2013-10-21 15.32.04

Are groceries the only thing you can save on at Walmart?  Let me tell you a story.

Our microwave just crapped out on us last weekend so we were in the market for a new one.  I looked at all the ads to find the best deal I could.  Dian’s only criteria was that it needed to be at least 2 cubic feet because that’s how big our last one was and she didn’t want to go smaller.

After much research I finally found the one for us, a Panasonic microwave that Fry’s had on special for $99.  I headed out to Fry’s only to discover they were sold out.  No doubt a loss-leader that was short-stocked to get me in the door and buy a more expensive unit.  Disappointed I left to check out Walmart’s prices and was surprised to see the exact same model there but for $159.  All they had was the floor model unfortunately so I headed up to Customer Service to see if I could buy the floor model at a discount.  Did you know Walmart will not sell floor models of appliances?  I didn’t but apparently it is a hard and fast rule because they weren’t budging.

The good news is that once I explained what I was doing they basically assigned me to a dedicated Walmart Housewares employee (to get me out of the customer service line) who then called around to area stores to find the model I wanted.  (BTW if any Walmart IT people read this post, there should be a way to check the stock of area stores from the terminal.  Every other retailer in the world has that ability, Walmart should have it also.)

Once my microwave was located I headed out to the store it was at to find that was set aside for me to pick up.  I showed them the Fry’s ad and they knocked $60 off the price enabling me to get a $160 microwave for $99.99.  It was an easy process and every Walmart employee I met was incredibly helpful.

Next time you are in the market for a household appliance, be sure to check your local ads and then head to Walmart to save!