Delano Super Plus

The Delano Super Plus store on Main Street has large (faded and scratched) stickers in the window which say 99 cents +, but oddly enough there are VERY few items that fall into the 99 cent category and FAR more that fall into the + category. Although you might possibly pay less for things here than at a department store, the «bargains» are not going to cause me to come back any time soon. The only reason mom and I even thought about entering the store was because of those 99 Cent signs since we’ve had many good experiences at Dollar Tree and 99 Cent Only stores. The very poorly merchandised storefront windows here would (and should) have scared us off otherwise.
Inside, it is very cold — the cashier was wearing a coat and a scarf around her neck and was visibly shivering. The door was closed so I assume they were trying to save money by not turning on the heat. I know this is California, but it is January and rather chilly. The aisles are narrow and the shelves are never flowing with merchandise. Nothing has been organized or displayed properly. In one aisle they sell hand hand lotion for people on the shelf above the Ajax cleanser. On another aisle the shampoo is displayed on the shelf above the laundry detergent and spray starch. I’m sure this is a mom and pop store where nobody has any retail or merchandising experience, but how hard would it be to go to WalMart to see how they group items into departments?
They carry some of the same items that a dollar store would carry, but at a price of $ 1.49 or $ 1.99. How can they stay in business when there is a 99 Cent Only store five blocks away? As to many of the other items that were priced over $ 10 or over $ 20, I couldn’t really tell if they were good deals or not. An electric frying pan or a blender in the $ 20-​$ 30 range? $ 23 for a toilet seat with matching shower curtain (you have to see the picture — there are no words)? There were plenty of pots and pans, but the shelves were such a jumbled mess and hardly anything was clearly marked with prices that it didn’t seem worth the effort to try to figure it all out. I might have picked up the singing fish as a joke gift if could have figured out what it cost.
In the end, I did pick up a six plug surge protector for $ 4.99 and my mom picked up a pair of sunglasses for $ 1.99 that she really liked and felt was a good deal. I never did find a single item marked 99 cents and I WON’T be returning, so I’ll have to take their word that there is ONE.