Originally published September 16, 2008.

When Eufaula resident Wendy Knight wants bargains in designer clothes, there’s one place she said she likes to go — Walls Bargain Center in Muskogee.

“Whenever I get a chance to come up here, I do,” she said, flicking through shirts hanging a Walls display. “I love the prices and some of the fashion names I can find here. One time I came up here and found a blanket for $30 or $50 that normally would run $200.”

Shoppers of all economic classes often can find bargains at closeout discount stores such as Walls or Big Lots.

Walls manages to keep prices down by buying from stores that have had close-outs, bankruptcies, overbought situations, factory overproductions or disasters such as fires or hurricanes, said Jim Dum, manager of the Muskogee store at 1150 N. Main St.

For example, on Monday, the store sold items at a 75 percent discount that came from a New York grocery store that had a fire, Wall said. Dum recalled getting merchandise when the Tanger Outlet shopping center in Stroud was destroyed by a tornado in 1999.

Consequently, the store has a constantly-changing inventory, Dum said.

“If you see it at our store and you want it, you better buy it,” he said. “It’s not like Wal-Mart. It’s nothing you can walk in and I’ll always have it. This is a shopping store.”

Dum said some larger inventory items such as mattresses, flooring and carpeting can be ordered.

Walls is a Shawnee-based chain of 21 stores in Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi. Dum said each store has a different inventory because of the changing sources of merchandise.

“It’s like Christmas whenever we get a truck in, we don’t even know what’s coming in,” he said. “It could be from an earthquake or tornado. Right now we have a big pet supply stock. We never had that before.”

Dum couldn’t say whether rising prices are bringing more people into his store.

“I do see people who haven’t shopped here in a long time; times do change,” he said, adding that Walls has been in Muskogee since the early 1970s.

One thing that has changed has been the store concept.

“It used to be tables that people would dig through,” he said.

Now, the store sets up displays, he said. Dum said he expects to receive a shipment of drug store stock coming in and is clearing out the back part of the store for the shipment.

Even with the changing inventory, Muskogee artist Hope Farmer said she usually can find something.

“They usually have something that’s 50 or 75 percent off,” she said.

Big Lots, an Ohio-based chain with a store at Curt’s Shopping Center on Shawnee Bypass, also has closeout items at a low cost. The Big Lots Web site said stores can offer merchandise at 20 to 40 percent below traditional discount stores and 70 percent below conventional retailers. The Web site said the chain buys closeout merchandise from manufacturers needing to reduce inventory because of package changes, canceled orders or product discontinuation.

Shopping tips for closeout stores
• Closeout stores have constantly changing inventory. If you see it and want it, buy it. It may not be there if you go back at a later date.
• Some larger inventory items such as mattresses, flooring and carpeting can be ordered. Ask.
• Each store has a different inventory because of the changing sources of merchandise. Shop around.
Source: Jim Dum, Walls