When I first moved to Minneapolis one of my favorite places to shop was a liquidation store called Banks. The place was huge,old and dusty. It was a no frills kind of place where you could get fabulous bargains. It sold everything from designer shoes and suits to jewelry, dishes and appliances.

In those days when we weren't in the middle of a financial meltdown I didn't give much thought to the retailers who had sold off the extra merchandise to Banks. I was just glad that I was able to buy stuff at great prices.

Banks closed several years ago and I haven't been doing much liquidation shopping since. But I am, like many others, revisiting the liquidation shopping experience.

While I am happy that I can buy stuff at bargain prices, there is a great deal of sadness that so many businesses have had to shut their doors and so many people have lost their jobs.

It's one thing to shop at liquidators when the merchandise is coming from stores that are moving the merchandise to make room for a new season's worth of products. It's another matter when you know you are buying stuff because the store closed for good.

According to the Christian Science Monitor while retailers are saying this is the worst consumer environment since World War II, the liquidators are having a great year.

One beneficiary of the souring retail climate
is Liquidity Services, Inc., based in Washington, D.C. Retailers and
manufacturers sell their excess inventory to the company, which then
resells it to some 1 million small businesses through its website
www.liquidation.com.

CEO Bill Angrick says the company's six warehouses are now filling up with items such as Kenneth Cole shoes, Coach bags, Liz
Claiborne apparel, and Samsung flat-screen TVs.

"Maybe
a year ago, retailers would have been willing to muddle through this
but in this era, they are slashing their positions and moving
aggressively even before we have gotten to Thanksgiving," says Mr.
Angrick. "For some it's no longer a matter of improving their return on
investments, it's a matter of survival."

Jacksonville.com offers readers some tips on becoming an expert liquidation shopper.

As retailers struggle, the prospect of more liquidation sales creates opportunities for savvy shoppers to jump on steep price cuts. But getting the best deals involves a guessing game for consumers. The longer they wait, the more prices get marked down, but that means fewer choices from the remaining merchandise.

At the beginning of a liquidation sale the discount can range from 20-30% but if you can wait, the savings can range from 80-90%.

Priscilla's Closet is a liquidation site that sells QVC jewelry. Most of the jewelry sells for 50% off the QVC price.

6pm.com is a discount Zappos site

With the economic meltdown they have started a clearance site that sells stock that hasn't moved in six months. 6pm.com

Their return policy isn't as liberal as Zappos and you have to pay for the return postage, but the prices look good.

The DailyLounge has an entire blog post devoted to bargain shopping for Black Friday and CyberMonday
Rebecca's Bargains is a blog that offers tips and deals how to get stuff for free(or almost free).

Bargain Shopper Lady bills itself as a bargain group for savvy shoppers who want to save money.

1. Free Jewelry! (Just pay shipping!) The Silver Jewelry Club also known as D.G.P.J, inc is so sure you’ll return to them that they offer free jewelry. (You just pay shipping.) You have to put the item in your cart before the timer goes off or you risk waiting to see if it’s still available. I’ve received lots of emails about this great deal and I’ve even bought from them before. I feel it’s a great deal for the price, watch out, you may get hooked!

There are also liquidation sales going on at a host of stores that have filed bankruptcy including Circuit City, Harold's and Steve and Barry's. The Bargain Hunter warns to do your research before you go to a liquidation sale.

If you go to a liquidation sale, remember to do a little research before hand so you can better gauge prices. Liquidation sales do not always have the best prices. But you may be able to get some fabulous deals just in time for the holidays!

Elana blogs about business culture at FunnyBusiness

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