Two more home improvement liquidation stores have opened in the Twin Cities. Jimmy Vosika, who opened MN Home Outlet in Burnsville in 2014, opened new stores in Woodbury in December and in Coon Rapids last week, selling tools, lighting, large and small appliances, flooring, plumbing, vanities, TVs and other items returned to hardware stores, discounters, warehouse clubs and ecommerce sites.
"We never set out to be in retail," said Vosika, who also owns ShopJimmy.com, an e-commerce site that sells TV parts. "But the Burnsville store has been an experiment that worked out well." Items at the liquidation centers generally sell for 50% off full retail prices.
The two new home improvement outlets in Woodbury (10470 Hudson Rd., 952-279-1587 for all locations) and Coon Rapids (20 Coon Rapids Blvd. NW.) are seeing twice the traffic and sales that were projected, Vosika said. The Woodbury store is about the same size as Burnsville at 57,000 square feet. Coon Rapids is 32,000 square feet.
Grand openings at both locations will be celebrated Saturday and Sunday. Everything in the stores is being discounted 20% through Sunday, including at the Burnsville store (2300 Hwy. 13 W.). The first 100 customers to spend more than $100 on Saturday and Sunday get a $20 gift card.
Mike Entsminger of Anoka shopped at the Coon Rapids store on Tuesday. "It's more organized than the Burnsville store," he said. "It's like shopping at a garage sale."
Vosika is aware that both new stores are easier to shop than the Burnsville store, so it is being reorganized. The remodeling is expected to be done in a month.
Online reviews of the new stores has generally been positive. One reviewer, Jason Stodolka of Coon Rapids, had never been in a MN Home Outlet store before until last week. He bought several open box items that turned out to be defective. "The deals are pretty good," he said while shopping on Tuesday, "but there is a 'buyer beware' when you're buying open box stuff. Check the box for parts and condition." Stodolka added that he had no problem returning the items and plans to continue shopping there.
Selection is hit and miss, since it's based on what customers return to hardware stores, discounters and warehouse clubs, but the three stores typically get five to eight truckloads per day.
Both new locations can be somewhat difficult to find because signage is not expected to be completed until the weekend. The Woodbury store is a former Gander Mountain.
The Coon Rapids store is a former Circuit City that sat vacant for almost 10 years. "It was almost like a time capsule when we walked in," Vosika said. "They still had the going-out-of-business signs up."
For more information about other home liquidation stores in the Twin Cities, click here.
