There are numerous myths about store liquidations. The truth about store liquidation myths is that most are not true. When asked you’ll find most store owners have little or no knowledge of store liquidation. Most haven’t experienced it and if they have the sale probably wasn’t as successful as it could have been. Closing a store and managing a store is about as far apart as the north poll and the equator—totally different environments. Or, they know someone who tried and failed or used the wrong liquidator. The truth is that Store Closing Sales can be the most productive and profitable sales ever. It’s all in knowing how to do it the right way!
The first myth: Stores that liquidate get a poor return. Not true! Good stores with full inventories are often profitable liquidations. It’s not unusual for our Store Closing Sales to produce more than the owners advertised asking price when they were trying to sell it.
Sometimes a lot more!
The second myth: Don’t hire a liquidator. Do it your self and save the money. Wrong!
The right liquidator has a vast amount of liquidation experience and a proven successful sale plan. Do your research and find the liquidator best qualified to manage your sale. Naturally, we think that’s us!
The third myth: Let your inventory sell down before hiring a liquidator. Wrong!
Sold down inventories are usually short of the A, or fast turning, desirable merchandise. This is the merchandise that makes a profit on a liquidation sale, the merchandise that attracts customers to the store and keeps them coming back right down to the end of the sale. Fast turning, profitable merchandise is in short supply and often sells out in the first few days of the sale. Sold down inventories are more difficult to liquidate, they require more advertising expense, they take as much or more time to liquidate, drive up overhead and they get a lower percentage of return on inventory cost. On top of that, we don’t work on a percentage of sales so you’re not saving anything on fees.
The fourth myth: Run a clearance sale before starting a Liquidation Sale. Wrong! A clearance sale with the same discounts and the same amount of advertising will only produce a small fraction of the volume Wingate Store Closing advertising will produce. A clearance sale to reduce inventory at this time is only wasting advertising dollars and driving up overhead. AND, it forces the liquidation sale to start with deeper discounts than otherwise necessary. All good merchandise should be at full retail prior to the start of the sale. We’ll take a minimal mark down on this merchandise. Out of season and older merchandise should maintain the discount already on it. We’ll evaluate it and suggest the best and most productive sale price.
The fifth myth: Liquidation Consultants aren’t reliable and often don’t know what they are doing. Wrong again! Our Consultants are thoroughly screened before we take them on. They were store owners or store managers with at least ten years retail experience before being considered. Several have over thirty years experience. They are thoroughly trained in the art of store liquidation and are an apprentice to an experienced Consultant for on the job training before given an assignment. We guarantee our Consultants! If you don’t have confidence in him we’ll replace him. Note: It has been so many years since I have had to replace a Consultant I can’t remember it.
