Half Price Books — Local services in Brookfield

Don't bother selling books to Half Price Books anymore. It's not worth the hassle. First off their 7 days out on making appointments which is required. Next, you're supposed to call right when they open to make an appointment to bring in 3 paper bags worth of books (no more). Because they insist on this, appointments are full within a half hour of store opening. So you can just book the next day then right? Nope, call again first thing tomorrow for exactly 7 days in advance. If they made the decision to book the following day when the day you're calling on was full, they'd have a 30 day waiting list. I'm sure many people would simply not come in either.

Covid-19 pandemic didn't cause these problems, treating staff poorly so that so many people quit and leave causes these issues. It's a huge staffing issue with corporate. I will continue to shop at HPB but I won't sell to them anymore. I'm not one of these anti-mask people either, but I know manufactured alarmist practices when I see them. It's a great time right now to create new business practices that would never have happened pre-pandemic and push them through while blaming the new pandemic normal.

It's really unfortunate too because the store is starting to run out of commonly sold items: magazines, seasonal books, video game and consoles, etc. There's plenty of HPB clearance, and probably will be as long as they operate the business. With nobody selling enough and stores not actively sharing merchandise, some stores are overflowing while others are getting bare. We can blame the "new normal" but I see the retail chain as a whole in serious trouble if some leadership decisions aren't made soon.

It's not like Wisconsin doesn't have enough people buying books. Goodwill is picking up the slack. That's where we're all dropping off our books and media now instead of Half Price Books. Sell the valuable books/records/video games/collectibles online, take the rest to Goodwill. Stores are packed with these things. The Brookfield Goodwill down the road used to have a small few book shelves, but now it's easily double what it was. Maximum price on a book there is $3, DVD $2, Blu-ray $4, Video Game $4. Mostly lower than that. Regardless of the real market value. They get so many donations nobody bothers looking up value of items anymore.

I want to see Half Price Books succeed, but it seems to have become a victim of itself in a pandemic period. It's only a matter of time when another business comes in and takes the market share away from Half Price Books and Goodwill in the media...

These stores have gotten progressively worse over the last couple years. Their offers on books are insulting. They make plenty on these books you sell. When people object to the offer the responses are condescending and obnoxious. The store can sell and does sell your items at large margin. You’d be doing a far better service to donate your materials to a worthy cause then lining the pockets of this store who “can’t sell your items” but sell them anyway at large profit. 3 bankers boxes of good condition hardcover classic titles for 1 dollar?!?!?! Those books were on the shelf for 20 bucks apiece when I came back and they did indeed sell and quite quickly. I checked on them.

Their prices increase and their claims that “out of print” means worth a bundle is just utter nonsense. Store employees use the store for their own E-bay putting out junky board games and other "collectibles" and asking absurdly high prices for them. Several are lying to customers about condition and rarity of items often. I purchased one game that was missing 90 percent of the pieces. Why didnt I look first? because I assumed this place was reputable(NOT!) and the box was sealed shut by scotch tape in many places. the was the last straw.

Cataloguing of books gets sloppier and excuses for not having an inventory list are lame. Unusable audio/visual items show up with such frequency I stopped buying them at all. Several books I have purchased were scribbled in, and otherwise defaced. These stores have become very sloppy and increasingly greedy. I have gone from highly recommending these places to people to warning them about being ripped off...

SELLERS BEWARE!!!! SCAM!!!!! The Art of the Steal. Come one, come all and learn from the masters of the steal!

Step 1: Bring all your books in and lay them on the cart.

Step 2: You are told to come back when they are finished. Summoned over the intercom.

Step 3: They scan all of your books into the computer, and the computer determines the price. (Yet they can not give you an itemized list of your books with the computer's determinations.)

Step 4: They summon you back and "punch you in the gut" with the offer.

Step 5: The person selling the books is unhappy with the price.

Step 6: The person who assessed your books is brought forward to handle you.

Step 7: They ask if they should pack up your books so you can take them back.

Step 8: You say no because who wants to haul them back to the car.

Step 9: They ask you if you want your boxes. You say no.

Step 10: They sell the empty boxes for $1 a box.

So my experience.

Half Price book buyers assessed 6 boxes full of books and offered me $14.63. I took it. I hate that I took it. I hate that I let them use me for profit. I know that I will never be able to go back into that store again. I am too afraid to see one of my books on the shelf priced for more then they gave me for the whole lot.

I loved this store, but that...