Sale vs Clearance
Sale, clearance, and clearance sale are some of the terms that are very endearing to most of us as they give us an opportunity to get the item we had been looking for quite some time at prices that are very much lower than their retail prices. Whenever we see discount or sale, we are tempted to check the products and prices to find out if indeed we can buy something for our use. There are many people who think that sale and clearance are words that are synonymous and can be used interchangeably. However, there is a difference between these two words that will be made clear in this article.
Sale
Sale is a promotional tool that is employed by shopkeepers, to attract more customers to achieve higher turnover. If you have been to a sale, you know that prices are slashed, or other offers are being given. It has to be remembered that a sale is organized on the pretext of an anniversary, festival, change of seasons, year end, and is of a temporary nature. It really surprises many when they see the same shirt selling for a higher marked price a few days after they have actually bought that shirt for a much lower price during the sale organized by the store. This is a ploy to tell the customers that they get real discounts in sales. The reduced prices during a sale are actually alluring for most customers as they know the prices will be back to normal or regular soon after the sale period. This makes many people buy items during a sale, and this helps shopkeepers to make up for low sales figures prior to organizing a sale.
Clearance
Clearance is a special kind of sale that attracts more customers than normal sales. This is because the word clearance is a reminder that the shopkeeper is trying to get rid of its stock for one reason or the other. Many a times, it is clearly written on the banner by the store owner that it is a stock clearance sale. This means that stock is being sold on much reduced prices as the owner is winding up the business, or clearing the stock to re-stock new products. Clearance is one sale where the reduction in prices is permanent, and the customers know that prices will not go up to regular levels until all items have been sold out. In fact, it is seen that as the variety of items goes down, the shopkeeper further reduces the price to attract customers. However, it becomes difficult to find goods for your requirement in a clearance sale as there is lower variety than in a sale.
What is the difference between Sale and Clearance?
• Sale is for a short duration whereas clearance is for a longer duration.
• Sale has temporarily reduced prices whereas clearance has permanently reduced prices.
• Shopkeeper wants to get rid of all of the stock in clearance whereas sale is to achieve higher sales to compensate poor sales figure.
• Though you may get the desired item in clearance, more often than not you will find that the items in a clearance are of an inferior quality or the goods are such that you do not require them.