When does an "On Sale" price turn into a regular price?

**KCNelson** · Mar-15-2022, 4:53pm

Just curious. If a mandolin has been on the market at a reduced price, say for $1100, for about two years, is it still "On Sale," or is that just its new price? Does there have to be a risk the sale will end and it will return to its original price?

**randybrown** · Mar-15-2022, 4:57pm

For that particular instrument, I'd say that's the current price.

**Jeff Mando** · Mar-16-2022, 9:04am

generally speaking, if something has been for sale for two years without selling, I would say the "sale" price is still too high....

**allenhopkins** · Mar-16-2022, 10:24am

Sellers -- especially of used instruments, where you can't check out "manufacturer list price" on-line -- can pretty much say what they want. I remember driving by a rural barn that had a permanent "Garage Sale" sign; of course, a garage sale is usually a limited-time, over the weekend event.

I get catalogs all the time that announce that such-and-such is "50% off regular price," showing a $XX price with a red line through it, followed by a $XX/2 price. Go back and check an older catalog from the recycle bin, and you see that the item was never listed for $XX.

"On sale" notices definitely attract attention, but are only as reliable as the sellers who post 'em.

**Jeff Mando** · Mar-16-2022, 10:42am

In the late 70's I lived in New York City and noticed all the shops on Time Square selling suitcases with a "Going Out Of Business" banner on the storefront.....25 years later I returned to see they are still in the process of "going out of business!"

**Richard500** · Mar-16-2022, 11:38am

Another meaningless, but normal convention is “save $xxx”. When it’s quite clear that purchasing something versus not, does not involve saving anything. These days, I guess we all automatically check the ‘net for pricing on everything, just because.
Many things, and instruments can overlap this group, have no actual retail sales price, and tremendous latitude while either still generating some profit, or forced into the magical world of surplus. In my world, offering 10% of ‘factory’ price isn’t considered rude, even on things costing much more than houses.