Bin stores offer deep discounts in Metro Detroit
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.

Mohammed Bashar, owner of Blessing Bin Store in Hazel Park. Photos: Joe Guillen/Axios
Bargain hunters across Metro Detroit are turning to bin stores for deep discounts on everything from beauty supplies and home decor to electronics and children's toys.
Why it matters: Everything seems to be getting more expensive, but bin stores are gaining popularity by selling returned and overstocked items for a fraction of their retail price.
State of play: The nationwide craze is catching on locally.
- We visited bin stores last week in Detroit, Hazel Park and Waterford to get a taste of the action.

How it works: Each store has its own rules, but items are typically priced on a weekly schedule and gradually become cheaper to encourage clearing out stock.
For example: At Binz and Beyond on Joy Road, merchandise starts at $12 on Friday and drops to $2 on Wednesday. The store is closed on Thursday for restocking.
- Items are often in boxes, which you may or may not be permitted to open.
- Some goods come from Amazon returns, but other big-box retailers also funnel overstocked, returned or discontinued items to bin stores through liquidators.
Stunning stat: Retailers estimate that 15.8% of their annual sales will be returned this year, totaling nearly $850 billion, per a National Retail Federation report.
💠Joe's thought bubble: There's a decent amount of junk in some bins, as you might expect.
- But several items in the $10 range caught my eye, including a weightlifting belt, face lotion, a small frying pan and an office fan.
What they're saying: Bin stores are not only enticing from an affordability standpoint, but visiting them can also feel like a treasure hunt, Mohammed Bashar, owner of Blessing Bin Store in Hazel Park, tells Axios Detroit.
- Blessing Bin doesn't have a progressive pricing structure like other stores. Instead, Bashar has $10, $7, $5, $3 and $1 bins every day with goods from Amazon, Target and Walmart.
- "Every day people come here, they find new stuff," Bashar says.

