Ollie's Bargain Outlet — Local services in Smyrna

Ollie's Bargain Warehouse is less a shopping experience and more a choose-your-own-adventure novel where the plot involves questionable inventory and the grand prize is a lifetime supply of slightly-damaged toothpaste. You walk in with a vague idea of needing something sensible, like paper towels. You leave with: A five-pound bag of expired gummy bears (they were a dollar, how could you not?). A life-size cardboard cutout of a wrestler you've never heard of. A book titled "The Secret Lives of Lawn Gnomes" – because, well, bargain. Three novelty socks, none of which match each other or anything else you own. A suspicion that you may have accidentally joined a secret society dedicated to collecting obscure kitchen gadgets. The aisles are a glorious, bewildering maze of "brand names you trust at prices that would make Walmart look expensive". You might spot a gourmet coffee maker next to a pallet of slightly dented cans of chili, and right behind that, a display of artisanal hand soaps shaped like miniature tacos. And the customer service? "They sing, laugh, and have fun with the customers," says one reviewer. Just don't ask them to find the matching sock to your single novelty argyle – they're probably too busy helping someone decipher the instructions for a device that promises to turn your tap water into pure gold (now 50% off!). But hey, you're pretty sure that cardboard wrestler cutout is going to really tie the room together. And who doesn't need a five-pound bag of questionable gummy bears? That, my friends, is the...

First of all there are very few places that I consider worth my time and money! This Ollies location happens to be one of the few! Upon walking in the store the extensive book section beckoned me to peruse the isle. The store was impeccably clean, organized and staff was quite knowledgeable and friendly! The sale I found on coffee pods that I use for my Keurig coffee machine were awesome! I paid $19.99 for a 100 count of breakfast coffee. When I compared my savings to both Costco and BJ’s of which I have a membership I saved well over $50 by choosing Ollie’s promotional sale. I’m annoyed that I missed the following week’s sale which posted at $14.99 for the 100 count but even so, I came away feeling like I saved $1 million. This store is the type of place where you can find anything and everything at a major discount. You can bring your entire family and spend a minimum of three hours walking up and down the isles and I guarantee everyone will find something that they want to purchase. The quality of the majority of the items that are located in the store are the brand names that you’ll find in major department stores or even so-called discount stores. The difference between them and Ollie’s is the price! Put on some comfortable walking shoes and put money in your pocket through purchasing...

I'm having a hard time with this rating because I normally have no issue with this store. However, my last visit left me, questioning a few things. It was 15 minutes before closing, but I needed laundry detergent. I knew where so this was a simple in and run out situation. When I walked in the manager, Gary, turned off all the lights. When the people in line and others started asking what was going on, the cashier said that it's closing time. When asked why not just make an announcement, since turning off the lights in a store full of items everywhere is a fall risk, she said the corporate office told them to do it. When Gary, the manager, came back and people asked him why not just make an announcement that it was 15 minutes until closing. He said that people were complaining to the corporate office of them making the closing announcement. Now, I personally have 2 issues with all of this, announcements are made at every store in America when it's close to closing and turning out the lights in a store that is packed with various items is asking for a lawsuit. I do plan on calling corporate to ask about their policies because so soon everyone was out of the store, the lights were turned back on for cleaning and the count down of the drawer. I normally love this store but this was...