Haul: Erin Condren warehouse sale August 2022
My haul from the August 2022 Erin Condren warehouse sale, and some thoughts on the sale. Includes spoilers for two of the surprise bundles.
WARNING: this post contains spoilers for two warehouse sale surprise bundles!
Erin Condren have two warehouse sales a year, usually in April and August. This one was my first warehouse sale! I had planned to resist it, but . . . they're very good at selling stuff.
A quick apology: I created this website this week, because I realised I wanted to share info on this sale, and have somewhere to hype/rant about Erin Condren. So right now the site setup is a bit basic, and some of the pictures aren't super-tidy. Hopefully it's still useful.
The haul
Planner accessories
I was pretty restrained here (partly because I figured there'd be loads of accessories in the surprise bundles, which was a good guess). I got the layers bookmarks and the monthly sticker book. These have both been on my wishlist for ages. I kept missing the sticker book when it was in stock, so am especially delighted to have got that.
Crossbody tote
This was not planned. I've always been a bit skeptical of Erin Condren bags: it seems like a lot of money, especially when I'm not 100% confident about quality. Full price is $64, and normally if I was going to spend that kind of money on a bag, it would be some brand known for endurance and build quality.
But reduced to $32? I'd pay that for a generic crossbody laptop tote on Amazon. Throw in some nice touches of EC design (especially the interchangeable straps), and this felt like a reasonable price. And I didn't have a crossbody laptop bag, sooo . . .
I'm really happy with this. The different pouches are well thought out. Obviously I haven't had a chance to stress test it yet, but it feels pretty solidly made.
Plant lover gift box
This is a housewarming gift for a friend. The gift boxes are items I would only buy in a sale. The full price ($38) is daft for basically a petite planner and some accessories I could pick up for a few quid. But it's a nice little gift set, great for a housewarming, and the discount (down to $15.20) made it good value.
Just a shame the pen is missing then . . .
I almost didn't open this as I planned on gifting it. Glad I checked, and at least I can find a pen to replace the missing one. But yeah, very unimpressed with this.
Update: I contacted Erin Condren customer service, and they sent a replacement set out very quickly.
Surprise bundles
I bought two surprise bundles: the student and the mid century circles. I'd planned to do separate reviews of each so I could go into detail, but . . . well, perhaps you can spot the problem:
The bundles weren't really bundled. Here's my first guess at what goes in each:
After going through the values, my first guess really doesn't make sense (the MCC bundle is massive, the student one is too small). Here are the prices, with revised bundle guesses. I've included the sale prices, as you really need to consider the value of the bundle compared to just buying individual items in the sale.
| Item | Full price | Sale price | Bundle guess? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brights Fine Tip Markers 7-Pack | $16.50 | $8.25 | MCC |
| Mid Century Circles Snap-In To-Do List Dashboard | $5.50 | 2.75 | MCC |
| Mid Century Circles Snap-In StylizedSticky™ Notes | $10.50 | $8.40 | MCC |
| Mid Century Circles Mini Snap-In Bookmark Trio | $5.50 | $2.75 | MCC |
| Mid Century Circles Washi Tape Duo | $5.50 | $2.75 | MCC |
| Mid Century Circles Stand Up Pencil Case | $16.50 | $11.55 | MCC |
| Pastel Mid Century Circles Poly Folders 3-Pack | $12.00 | $6.00 | Student (originally assumed MCC) |
| Colorful Mini Gel Pens 24-Pack | $20.50 | $10.25 | Student |
| Snap-In Projects and Exams Tracker Dashboard | $8.50 | $4.25 | Student |
| Woven Wonder Paper Tape Duo | $5.50 | $1.38 | Student |
| Glue Tape Duo | $9.50 | $9.50 (not in sale) | Student |
| Totals | $116 | $67.83 |
The MCC bundle cost $22.50, and comes to $60/$36.45, while the student bundle cost $20 and is worth $56/$31.38 (if I've guessed right). So even compared to buying individualy in the sale, you do get savings here. However, if I'd been buying these as individual items, there are a few I wouldn't have bought.
Overall, I'm glad I got the MCC bundle. I like the design, almost everything in it is usable (the pencil case went straight into action), and even the things I wouldn't have bought, I'm quite keen to try out. It helps that I'm still fairly new to Erin Condren, and so don't have many accessories.
The student bundle is a different matter. It's the only purchase I fully regret in this sale. It really does feel like no thought at all went into it, and there's a lot I won't use.
Do I recommend the suprise bundles?
I recommend buying a "design theme" bundle (like mid century circles or layers), if you:
- Really love the design.
- Don't have much of that design already.
- Don't have many planner accessories.
I recommend avoiding the "category" bundles (like student or teacher). I was very disappointed with the student bundle, and looking at other people's posts on Facebook, the teacher bundle looks just as bad.
Prices and value
Here's a summary of the order costs and savings:
| Item | Full price or claimed value | Sale price |
|---|---|---|
| Sticker Book Monthly Edition 7 | $16.50 | $8.25 |
| Plant Lover Gift Set | $38.00 | $15.20 |
| Black Canvas Crossbody Tote | $64.00 | $32.00 |
| MCC surprise bundle | $55+ value | $22.50 |
| Student surprise bundle | $50+ value | $20.00 |
| Layers Mini Snap-in Bookmark Trio | $5.50 | $2.75 |
| Totals | $229 | $97.95 + shipping and taxes ($50.11) = $150.81 |
At first glance this looks like great value: the sale discounts easily absorb the shipping costs (and then some!) However, there's a catch: many of the surprise bundle items are also in the sale. To give the MCC bundle as an example: the claimed $55+ value assumes all items at full price. In fact, buying them individually in the sale adds up to $36.45. So the savings aren't quite as impressive as they first appear - although still very good. If you have free shipping, these are great discounts. And without free shipping, at least the savings cover the shipping and there's still some discount left over.
Overall, I still feel I got value for money, but it was a near-run thing. The missing pen in the plant set, and the student bundle being so weak, really hits the value.
Hits
- The sticker book: I've been wanting this for ages and kept missing it when it was in stock, so am delighted to have got hold of it. This is one I would have paid full price for.
- Layers bookmarks: another one I would have paid full price for, that's been on my wishlist a while.
- The bag: ok, I wouldn't have paid full price for this. But it is nice: a cut above a basic tote for sure. Will probably look out for other bags in future sales.
- The mid century circles bundle: I wouldn't have bought everything in it, but there were some things I've had on my wishlist, and some that I'm excited to try. There's nothing in it that I won't use at all. This bundle felt coherent and useful.
Misses
These are the items I'm not keen on:
- The plant gift set: obviously, when your gift set is missing an item, it's a fail.
- The student bundle: the only thing in here that really says "student" is the dashboard. The rest might as well be more mid century circles. This is just a muddle of random things.
There were a few things about the sale overall that weren't ideal:
- Surprising lack of products: Perhaps naively, I'd assumed there'd be a lot of products in the sale. It was actually pretty limited. I guess this makes sense as they're clearing out old stock, but it was a bit of a disappointment.
- Flash sales: I get it. Flash sales keep people coming back and buying more. But it's a really cynical and frustrating tactic. And for international customers, it's simply impossible to take advantage of them - there's no way I'm paying shipping and taxes on more than one day.
- Not overlapping with the seasonal surprise box: the sale ends two days before the fall seasonal surprise box release. Again, I get it: keep the hype high, get people doing more orders. But like the flash sales it's cynical and frustrating, and especially harsh on international customers.
Final thoughts
Although I didn't plan to shop this sale, I'm glad I did (despite the issues). I'll probably shop warehouse sales again, but I'll try to go in with a clearer idea of what I want. I might buy future surprise bundles if there's a theme I really love (ahem, colorblends), and if I've managed to use up some of the items from this haul. And I'll certainly keep my eyes peeled for more bag deals.