Retail Arbitrage Series: Boots

Welcome back to the Retail Arbitrage series. This week we’re covering Boots, a staple high street and retail park store with great RA potential, despite its major downside, they really don’t like resellers! Boots is a combination store for both online and in store sourcing. While online can often be better due to the volume and discounts, there are still strong opportunities in store, especially in the clearance sections. No matter where you go in the UK, there’s usually a Boots nearby, which makes it a handy add-on to your sourcing route. This post will walk you through how to make the most of it while avoiding the pitfalls.

How Boots Works

You’ll typically find Boots in retail parks or town centres. In my experience, both types of locations are equally as good for clearance items. Most Boots locations offer click and collect, so you can combine online and RA sourcing in one trip.

Boots has a few major product categories that work for RA:

• Beauty and cosmetics
• Electronics
• Health and personal care
• Supplements and gift sets

Online, they offer regular discounts, like 3 for 2, 20% off No7 and other brands and £10 Tuesday deals and boots sometimes combine these offers. In store, the structure’s similar but sometimes even better clearance deals are hidden in plain sight.

Where to Find Profitable Items

There are multiple places to find profitable items in Boots, these are as followed:

• £10 Tuesday deals – These are online and occasionally available in store.
• 3 for 2 Offers – Common across beauty and health ranges.
• 20% Off Events – Particularly useful with big brands like No7 and Liz Earle.
• Clearance Sections – Usually tucked away in 1 or 2 spots in store.
• White Stickers on Shelves – Boots uses white price labels with black print to mark down items, and these are scattered throughout standard shelves. Many people miss these don’t be one of them.

Lost leaders are also occasionally used, especially on health and beauty in Q1, so keep an eye out for products on the end of aisles, these can be very profitable if you get there before others.

How Clearance Works

Boots clearance is a bit hard to find in certain stores, they are usually:

• One or two specific clearance areas in the store (sometimes at the back of the store or sometimes at the end of the aisles).
• Clearance within shelves, marked with white stickers with black print, not always immediately obvious.
• Items are marked down based on time on shelf or discontinued lines.
• Within the clearance section there are completely random items, they are literally all chucked together.

So always take your time and scan through the aisles. You’ll be surprised what you can find tucked away.

Best Time of Year for Boots

Boots isn’t hugely seasonal like other retailers, but there are still some standout times:

• January – Strong for health, supplements, and personal care products (especially after the Christmas).
• Spring to Summer – No specific seasonality, but keep scanning clearance sections and keep an eye out for health and beauty.
• All Year Round – Electronics, beauty, and health products regularly rotate in and out of clearance.

There’s no strict pattern, randomness is the pattern, so consistent checking is key.

Boots Hacks

Here are a few tips to squeeze every bit of profit out of Boots:

1. Use Click and Collect – Boost your RA route by stacking online orders with in-store pickups.
2. Use student discount if you can get it!
3. Sign up for a Boots Advantage Card – Earn points every time you shop. Use them to offset COGS.
4. Use Cashback Apps – Jam Donut, EverUp, Cheddar, and TopCashback all offer solid returns on Boots.
5. Scan shelves properly – Don’t just rely on the clearance section. Those white sticker deals can be real hidden gems.

Pros and Cons of Boots

Pros

• Good clearance section with decent brands and even electronics.
• Boots stores are everywhere, easy to add to any RA trip
• Cashback and discounts!
• Click and collect adds flexibility
• Often located near other good RA stores

Cons

• Boots hate resellers, easy to get banned online, especially with frequent or bulk orders
• In store, staff aren’t reseller friendly either
• Clearance can be hit or miss, some days it’s amazing, other days it’s dead
• Online ordering limits can be frustrating