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The Sale of Testers

post #1 of 11
8/10/08 at 6:45am
Thread Starter 
I recently found a place that sells Bulgari Omnia for $34.00. They also sold a bunch of other stuff for much cheaper than I could find online. Bulgari Omnia is generally $55-60 online. Anyway, while I was there, another lady at the counter said, "Yeah, it's always much cheaper here. I buy it without the box, cuz it saves me about 4-5 bucks."

Without the box?

Anyway, so after I made my purchase, I noticed the bottle said "tester, not for sale."

How is it that a place can sell testers, if they're "not for sale"?

This was a large store chain, not a Mom 'n' Pop perfume store. Are these places that *can* sell testers, or are they doing something illegal? (This was in the U.S. by the way.)
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post #2 of 11
8/16/08 at 11:28pm
Good question. I don't really know whether it's illegal to sell the testers but I notice that my local perfume shop (medium-large store chain) also sells testers. I've seen unboxed Pure Poison bottles sitting there for about 10AUD less than the boxed ones.

What also gets me are the samples they sell despite them having "free sample: not for sale" on them.
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post #3 of 11
8/17/08 at 6:57am
where at in the USA?
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post #4 of 11
8/17/08 at 7:22am
I don't believe it's illegal but the perfume companies will surely cut off their supply if they find out.
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post #5 of 11
8/18/08 at 11:11pm
I don't think it's such a big deal. I think it's part of "grey market sales" but just a part of that market. Someone got a bunch of the bottles the manufacturer intended to have used as testers on perfume counters. That someone decided to sell them instead. It is curious that it was a large store and not a mom & pop as you point out. Depending on the size of the store and if it's a chain, I wish I knew what the cause of selling the testers is, but I suppose with many chains you could return it.

Odd also that the other customer said she buys without the box and saves money. This makes me think the chain might be a chain that is selling merchandise that didn't sell in another store. Not that it is bad merchandise, just that it's a store that deals in secondary re-sales or grey market. If I'm wrong about that take it back and see what happens. Might be a fun story to the explanation!
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post #6 of 11
8/19/08 at 1:40am
Well it says "Tester NOT for sale" for a reason.
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post #7 of 11
8/19/08 at 8:40am
I've always seen the "x not for sale" as a deterrent to the resale of free stuff.
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post #8 of 11
8/19/08 at 8:50am
Testers are given or sold at greatly reduced price to legitamate sellers as a sort of perk to buying large quantities of boxed products. They are intended to be used as testers and/or sold on. It is a method of promotion for the companies. Little stores rarely have testers but have to open a boxed unit to demonstrate.

Or if I am wrong, perhaps Vijay can ellucidate?
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post #9 of 11
8/19/08 at 9:16am
No well known retailer would take the chance of selling testers. As previously stated , the wholesaler would quickly terminate the contract if they found out.
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post #10 of 11
8/19/08 at 2:27pm
it's not illegal - it may be a contract violation. However, if a supplier's contract with the manufacturer is complete, either they've sold all the stock they have, or perhaps they're not going to re-order another shipment, they can sell the testers without it being a contract violation, either.
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post #11 of 11
8/20/08 at 11:11pm
many of the major online sites sell testers -- ex: fragrancnet.com.

There is nothing different about testers and for an online retailer it's probably of no use. I would imagine they have the manufacturer's permission to sell it.

take into consideration that a lot of people purchase colognes as gifts . The box, and the shiny cases are a part of the package. So there is a disincentive to buying a test in that regard.
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