Canada’s regional Blessings chain based in Chilliwack, British Columbia, is offering its “Cash for Clunkers” promotion for the third straight year, allowing shoppers to trade in their old CDs and DVDs for $4 toward new ones in stock valued at $14.99 or more. 

Mark Hutchinson, president of Blessings, said the promotion has “gone well” in the past. Charities also get a boost from the promotion.

“We partner with the record label and they provide us with offset on the product we give cash for and then we donate the CDs to local charities,” he said.

Using bag stuffers, e-mail campaigns, a web banner and in-store signage, Hutchinson said: “This is a great foot-traffic builder for the slow months. Last year we had 185 clunkers redeemed. This was up by 15% on the previous year.”

For any other retailers who wish to conduct a similar event, Hutchinson noted that the key is “to ensure the teams are handing out the bag stuffers and informing customers.”

Overall, he sees the event as “a win-win all round. It is a low-cost promotion with a little fun and the labels cover the physical cost. It is part of my foot-building mantra of ‘More money from more customers more often.’ Always give the customer a reason to revisit the store!”