How does this sale work?

January 15, 2009 6:06 PM

Does anyone have the inside scoop on Cost Plus World Market great buys Sales?

I'm interested in a sleeper-chair-and-a-half (like a sleeper sofa, but opens into a twin sized bed) at Cost Plus World Market. The chair costs $399 until January 31. My local store has six in stock, and they say the sale last until they run out of chairs.

But what happens if they don't run out before the end of the sale? Do they ship the surplus back somewhere? Do they raise the price back to $599 (the nebulous "regular" price)? Or do they discount further?

I know this type of bargain hunting is harmful to the economy, but its very helpful to my wallet.

posted by jefficator to home & garden (4 comments total)

World Market is likely to enter bankruptcy this year - if you like the chair, I would go ahead and get one. Right now World Market is closing and liquidating all of the stores in my town (Omaha) and this will probably continue.

You could see if they are closing any stores within driving distance, and see if you could pick one up at one of their going-out-of-business sales.
posted by Ostara at 7:21 PM on January 15

I don't have any inside scoop, but I believe these items will go back to regular price when the sale ends and the stores keep the stock. If it is a regular item they may have the same item on sale again in a few months, maybe for the same price, maybe for cheaper. You could probably ask one of the staff and they will tell you if they will ship the items back, but I doubt it. I don't think they discount the display models unless maybe they are badly damaged.

This is probably bad advice, but I believe if you get approved for a WM credit Card you get 10% off your card purchases that day ($39.90) and you will get a coupon in the mail for $15 from their rewards program ($15 for every $300 charged to the card). So thats about $55 off if you will buy other things there in the future. Please don't do this unless you plan to pay it off before the grace period is up. Don't think of it as a credit card, just a way to get a discount.
posted by Yorrick at 7:36 PM on January 15

I've managed to get in on the tail end of WM sales several times when they only have the floor model left, and negotiate another 20% off because of condition. You risk missing out on the item, because if they have any left they won't sell you the floor model, but when you time it right it really pays off.

I'm sorry to hear they're going out of business. It's a great store, waaay better than Trader Joe's for specialty packaged food items imo.
posted by nax at 7:54 PM on January 15

Having been through two retail bankruptcies, the recent events surrounding Cost Plus do not seem to warrant immediate "bankruptcy!!!" alerts - they've only closed about 10% of stores : "The California-based chain announced Friday plans to close about 10 percent of its 296 stores nationwide." However, there's a lot of buzz on the various msg boards etc... about the current mgt team, performance over the past 3 years, etc... all evidence that points the other way - so it's a crapshoot. But you're not looking for stock tips, right? Onwards...

As for the chairs - I'm not sure about the sleeper sofa, but as for other furniture, like the Studio Day Sofa (which I've been ogling for a while now), it goes on sale, then the price goes back to "normal" ($399). If they run out at a particular store before the sale ends, they'll call around to other local stores for you.

Anyway, it will probably go on sale again. You might want to wait until there's some reviews posted about it on the Cost Plus site - some of their other couches have problems with the material etc...
posted by HopperFan at 9:40 PM on January 15