Well, the delay here is finding one of my release forms.

So: let’s ignore that sample for a moment.

There’s multiple aspects to this:
What we are looking for is product that is damage outside of sellability or or returned and can’t be resold.
AND
Items that can not be returned to manufacturer
AND
A company more willing to make a buck on a semi-legal piece of paper.
AND
Companies not having quota based recycling contracts.
AND
Your reliability to take everything they give/save/hold for you at the agreed price even when you don’t want it.

One by one now.
What are we buying?
We’re looking at things that plug in and turn on. Anything from a power drill to a washing machine. From a lamp to a car.
Condition? Screwed at best. FUBAR at worst!
We’re talking DVD players that were crushed under 50 A/V tuners.
A microwave oven that was dropped down 40 floors of stairwell.
Power drills with power cables cut off.
A tube tv with a broken screen.
A cell phone dropped on the highway at 75. Then run over by a dozen trucks.

We’re looking at items a company can’t return. For any number of reasons. New sales can often be returned when they arrive damaged. With thrift/resale, not so much.
But anyone who clearance hunts will tell you not everything gets returned by retail. Just look at Best Buy. Or walmart. Displays and demos beat to crap. Smalls that a return trip would be cost loss.
In the thrift setting it’s anything that can’t be sold either by legal issues (frayed/missing wires eg) or common sense.
Nobody’s gonna buy the smashed vcr when a nice one is sitting next to it.

_________________
42 6F 61 72 64 73 6F 72 74 2E 63 6F 6D

Getting the goods:
The first step is to come up with a release notice. This is worth thinking through on many layers.
In most states/towns a simple waver of return is enough.
It’s a notice you sign in front of sr management or the owner, stating you will wave the ability to return an item in exchange for buying what they can’t sell.
This tend to work best when you wave the ability to exchange any item, ever.
I’ve even had custom stamps made so the employees can stamp my receipt no return/no exchange
In return, they sell you broken and damaged items they would otherwise recycle or trash.

Some states/towns have strict liability rules. And I’ll cover the liability waver in the end.


What will you buy.
This is a section you need to consider carefully.
Remember I said you can’t go refusing things and make this work.
So we want to set awe as prices up front.

_________________
42 6F 61 72 64 73 6F 72 74 2E 63 6F 6D

Here’s how I’ll lay this out

Class,
a generic description of the items
Examples.
Price I pay.


.
Hand held items.
Games, power tools, personal care.
Game and watch, hair dryer, drill
25 ¢

Computer peripherals
Small external peripherals
Keyboard, mouse, routers, web cam
25 ¢

Small appliances
Kitchen, home, workshop
Toaster, microwave, lighting equipment
50 ¢

Home furnishings
Lamps
Lamps
50 ¢

Large computer peripherals
Big plug-in stuff
Printers, fax machine, gaming kits, scanners,
$1

Incomplete computers
Whole computers
Computers missing stuff, netbooks, tablets
$2

Small AV
Low end consumer av
DVD, vcr, stereo
$2

Large appliances
Big stuff
Washer, dryer, oven
$5

Whole computers new
Computers, servers, laptops post 1999.
Complete (w/wo HDD)
$5

Computers complete old
Same as new, 99 and earlier.
Complete (w/w/o HDD)
$10

Workstations/servers/custom
Large computer systems with board footprint over 18cube
$10

High end/large av
Large, expensive, heavy
prosumer or commercial level audio and video
$10

Rack units, full
Rack server full drawers
2U or larger
$20

Quarter rack
Quarter full
$25

Half rack
Half full
$50

Full rack
Full rack
$100

Car/suv partial
Has at least one: engine, transmission
Must have controllers and computer if post 1994
$50-$100

Car/suv complete
Based on the E’s guide to breakdown weights.
$100-$500

_________________
42 6F 61 72 64 73 6F 72 74 2E 63 6F 6D

Understanding liability wavers:
Some states/towns will require one to get you foot in the door at all on resale waste.
California, Illinois, New York, that I know of.

What should be common sense-an item with a frayed cable is dangerous-is none the less legislated in some locales. In these states a corporate insurer can modify or revoke a company’s policy if they sell damaged food.

An insurance waver basically says

I will not hold the company, a partnership to the company, the company’s insurer, or the company’s partnership’s insurers, liable for any harm from a sold, damaged, product, including loss of value, property, or life.

This is the why: in such locations you can sue, for example, walmart for selling a damaged item that hurts or kills you.
You can sign a waiver releasing walmart. But you can still file against Walmart’s insurer.
Or their partners, or their employees, or anyone even remotely involved in the product reaching your hand.

_________________
42 6F 61 72 64 73 6F 72 74 2E 63 6F 6D

Wow this is awesome! Thanks for posting this nugget of insight.

There’s real risk to companies selling broken and damaged stuff.
So I’ll give you the condensed version of a conversation I had once at a good will location: AFTER I had the regional permission for such buys via waiver.

About a damaged $250-retail commercial drill
What would you do, the cable is cut?
Well, I’ll remove the plastic case. Desolder the power cable. And Attach a new one from Electric Supply. Test and clean everything. Put it back together.
And sell it as a refurbished item.

_________________
42 6F 61 72 64 73 6F 72 74 2E 63 6F 6D