Two pallets can hold the same products, from the same retailer, in the same category, and be completely different purchases. What separates them is where the stock came from. That is what a condition grade describes, and it is the first thing to read on any listing.
Customer returns
Goods a shopper bought, took home and sent back. This is the largest single stream in liquidation, and the most variable.
A returned item might be untouched because the buyer ordered two sizes and kept one. It might have been opened, used once and returned within a change of mind window. Or it might have gone back because it genuinely does not work. All three end up in the same lot, and the listing cannot tell you the ratio because nobody opened every box.
What this means for you: test anything electrical, expect missing accessories and damaged packaging, and price in a write-off rate from the start. Returns lots suit sellers who can absorb variance across volume, and who are set up to test and grade rather than list straight from the pallet.
Overstock
Stock that never reached a customer at all. It was ordered, it did not sell, and the retailer needed the space or the cash more than the inventory.
This is generally the cleanest grade to work with. The goods are usually new and often still sealed. What you are accepting instead is commercial risk rather than condition risk: overstock exists because it did not sell at retail, which sometimes means the range was seasonally wrong, the colour was unpopular, or the model was superseded.
What this means for you: less testing, faster listing, higher cost per unit. Packaging may be shopworn from sitting in a warehouse. Check whether the range is current before assuming it will move at the price the original tag suggests.
Shelf pulls
Stock removed from a shop floor during a range change or refit, rather than returned by anyone.
The product itself is typically sound. The packaging often is not, because it has been handled by shoppers, restickered, or stored without much care. Shelf pulls sit between overstock and returns on both price and predictability.
What this means for you: good for channels where condition matters more than the box. Less good if you sell into a market that expects retail-perfect packaging.
Salvage
Damaged, incomplete, or known faulty stock, sold as such.
Salvage is not a cheaper version of the other grades, it is a different business. It is priced for buyers who repair, harvest parts, or sell known-faulty goods honestly described. If you buy salvage expecting working stock, you have misread the listing rather than been misled by it.
Unmanifested lots
Strictly this is not a condition grade, it describes what you know rather than what you are getting. An unmanifested lot has no itemised list, so you are buying the category and the grade and nothing more specific.
It is the cheapest way in and the highest variance. It suits buyers who already have the space, the cash flow and the sorting capacity to absorb a poor lot without it mattering much. It is a poor first purchase for exactly the same reasons.
How grades appear on our listings
Every product page states its grade. Where a lot arrives with a manifest we publish the full itemised list on the page, so you can price it yourself rather than take our word for what is inside. Where there is no manifest, the listing says so plainly, because a contents list we cannot stand behind is worth less to you than an honest blank.
We do not publish projected resale values or revenue estimates against any grade. What a lot returns depends on your channel and your pricing, not on ours.
Which grade should you start with?
If you are new to this, start with overstock or a manifested lot in a category you already sell. You will pay more per unit, and you will learn the process without the write-off rate obscuring what happened.
Move to returns once you have a testing routine and somewhere to put stock that does not sell immediately. Consider unmanifested lots and salvage only when a poor result would be an inconvenience rather than a problem.
You can browse current lots by category and grade, or read the buyer FAQ for how manifests, testing and freight claims work. If you are unsure which grade suits what you sell, tell us what you do and we will give you a straight answer.