Now that you’ve decided to jump into pallet flipping, it’s about time you start learning something! As you start to do your research, visit pallet warehouses and talk to potential vendors it is very important you get to know what certain words mean. Although a lot of people in this business are honest in trustworthy, there are many more that will try to deceive you about the conditions of the items you’re buying. My goal with this post is to equip you with the knowledge to move forward.
Customer Returns – This will be one of the most widely used terms in the pallet flipping business. An item that is considered a “customer return” is exactly what is sounds like, an item a customer RETURNED. This item will have been purchased at the store and then brought back at a later time. This does not necessarily mean it was ever opened or used. However, you will want to use caution when inspecting these items after a purchase to make sure they do function properly for when you sell them to your customer. Don’t be afraid of customer returns, this is what most people purchase when just starting out and there is plenty of money to be made.
Shelf pulls – These are not to be confused with “overstock” items as I will get to next. An item that is considered to be a “shelf pull” will have been pulled straight from the shelf by an associate at the retailer. This item could have previously been opened by a customer, the box could be damaged, or it is an item that is no longer selling in the store. You should expect to find very little throwaway in pallets that are full of these items.
Overstock – Don’t let anyone try to convince you that shelf pulls and overstock items are the same thing. Overstock items are items that never made it to the store. They are typically still case packed and they will not have any damage whatsoever. These items should be brand new.
Liquidation – This term is commonly to confuse people that are not familiar with the business of pallet flipping. When you first hear/see this word you will automatically think “brand new” and you will be tempted to jump in right off the bat. Make sure to INSPECT the merchandise! In this business, liquidation only means that someone is liquidating the merchandise. We can liquidate customer returns just as easily as we can liquidate overstock items. So please be careful when people start throwing out the word liquidation.
Salvage – The term salvage can be just as confusing as liquidation. Salvage items will tend to be non-working and will require some kind of tinkering. Some retailers however, will mark items as “salvage” even though it is just a typical customer return. It is times like those where you will need to be able to trust your supplier.
In my opinion these are the most important terms that you will need to know. This should get you started on the right path. If there are other terms you are confused by feel free to contact me I would be more than happy to explain.
