A CompUSA repair tech has leaked to The Consumerist what he says is their schedule for the liquidations happening now until they close everything down after the holiday season. This is in no way set in stone, he says, but it looks like this is how it’s going to go down starting this week. (He would also like everyone to know that no one his place steals porn from customers).
Already:
New product shipments have ceased, what’s already shipping and in the warehouse is it.
TAP Warranties are run by Assurant and so they will probably all be valid.
Monday/Tuesday:
General Managers get told what’s going on:
Tuesday:
Last day to check in your computer for repairs.
Tuesday is the last day for returns.
Employee discount ends.
Wednesday:
10% off sales start
Repairs get shipped to Blue Raven
All sales final and if a return is accepted, it will be on a case by case basis
After Wednesday:
10% is only the beginning. Prices will be dropping weekly.
PREVIOUSLY: CompUSA Will Close All Stores After Holidays
(Photo: quentinr)
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Any idea how this will effect rebate items? I just recommended someone get a router (gave them the general rebate warning) but does this make it even less likely that the rebate will be processed?
What date do the employees get first dibs (or five-finger discounts)?
@SaveMeJeebus: Isnt that part of what got them in this position in the first place?
@crackblind: I’d just go worst-case-scenario and wouldn’t expect any fulfillment of CompUSA-sourced rebates, unless it’s instant.
When can we start ripping copper out of the buildings?
When the CompUSA in Grand Rapids MI went down a few months ago, the killer deals really weren’t there. $5 off a router that was already $20 cheaper online isn’t a killer deal in my eyes. The best deal I saw was all the store shelving selling for a song.
I wonder if there was anything worth dumpster diving for?
@crackblind rebates rarely ever worked for me. I usually pass on a deal that requires me to wait and pray to receive a rebate.
@G-Dog: It’s being run by Gordon Bros IIRC so expect them to try and milk top dollar from everything as long as possible.
G-Dog is right. When the CompUSA near me went belly-up about a year ago the deals were nothing special.
This seems like a marvelous opportunity to put everything that they won’t take back into dispute with your credit card company. With no one at the office at CompUSA to refute the disputes, this could become a free-for-all for consumers.
The employee discount ends Tuesday, too.
So… you liquidated her….. very resourceful.
That is because they still had stores they could move the product too. Now they don’t. I would expect to see some good deals…
When they closed the CompUSAs in the Atlanta area earlier this year, I was *really* close to buying part of the auido/PA system, but literally as I was there, someone else had bought it, and allegedly half of the display casings too.
Also, seeing as I got one of those CompUSA exclusive HP dv9407nr laptops (It’s been a killer unit so far) on Black Friday, I guess I’ll be extending the warranty directly with HP.
@MoCo: That sounds like a brilliant idea, but i’m sure there is some kind of safeguard against this, anyone have any clue what that safeguard might actually be?
Since they sold to a liquidator, does that mean all sales disputes would now go through them?
@Mike Mac: Likewise, same here.
That 10% off sales sounds like a big disappointment already. It’s sad to think that some suckers will fall for it!
10% off? I hope that’s just the beginning. 10% off at CompUSA will probably only bring you down to regular retail prices everywhere else.
i always hated compusa return policy crappy 15% restock fee. thats why i rarely shopped there, best buy was a lot better with open returns.
My local Comp had confirmed this when I went Saturday night, store closes in February, sales start Wednesday.
I will be in Florida near a CompUsa next weekend and for the following week. I will be checking, but I assume nothing special.
According to a friend of mine that works at the local CompUSA, 10% is just the beginning. They will be dropping prices on almost a weekly basis until they shut the doors in mid to late Jaunary. So, buy now at a higher price, or risk the product being gone when the price sufficiently drops.
This is second hand, but I was told by a friend that when Media Play closed down you could find perfectly good books, DVD’s, even guitars in the dumpsters.
So if they all close by feb. that means they will do sales every week like 10% off one week, following week should be probably be 10%-20% off. Week after that 20%-25% off and so on. Like other stores going out of business they will have crappy “store closing” sales.
I’ve got a friend who works at CompUSA- he found out about the closings when I told it to him on Saturday. Suck.
@techman01: Liquidators count on uninformed shoppers who assume they’re getting a great deal because of all the “EVERYTHING MUST BE SOLD” signs. And it generally works. So the chances of getting a great deal are slim (though not impossible). By the time things are seriously marked down all that’s left is the crap nobody else wanted.
This better be a good damn sale, unlike their store closure sales..that crap was absolute rubbish.
how does the repair tech find out before the general managers?
Hey, dumpster diving for guitars… Not a bad idea… Anything worth reselling – even those store shelves – is worth my time checking out…
A CompUSA closed near me a year or so ago, and while the deals on most-wanted stuff are not really great at all, you can find some decent stuff. I ended up getting an external HDD for about the same as a reasonable online price, but I didn’t have to wait (or pay) for shipping. Wasn’t a deal I’ll boast about, but it was neutral, which is better than a lot of shit nowadays.
What you can really do well on is stuff that nobody apparently wants – I got over 50% off on a power inverter that plugs into both cigarette lighters and those specialised airplane outlets, and the shelves were full of them! So if you’re in the market for something not ‘in demand’, you can def get a good deal.
so if you bought something last week for a christmas gift, you wouldnt be able to return it after Tuesday?
How this will all come down.
Store will operate as usuall with regular posted hours. Store-wide discount display signs are hung. Very little closing/sale advertisments will be seen by the general public.
Store will close a particcular [yet to be determined]sat-sun. During this period the Major retail liquidators will be loading up semi-trailers with profitable big ticket items.
Monday the store will re-open with shelves already stripped of the real goodies. Items remaining will be heavely discounted cause whats left ain’t gonna have much value.
The following week, store displays and anything else lying around will be sold at managements discretion.
They started closing down all the CompUSA stores in Atlanta last spring. Prices on items that mattered only went up so they could offset the ‘sale’ price.
They could do 20% off or 30% off and it woulndt be a good deal.. If you think about it they have 50% off of itmes or more all the time when they are on normal sale.
and think about computers packages, when they have like $200 – 300 off. I doubt they’ll be doing that instantly.
Is it going to be *THIS WEEK*?
@Skiffer:
Skiffer,
I nearly spilled lunch all over my desk reading that comment.
I wonder when the shoplifting crews will start working the stores? I remember when a northeast US regional chain Caldors went down burning to Wal-Mart. It was a free for all (for shoplifters) in the store closings– probably more empty boxes on the shelves and floors after having been gutted by the criminals…
I’m just glad to see them go. I used to work across the street from one and anytime I needed something that wasn’t directly on the shelf (behind the counter etc) it took my entire lunch hour to make the transaction.
10% off?!?! Ma, have my lawn chair and blanket ready Wednesday night, I’m getting in line!
Check here for info about rebates, warranties, and gift cards
[think-smarter.blogspot.com]
also, Thursday is the day liquidating starts, Wednesday is the end of the ad.
I guess some people are happy when others are miserable. My husband has faithfuly worked for Comp for the past 4 years and has only taking time off when our son was born. This crappy company didn’t have the guts to inform the employees of any of their actions and now 2 weeks before christmas and before my son’s first birthday we are told they will close its stores and we heard of this by word of mouth and from CNN. How do you think our families feel. Laugh it up all you ignorant people while we try to salvage the little that we have. My husband doesn’t make millions but he puts the food on the table and a roof over our heads. Its a good thing my son had his surgery already because who knows how long he would of had to wait. So keep coming to the store and asking for discounts and hoping to get those really great bargains because it has a scratch,you know something for nothing. The rest of us will be in the unemployment line try to see if maybe we’ll be able to pay the rent for next month.
the sales this time around are going to be far more significant than the last round of closing because when the other stores closed, they sent everything to the more profitable stores (like the one I work in) they don’t have that option this time. Everything will be sold. I posted some info about the kind of pricing to expect at my blog, there is a link above.
Well, not sure about in-store rebates (other than what was posted in that link), but I’m gunning for a web order rebate. They had $50 off $50 AV software on “cyber Monday”, so free after rebate. I just filled out the online rebate form, and it said it was approved, and I will get my check 2-3 weeks after the return period for my software was over. We’ll see if it shows up, but so far they are telling me I will get it. Are they going bankrupt, or are they just shutting down before they do? I think that makes a difference in what they owe me.
If anybody is expecting to get some sweet deals out of this, you’ll be sorely disappointed. The CompUSA near my house shut down this summer, and I stopped in there a few times to see what they had… it was pretty dismal. Even with the “fire sale” discounts, the prices were still more than what I could have gotten shipped to my door without too much effort. On top of that, the selection of stuff was pretty poor too- and this was at the START of the liquidation.
At first I thought it was pretty lame to wait until right before Christmas to let people know they were out of a job, but I guess that should have been apparent to anyone with half a brain when the stores started closing last spring.
@xtc46: Funny you mention the private security in that post… I went to one of the two surviving stores in CT with a friend on Sunday, and they had security types plodding around (this was about an hour before close). Didn’t notice them there before, most likely because they weren’t. Hey, if it’ll keep the shelves from getting picked clean by employees first…
@Skeptical_Geezer: its lame ona personal level, its genius on a business level. Christmas is the best time to liquidate.
@terekkincaid: You should get your rebate. They just got purchase because like 90% of the stores were failing and its not worth keeping the last few alive. They have been purchased by the gordon brothers who will pay out all debts and liabilities.
Hey consumerist, thanks for using my picture. I guess buying a $600 DSLR can make me famous. I used to work at one of the closing CompUSA’s beck eariler in the year. I’m not telling you stuff from the source anymore, but according to my predictions, I feel this liqidation will be much faster than the previous one. Since it’s the holiday season, inventory will probably dry up faster. Things aren’t fully set in stone yet, so lets wait until we hear more info from the suits about this.
The people who still remain at CompUSA probably don’t have a lot of morale left in them, so please try to treat them in a nice way. It kind of sucks to lose a job during the holiday season. (I’m still looking for work as well) Soon to be ex-Team Members, keep your head up. Most people in this thread only want to talk about how much stuff they are going to buy and just keep in mind that many good folks are going to lose their jobs.
I guess i better send in my $100 rebate soon then!
10% off anything Mac related (esp. hardware) is a rare find. Anything more than that… it’s a steal!
Release the (mac) hounds!!
@rjhiggins: Slim true but not impossible is true. I paid $5 when my local CompUSA closed for a cardbus USB 2.0 card with power brick for my laptop.
The security guards have shown up here too. Actually, the CompUSA here was one of the few that never checked receipts. Ironically, it’s next to an old Media Play that shut down a couple years ago.