer]

Local Sears has a couple of unboxed 33-gallon Craftsman vertical compressors on clearance. I've been eyeing the new ones for quite a while.

Apparently nobody working there ever pays attention to the Craftsman Club sales.

Regular price is $349.00

Clearance price is $244.83 (with no free air tools or accessories)

Club price (with a bunch of free air tools, and it runs about every other month) is $290.00

That clearance price is gonna have to get better than $45.00 off the May Club price for a brand new one, in box, with accessories, for me to not wait until the May Club days.

Have the assosiate check the "991 schedule" (this is our code for clearance) If it has been at a certain price for 30 days or more the manages can update the 991 schedule and drop the price some more. An example from this weekend on a clearance role away chest and intermediate box (our display and last one) My manage put it on the 991 schedule and the price for the 2 items together dropped $175.00. We also had a Gladiator storage cabinet that was damaged. It was on the 991 schedule for $75 off reg price. when it didn't sell in 30 days it got updated and it dropped to $150, which was $200 off reg price. It sold in less than a day.

 

[nissan_crawler]

I bought some C-Pro wall cabinets for the garage. They were on sale for $99. One of them was mashed, so I brought it back. They said since they were already $60 off, they could only mark it down $10. I told them to give me a new one then. That mangled thing has been sitting in there for a month, and still is only down to $110, when the sale was $99 for them new!! Freaking morons.

 

[Northstar9126]

So if the item can't be sold without costing somebody their job why in the world is the stuff out on the salesfloor for customers to find? All that they are doing is risking getting customers PO'ed and employees in trouble. Idiots.