But what IS surplus shopping? | Company Shop Group

What is surplus?

That’s a great question. And actually, it’s got multiple answers.

Perfect products in imperfect packaging- whether it’s a label that can’t be read properly, or a box that’s not perfectly square anymore, we’ll take it.
Excess stocks- manufacturers might just have too much stuff, and can’t sell it all, so we’ll sell it instead.
Product trials and seasonal lines- there’s often small product lines that don’t make it to big supermarkets, and Christmas puddings in July. Music to our ears!
Missed, delayed, or returned deliveries- getting products to their original destinations doesn’t always go to plan, and that’s where we come in.

To put it simply...

If you can eat it, use it or wear it, we can redistribute it.

We buy surplus stock for 2 reasons.

To make sure that our customers can buy the big brands they love for a fraction of the average retail, price.
To reduce food waste by stopping stuff from needlessly going to waste.

Where do we get it from?

We’ve got lots of partnerships with big brands, and we get our stock from them. Having lots of partners is good- for all of us. Here’s how:

We buy surplus from partners.
Stock doesn’t get wasted and instead ends up on our shelves.
You get great deals on big brands.

The more partnerships we have, the more stock is saved from going to waste.
This means that you get access to a larger range of products.
And, with our reduced prices, more people have the chance to get access to good food, for much less.

Why do we buy surplus?

Every day, tonnes of food is wasted. It’s estimated that 30-40% of food is lost during production and doesn’t make it to shop floors.
By buying surplus stock, stop food from going to waste. We reduce the level of emissions that food waste produces. This reduces the contribution to climate change.
That’s why we buy surplus.

The most important thing to remember about CSG is that we’re not like other supermarkets.
Surplus isn’t like normal supermarket stock- once it’s gone, it’s likely we won’t know when it’ll be back in our stores.
Yes, it can be annoying when our shelves are empty, but it’s actually a good thing.
Empty shelves mean that we’ve successfully kept food from going to waste- instead it’s going to a new (temporary) home, instead of going straight in the bin.