Microcenter Question

[redfoot12]

This is something I've always wondered about. Anyone know how they're able to sell their CPU's significantly discounted from online retailers like Amazon and Newegg?

[boey]

they buy in bulk

[Skiiwee29]

Many times they use these promotions and sell them at a loss to get you in the store where people generally don't buy just one thing, leading to profits elsewhere. 

[Mira Yurizaki]

They may also be advertising the cost if you buy a bundled motherboard with the CPU.

[Tristerin]

Warehousing bulk product, combining their own deals with manufacturer deals - and as stated above - gets you in the store.  Lose money or call it even steven on the 1 big item...but a Processor doesn't just run itself!  They are competitively priced however you pay taxes there.  So imho they aren't as competitively priced as people think.

[GrogStache]

49 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

They are competitively priced however you pay taxes there.  So imho they aren't as competitively priced as people think

In my state, we pay taxes on Newegg as well. I think Amazon is the same. Sp for me at least, buying my cpu and mobo from micro center saved me over 50 bucks compared to newegg.

[orbitalbuzzsaw]

Often they lose money counting on the fact that you will buy their overpriced AF coolers, PSUs, and somewhat overpriced video cards. Their customer service is amazing though, I sent in my dead FTW3 DT 1080Ti and they upgraded me to a Strix OC for free.

[Tristerin]

6 minutes ago, GrogStache said:

In my state, we pay taxes on Newegg as well. I think Amazon is the same. Sp for me at least, buying my cpu and mobo from micro center saved me over 50 bucks compared to newegg.

Im in MO, Microcenter here so I have to pay taxes, no newegg or amazon in my state - so no taxes for me

[GrogStache]

26 minutes ago, Tristerin said:

Im in MO, Microcenter here so I have to pay taxes, no newegg or amazon in my state - so no taxes for me

Nice. Cherish that. There may come a day when it goes away.

[Tristerin]

6 minutes ago, GrogStache said:

Nice. Cherish that. There may come a day when it goes away.

Yup, Microcenter usually has a cheaper bottom line...but after taxes its cheaper for me to order Newegg every time.

[redfoot12]

The closest Micro Center to me is 110 miles away so depending on what I'm getting, I like to factor in gas

[Canada EH]

9 hours ago, redfoot12 said:

This is something I've always wondered about. Anyone know how they're able to sell their CPU's significantly discounted from online retailers like Amazon and Newegg?

They buy in bulk because they have 1000000000000's of stores to supply. They'd have PHD's studying the market to figure out how much to buy and they'd have agreements in place with AMD and Intel and whoever else.

[Dylanc1500]

17 hours ago, Canada EH said:

They buy in bulk because they have 1000000000000's of stores to supply. They'd have PHD's studying the market to figure out how much to buy and they'd have agreements in place with AMD and Intel and whoever else.

Just to clarify, Microcenter only has 25 locations.

[LAwLz]

I like how people think that Amazon and Newegg doesn't "buy in bulk" and that's how Microcenter manages to undercut them.

Or that Microcenter can negotiate amazing deals with manufacturers but Newegg or Amazon can't.

 

They sell them at such a cheap price because they are willing to cut their profits very slim (maybe even lose money) on the sale of the processor, if that means you drive all the way to their store to pick it up. Once you're in the store, many people will go "I might as well pick up the motherboard here too so that I can build the computer today when I get home".

[Canada EH]

4 hours ago, Dylanc1500 said:

Just to clarify, Microcenter only has 25 locations.

Non in Kanadeh :(

[PlayStation 2]

All depends. Usually it's buying in bulk and luring you in to their ecosystem as a future customer.

[Canada EH]

1 hour ago, handymanshandle said:

All depends. Usually it's buying in bulk and luring you in to their ecosystem as a future customer.

Its many things, but the first is to scam the potential customer to drive to the store and walk in, usually by "Door Crasher" sales or some other on sale item, in store purchase only, they only stock zero of those, so there is that. Another is jacking up the regular price to $1,000,000 then saying its 99% off.

[Crunchy Dragon]

On 1/11/2019 at 12:44 PM, Mira Yurizaki said:

They may also be advertising the cost if you buy a bundled motherboard with the CPU.

That only effects the motherboard price, you save $30 on the board when buying with a compatible CPU.