Navigating the Maze: Finding Discounts at Trade Shows for Overstock and Closeout Inventory

Trade shows – bustling hubs of innovation, product launches, and networking opportunities. But for savvy businesses with an eye for a bargain, these events can be treasure troves for discontinued inventory. Overstock buyouts, closeouts, excess stock and abandoned inventory – these terms send shivers down the spines of importers and wholesalers, but for you, they can represent a chance to fill your shelves with exciting products at a fraction of the cost. This blog article will equip you with the knowledge and strategies to navigate the trade show maze and emerge victorious, with truckloads of discounted inventory and unwanted products, ready to turn a profit.

Why Trade Shows? A Treasure Hunter's Paradise

While online marketplaces, closeout websites and inventory liquidation sales offer closeout opportunities for discontinued inventory, trade shows offer several unique advantages:

• Direct Access to Suppliers: Connect directly with manufacturers, distributors, and name brand closeout representatives – the source of the deals. Build relationships, negotiate terms, and get a firsthand look at overstock merchandise, abandoned inventory, closeouts and excess inventory that these companies are keen to clear from their 3PL warehouses. These are the overstocked products they need to get rid of quickly.

• Variety Under One Roof: Trade shows often cater to specific industries, so you can efficiently explore a broad range of potential closeout opportunities and overstocked merchandise in a short period. There will be other closeout buyers walking the floor and also looking to buyout abandoned inventory, excess merchandise, inventory liquidations and obsolete stock.  But this is just part of what makes the game more exciting.  You will have competition, but this is what allows different closeout companies to compete with different closeout products.
• Bulk Buying Potential: Trade shows are designed for volume purchases. This can translate to even deeper discounts if you're ready to take advantage of bulk deals. Basically, you are looking for importers and distributors that may be closing a warehouse or going out of business and offloading inventory in bulk.  It can be closeout housewares, overstock lawn and garden, discontinued inventory of pet products, etc.
• Market Insights: Get a pulse on industry trends, upcoming closeout product lines, and potential closeout opportunities for the coming months. This is sort of a preview of what to expect will be coming on the market in the way of excess inventory and overstocked products. It will give you insight to what inventory your suppliers are thinking about offloading and which merchandise they are getting rid of.

Before You Dive In: Planning Your Trade Show Foray (2-3 Months Prior)

Preparation is key to maximizing your trade show experience. Here's what you need to do:

• Target the Right Shows: Research trade shows specific to your niche or target audience. If you are interested in buying closeout housewares, look for home accent and housewares shows. If you are looking for companies that are offloading pet product inventory, look for shows in the pet industry. Look for events that feature manufacturers and wholesalers who might be looking to offload excess inventory in your field of specialty.  Companies are always shutting their doors or downsizing to smaller warehouse, which always creates closeout opportunities.  So put yourself out their in front of them and cast a wide net looking for deals on overstocked products and closeouts.

• Define Your Budget & Needs: Determine how much you can realistically spend on overstock inventory and the types of closeout products or excess inventory you're seeking. Focus on categories that align with your brand and customer base. Try to specialize in a handful of categories so you have a lot of knowledge about the closeouts and abandoned inventory you want to buy. Remember the old saying, Jack of all trades, master of none.  Learn as much as you can about closeout inventories of toys or closeout housewares, and specialize in these areas.

• Registration & Booth Access: Register for the shows well in advance. Consider purchasing a booth if you plan to place large orders or showcase your existing closeout business to potential suppliers. But it is okay if you prefer to just walk the show as a buyer, meeting vendors who are looking to get rid of overstock inventory and offload abandoned inventory and excess merchandise. 

• Research Participating Vendors: Research the brand name closeout of these companies exhibiting at the show. Identify those known for offloading overstock or closeout sales, and prioritize your visit schedule. Keep in mind if there are other closeout buyers (which there will certainly be) at these shows, good deals will get snapped up quickly. Be prepared to make an offer to buy closeouts as soon as you see things you like.  Remember, exhibitors may be looking to offload excess inventory for many reasons, including going out of business, shutting down operations, downsizing warehouses and simply offloading excess inventory.

Hitting the Show Floor: A Game Plan for Success

The trade show floor can be overwhelming, so come prepared with a strategy:

• Dress Professionally: First impressions are important. Project a professional image to inspire confidence and trust when negotiating with vendors. If you truly intend to become a major player in the closeout industry and you expect to build a business of becoming a professional and reliable inventory liquidator, you will have to play the part. Closeout buyers don't always dress to the hilt – let's fact it, we are in a casual kind of business.  However, if you wear shorts and a tank top, likely these companies won't take you seriously.  Portray the image you have as someone capable of buying large quantities of overstocked products and closeouts, and let them see you are a real business capable of buying any size closeout inventories.

• Bring Business Cards & Marketing Materials: Have plenty of business cards to exchange with potential suppliers and potential customers you might meet at the show. As mentioned earlier, there are companies that buy excess inventory and abandoned inventory everywhere. In fact, most of your competition is probably walking the same shows as you, looking for companies that need to offload closeout inventory in bulk.

• Pack Comfortable Shoes: You'll be walking a lot, so wear comfortable shoes that can handle the demands of navigating the show floor. You might even consider wearing a hat or shirt imprinted with: We Buy Closeouts or Sell Us Your Excess Inventory, or We Buy Abandoned Inventory For Cash”.
• Prepare a Negotiation Strategy: Research typical wholesale prices for the products you're interested in. Formulate your closeout offer based on the minimum quantity you're willing to buy and the expected discount for closeout or overstock items similar to these. If you are an exhibitor looking for closeout buyers, you can search online before the show using these types of terms: closeouts, looking to offload dead stock, shutting down operations, downsizing warehouse moving to smaller location, closeout websites, closeout brokers, looking for inventory liquidators, looking to offload excess inventory, keen to clear out inventory from warehouse.

Spotting the Deals: Identifying Closeout Opportunities

Not all booths will advertise closeout deals. Look for these tell-tale signs:

• Booth Location: Sometimes, vendors with closeout inventory are placed in less prominent locations on the show floor. Don't skip these booths – they might hold hidden gems. You cannot judge a book by it's cover and you have to talk to everyone in every booth. Some of the largest buyouts of closeouts may be in the smallest booths.  Some of the largest booths may never offer closeout opportunities, overstock inventory or unwanted merchandise.

• Signage & Displays: Look for signs or displays that mention closeouts, overstock, offloading inventory in bulk, selling excess inventory or liquidation sales.

• Body Language & Sales Pitch: Experienced vendors might subtly mention their eagerness to move unwanted inventory. These are people you definitely want to talk to further, and try to find out why they are looking to offload excess inventory, what kind of closeouts they have, how much overstock inventory is available.

Making the Most of Your Interactions:

• Introduce Yourself & Build Rapport: Start conversations with a friendly and professional introduction. Explain your business and your interest in potential closeout opportunities. Talk about the type of overstocked inventories you have purchased in the past, the size of the inventory liquidations, and how much discontinued inventory you were capable of buying in bulk and selling off to liquidation buyers.

• Ask Questions, But Be Prepared to Answer Some Too: Be curious about the closeout products available, minimum order quantities, and potential discounts for closeout items or overstock inventory. Be prepared to answer questions about your business and your buying history. Don't be afraid to talk about closeout inventory you have purchased and it's okay to discuss the size of the discontinued inventory and overstock you have bought.

• Express Your Desire for Volume Discounts: Let the vendor know you're interested in offloading bulk purchases if you see the potential for a good deal. Negotiating on volume can unlock deeper discounts for closeouts.

• Don't Show All Your Cards: While transparency is important, avoid revealing your highest offer upfront. Leave some room for negotiation to reach a mutually beneficial agreement. If your seller is keen to liquidate the inventory and really wants to offload everything in one bulk sale, you should be able to get a better price.

• Get Everything in Writing: Once you've negotiated a deal, ensure you have a written confirmation of the order details, including price, quantity, delivery schedule, and return policies. Closeouts can be tricky and it is always in your best interest when offloading overstock inventory to work quickly.  Get a signed PO, wire some money to lock up the deals, and work on getting the inventory out of their warehouse as quickly as possible.

Merchandise USA is a reliable inventory liquidator in business buying overstocked inventory for almost 40 years. We buy closeouts of housewares, closeout garden products, excess stock of sporting goods and toys, discontinued pet products, overstock inventory of games, hardware, and tools. Whether you are shutting down your entire operation, downsizing warehouses, keen to clear stock from a U.S. warehouse, or liquidating inventory to make room for new products arriving, we can help. The liquidation process for offloading inventory is easy with Merchandise USA.