How do they get them ?

[SteveC.]

I am looking for replacement for my early 2011 MBP13".

I am in no rush but am seeking a much improved screen for my tired old eyes. I am happy to buy a refurbished model and get better value. A search of the usual websites (Ebay) shows people and some smaller companies selling new unopened stock at a price below even of the offical Apple refurbished site.
I am not talking a handful of Macs here, the was about 200 new ones. So how do these sellers get new unopened Macs to sell. Are they the real deal ?
They must get them in at a very decent discount as the sale price is about 15% below what Apple would charge. I am tempted but is there a catch.
My question is regarding sales in the UK for those that respond.
Thanks Steve

 

[ApfelKuchen]

I can only speak in generalities about how retailing works.

Are they the real deal? Maybe yes, maybe no. It pays to be sure of who the retailer is. Legitimate retailers do use eBay, but there are also outright frauds on eBay.

When a model is discontinued, retailers may have remaining inventory of those models. It's also possible the manufacturer has excess inventory and offers that inventory to certain retailers at a reduced price. Sometimes that excess inventory passes through several hands. Sometimes a retailer in one country buys unsold inventory from another country to take advantage of currency exchange rates that have changed since the original goods were purchased. And sometimes it's stolen goods. All sorts of possibilities.

Anytime a business has old inventory they have a choice of trying to recover the full price they paid for it, or to sell it at a below-cost price in order to liquidate the inventory. If they insist on recovering their cost on each and every unit sold, they run the risk of never selling some of those units. So they look at the averages. If they sold one hundred units at a $100 profit ($10,000) and sell ten units at a $100 loss (-$1,000), then they still have a $9,000 profit. Further, all unsold items in the warehouse are a cash investment that's earning them nothing - it's better to get most of that cash back and invest it in new inventory than to let it sit there earning nothing.

So yes, a lower price than Apple Refurbished may be perfectly legitimate, but that doesn't guarantee that it really is legitimate.

 

[SteveC.]

I can only speak in generalities about how retailing works.

Are they the real deal? Maybe yes, maybe no. It pays to be sure of who the retailer is. Legitimate retailers do use eBay, but there are also outright frauds on eBay.

When a model is discontinued, retailers may have remaining inventory of those models. It's also possible the manufacturer has excess inventory and offers that inventory to certain retailers at a reduced price. Sometimes that excess inventory passes through several hands. Sometimes a retailer in one country buys unsold inventory from another country to take advantage of currency exchange rates that have changed since the original goods were purchased. And sometimes it's stolen goods. All sorts of possibilities.

Anytime a business has old inventory they have a choice of trying to recover the full price they paid for it, or to sell it at a below-cost price in order to liquidate the inventory. If they insist on recovering their cost on each and every unit sold, they run the risk of never selling some of those units. So they look at the averages. If they sold one hundred units at a $100 profit ($10,000) and sell ten units at a $100 loss (-$1,000), then they still have a $9,000 profit. Further, all unsold items in the warehouse are a cash investment that's earning them nothing - it's better to get most of that cash back and invest it in new inventory than to let it sit there earning nothing.

So yes, a lower price than Apple Refurbished may be perfectly legitimate, but that doesn't guarantee that it really is legitimate.

Hi,

Your reply mirrored what I had guessed. But when I find the current 2020 MBA "magic keyboard" base spec new, sealed box at 15% off the official full price. Makes me wonder where does the stock come from.