Where have all the good shopping deals gone?

[DodgerGirl]

Now that Christmas and the holidays are over I have been noticing that it's hard to find good deals on anything on clearance and I can't figure it out? Is it because the stores are eager to get rid of remaining Christmas items and try to get the new spring sales started quickly? Take for instance my mom and I went to Walmart's website at their toy clearance and over half the clearance toys were mostly infant toys and preschool toys and when Mom and were looking at Walmart's website they had a few Marvel action figures priced under $4 but the remaining figures were $10 to $24 and the same thing with Disney toys and Mom and I found the Mattel Disney's Wish Asha doll for $10 but the singing Asha doll was $19 and so were some other Barbie dolls I found in Walmart's website. Macy's also has done this too and when you look at Macy's Christmas merchandise you'll find throws for $30 and Christmas candy for $40 and the only things that seem to go on clearance are Estee Lauder beauty gift sets and kitchen appliances and if you look at the toy section of Macy's the only clearance toys they have are their Christmas plushies. And what it tells me is that when it comes to After-Christmas sales and New Year's Day sales toys and Christmas decor are the last items to go on clearance. And when you go to stores like JCPenney they only have clothing and shoes on holiday clearance sales and rarely electronics and appliances. I think it was a very slow shopping season and the stores couldn't keep up with the hot items that everyone wanted for Christmas. I think toys were the most affected by this because even though toy companies still make toys this generation of today is not really buying toys for kids much anymore

 

[Allison]

Paragraphs matter.

 

[princesscinderella]

I think the stores aren’t carrying the ton of stock like they used to so must stuff sells out and there is less to go on clearance. I definitely have noticed the change too. I used to always get Christmas lights and decorations after Christmas and now you have to get it before thanksgiving if you actually want something or it will be sold out.

 

[sam_gordon]

I think the stores aren’t carrying the ton of stock like they used to so must stuff sells out and there is less to go on clearance. I definitely have noticed the change too. I used to always get Christmas lights and decorations after Christmas and now you have to get it before thanksgiving if you actually want something or it will be sold out.

This. Stores don't WANT to put things on clearance. If they had their way, they would order the exact amount of stuff that they would sell at full price.

Once again, why does a business do anything? Money.

 

[SteveH]

Check the news about what's going on with the Houthi and shipping.

 

[Christine]

Now that Christmas and the holidays are over I have been noticing that it's hard to find good deals on anything on clearance and I can't figure it out? Is it because the stores are eager to get rid of remaining Christmas items and try to get the new spring sales started quickly? Take for instance my mom and I went to Walmart's website at their toy clearance and over half the clearance toys were mostly infant toys and preschool toys and when Mom and were looking at Walmart's website they had a few Marvel action figures priced under $4 but the remaining figures were $10 to $24 and the same thing with Disney toys and Mom and I found the Mattel Disney's Wish Asha doll for $10 but the singing Asha doll was $19 and so were some other Barbie dolls I found in Walmart's website. Macy's also has done this too and when you look at Macy's Christmas merchandise you'll find throws for $30 and Christmas candy for $40 and the only things that seem to go on clearance are Estee Lauder beauty gift sets and kitchen appliances and if you look at the toy section of Macy's the only clearance toys they have are their Christmas plushies. And what it tells me is that when it comes to After-Christmas sales and New Year's Day sales toys and Christmas decor are the last items to go on clearance. And when you go to stores like JCPenney they only have clothing and shoes on holiday clearance sales and rarely electronics and appliances. I think it was a very slow shopping season and the stores couldn't keep up with the hot items that everyone wanted for Christmas. I think toys were the most affected by this because even though toy companies still make toys this generation of today is not really buying toys for kids much anymore

I saw a LOT of clearance the week after Christmas. By the second week after Christmas, it was gone. I think you're just late to it.

 

[ronandannette]

This. Stores don't WANT to put things on clearance. If they had their way, they would order the exact amount of stuff that they would sell at full price.

Once again, why does a business do anything? Money.

Yes, of course. We've just had the weirdest controversy here in Canada regarding a very large national grocery chain. These stores had a practice of selling fresh products (bakery, meat, dairy and produce) on a 50% off shelf as they neared expiry. They announced the practice would be changing to a different model of inventory management and a smaller discount. The public went nuts, pressed for government intervention and the chain reversed course.

I found this all gobsmacking. Don't like the price of something or can't afford it? Don't buy it. But to assume a private for-profit enterprise needs to provide goods for anything less than its maximum margin is just not how a free-market works. And FWIW, just-in-time inventory management is often the key to a company's profitibility and the goal is to NOT have excess stock that needs to be discounted. The better a company is at this, the better they do. Notwithstanding, of course, the real difficulties that arise when supply-chains are disrupted, as we all learned the hard way in the past 3 years.

https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/lob...ublic-anger-over-discount-reduction-1.6734246

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Now that Christmas and the holidays are over I have been noticing that it's hard to find good deals on anything on clearance and I can't figure it out? Is it because the stores are eager to get rid of remaining Christmas items and try to get the new spring sales started quickly?

That just doesn’t make sense to me. Wouldn’t they mark things way down if they really wanted to move them out?

I think the reason they’re not marking things down as much is because many companies are hurting financially. Macy’s just announced big layoffs, as did Wayfair and others. Sports Illustrated just laid off 100% of their staff because they were in debt. Companies‘ bottom lines have been affected by increases in costs of just about everything.

 

[sam_gordon]

Check the news about what's going on with the Houthi and shipping.

I don't understand the connection. Clearance deals would be only on products already in the store and the stores want to get rid of (because they take up shelf space needed for other product). How does something happening halfway around the world affect that?

If stores aren't offering enough clearance deals, it's because they don't need to. Presumably because they've gotten better at their ordering, and there's not as much "extra" stock that needs to be sold at deep discount to get it out of the store.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Check the news about what's going on with the Houthi and shipping.

Good article in today’s NY times.

 

[Tinkerbell58]

Paragraphs matter.

And sentences that aren't 50+ words long.

 

[fly girl]

Paragraphs matter.

And sentences that aren't 50+ words long.

Be kind, some posters may have developmental deficiencies. I know it isn't always easy to decipher, but keep that in mind when you see something that is different.

And if it bothers you still, then block the poster.

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

I think the reason they’re not marking things down as much is because many companies are hurting financially. Macy’s just announced big layoffs, as did Wayfair and others. Sports Illustrated just laid off 100% of their staff because they were in debt. Companies‘ bottom lines have been affected by increases in costs of just about everything.

Brick and mortar retail vs online retail vs print. 3 very different industries with different headwinds.

 

[focusondisney]

Now that Christmas and the holidays are over I have been noticing that it's hard to find good deals on anything on clearance and I can't figure it out? Is it because the stores are eager to get rid of remaining Christmas items and try to get the new spring sales started quickly? Take for instance my mom and I went to Walmart's website at their toy clearance and over half the clearance toys were mostly infant toys and preschool toys and when Mom and were looking at Walmart's website they had a few Marvel action figures priced under $4 but the remaining figures were $10 to $24 and the same thing with Disney toys and Mom and I found the Mattel Disney's Wish Asha doll for $10 but the singing Asha doll was $19 and so were some other Barbie dolls I found in Walmart's website. Macy's also has done this too and when you look at Macy's Christmas merchandise you'll find throws for $30 and Christmas candy for $40 and the only things that seem to go on clearance are Estee Lauder beauty gift sets and kitchen appliances and if you look at the toy section of Macy's the only clearance toys they have are their Christmas plushies. And what it tells me is that when it comes to After-Christmas sales and New Year's Day sales toys and Christmas decor are the last items to go on clearance. And when you go to stores like JCPenney they only have clothing and shoes on holiday clearance sales and rarely electronics and appliances. I think it was a very slow shopping season and the stores couldn't keep up with the hot items that everyone wanted for Christmas. I think toys were the most affected by this because even though toy companies still make toys this generation of today is not really buying toys for kids much anymore

Why would stores discount toys like Barbie & action figures? They don’t expire or go bad. They can keep them in inventory until they sell just like anything else. As for Christmas decor, stores have been adjusting their stock so they don’t end up with left over merchandise that has to be discounted. There was another thread a week or so ago about how little Christmas merchandise was available even before December 25th. If their holiday merch is all gone, there’s nothing for them to discount.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I think stores are doing a more conscious job of ordering just what they need for the holiday season. My cousin texted me the day after Christmas that she went to 3 stores looking for clearance wrapping paper and all 3 stores had none.

 

[RangerPooh]

Many of the big box stores were already at 50%+ off Christmas before Christmas.with little left, at least around me.

I don’t watch toy sales anymore, but notice that clearance sales (clothes, toiletries, etc) are not as good as they once were. Perhaps it’s because those items might find a second life a clearance stores like Ollie’s or Bargain Hunt?

 

[Yoshi]

I think it’s a combination of a few things.

Some of the stores that had the best discounts on clearance like Sears, Kmart, Toys R Us are no longer around. I remember going to Kmart and getting so much for 90% off, even toys that were unmarked but scanned for 90% off. Other stores don’t have as deep discounts as they used to. After a holiday at Target, holiday food and holiday candy used to go to 90% off. Now the final discount on those items are 70% off.

The other reason is so many people know about these deals and clearances with social media like Facebook groups and smartphones to check prices and find out about the deals while in the store. In the early to mid 2000s, not nearly as many people were looking for the clearance and it took extra work. Circuit City had an amazing $4.99 video game sale one year where hundreds of games were marked down from as much as $49.99 originally. Most were tagged full price on the shelves and I had a printed list with me to see what was on sale from a game deal site. Now it is much easier to access those type of deals the rare time it is still available.

 

[barkley]

i caught a grocery item deal that i'm guessing somehow fell under the 'post holiday' sale criteria. went to the grocery store and saw the normal couple of shopping carts with odds and ends of marked down stuff/non perishables. there was a handful of christmas decorations and such but i focused on the food items and snagged some jars of food products that (for some reason i cannot fathom) are still being sold on the store's shelves for around $7 each but were selling in the holday mark down cart for $1.99 each thought they might be post dated or close to use by date but nope-best by date is 2026 no issue for me that they tend to be more popular during the christmas holidays cuz i use them year round.

 

[MillauFr]

Just say no and stop buying stuff you don't need. People have way too much junk sitting around already.

 

[CdnCarrie]

Meh. I just got a winter coat regular $225 for $70 this weekend. Deals are there if you look. It was in the store not online. I don't clothes shop online.