Dock 1 liquidation outlet in Hopkins isn't well-known yet, which is the way a lot of bargain hunters like it. Irwin Jacobs of Jacobs Trading Company, the Twin Cities king of liquidation, opened the store in 2017.
A couple of months ago he formulated a new way of clearing out the tons of e-commerce merchandise Americans return to online retailers. "People who are looking for a bargain can find small electronics, toys, household goods, and seasonal items," he said. "Everything in the bins is $5 on Mondays, $4 on Tuesdays, $3 on Wednesdays, $2 on Thursdays and $1 on Fridays and Saturdays."
A garage saler's delight, the store gets regulars on Mondays to scout out the deals and grab something that's likely to be gone later in the week. Maybe it's a rainfall showerhead, a kid's karaoke microphone, a coffee press, or a portable humidifier.
"We go through 10,000 to 12,000 units a week, maybe more," Jacobs said.
Betsy Sherman of Maple Grove shopped the two e-commerce bins Monday and found housewares and Bluetooth cellphone accessories. "Sometimes you find good deals but it can take more than an hour to search," she said.
Marcie Svitoris of Coon Rapids described the goods as "hit and miss" as she shopped for the first time on Monday. She found crafting magnets and Christmas items.
Dock 1 staff restock the bins continuously. With nearly 30 percent of online purchases returned, according to Worldwide Business Research, the bins stay full.
The $5-4-3-2-$1 bins make up a small part of Dock 1. Most of the warehouse is filled with clearance furniture and to a lesser extent big screen TVs. Jacobs said the TVs came from a retailer that recently closed. Most of the big screens are 2017 models still in the box and the prices often Beat Black Friday deals. A Samsung 55-inch 4K model MU8000 is $699. Best Buy and BHPhotoVideo featured it for $898 on Black Friday last year. Other sets include an LG 65UJ6540 65-inch for $749, a Vizio 43-inch D43-E2 for $279 and a Samsung curved 49-inch model 49MU6500 for $479.
Online price comparisons are still worth the time. Most of the Dock 1 TVs were priced lower than online, but not all. The Vizio D43-E2 set for $299 is $279 at Walmart.com.
Dock 1 is open weekdays and one or two Saturdays a month, including Saturday, July 28. Closed Sundays.
