How do you decide when an "as is" Dooney might be a good buy???

I bought 2 D&B "as is" and was lucky both times that they were not even gently used...brand new with all the bits of protective paper & plastic.

I personally avoid D&B "as is" that would have matching accessories that comes with it...like A203807...

Just that the odds are greater that something would be missing...

As for the one you are wondering about, my guess is that a lot of those who ordered it might have sent it back because the opening is rather small. With the large and medium ones of this handbag style, it isn't an issue...HTH

I have had hits and misses. More hits though. My personal opinion is that if they have a lot of them in different colors, then they probably recently aired and were ordered and returned fairly quickly. If they only have 1, I personally feel it is more of a gamble...but not necessarily. This is just my opinion and I don't know how much merit it truly has to it. The good thing is that you have the 30 day return policy on them so check them out good when you receive them. Good Luck!

Editing to add that I have seen reviews where returns were sent out as new bags. I know QVC does this so there is no guarantee on buying new either in my opinion.

I agree, the greater the number of bags available in a style, the better your odds are that you will get a good one. So items like a recent TSV are probably worth the risk. And since you can return the bag if it's not right, it's often worth the chance if the price/color/style are what you want. And if it's defective, call and get your return shipping costs refunded.

There are some other things I think about... for the price, is the condition of the handbag acceptable to me? If I bought it at a store for that price I know it would have been handled by others. If there is a stitch loose in the lining, does it really bother me? If there is a stitch loose on the handles, I know that it's a functional problem and I won't keep the bag. If an accessory is missing, do I care? Will Q do a price adjustment for that? (sometimes). My point is that it's not black and white, it's a decision you make when you see the bag.

Also, there are other legitimate sources of Dooneys at less than list price (Ilovedooney online, Dooney website specials, and the Dooney outlets in Reading PA, Las Vegas, and Clinton CT will ship to you at outlet prices. It pays to check online or call the outlets and see what the current prices are for a specific style. Just be sure to have the Dooney style # so you are sure you are getting exactly what you want). Check prices and return policies. Of course, department stores also have sales. And if you are near a Dooney retail store or boutique you can often find treasures too.

It really is the luck of the draw. Recently, I went on a tear with one of the satchels and at different times ordered the bag in five different colors. What I received ran the gamut. Only one went back because it was clearly not intact (one of the feet was missing). Another, I called CS about because while the bag was in good condition all of the accessories were missing. A third came somewhat crimped, but I stuffed it with tissue for a few days and it's fine. A fourth came with the slightly wavy zipper, but it's not a big deal for me... And the last one came just a day or so ago and appears to be fully intact, all accessories present and in like-new condition. Again, all were ordered at different times and separately. I suppose that if one orders a few weeks after there has been a significant on-air Dooney presence when it's perhaps more likely there've been returns based on buyer's remorse or simply not liking the bag, your chances could be better, but you know, I'm not even so sure of that, since folks return bags for lots of reasons all the time. All it takes is one great bag to make your day or one not so great bag to sort of put you off the as-is, at least for a while, and I think your odds are what they are...

I do agree with lavenderjunkie that there are a number of considerations when deciding to buy or keep an as-is bag. Some folks simply rail at the notion of a used bag in any way, shape or form and so they're probably better off not even considering an as-is bag, though the vast majority of mine have come with plastic and accessories still attached and the bag clearly unused. Alternatively, the blue version of the bag I ordered had pretty clearly been very gently used and all the accessories were gone but I opted to keep it because I could care less about yet another key fob and don't use wristlets anyway. Though had they not offered a little something back on the loss of the wristlet I probably would've returned this one to try again another day, because that would then have cut into what I considered to have been the savings on the bag.

I really like this bag, so will probably go back to the well at some point for the two remaining colors I want, but given the experience with the missing foot and the missing accessories, have decided to put that on hold for the time being.

I'd add that the as-is discounts are good but not always great and if you can find a bag on sale elsewhere in the color you want, I'd go for that option. While I've ordered other bags from as-is, the reason I went to the as-is well with these bags is that they're exclusive to the Q, so not available elsewhere, and while the savings is reasonably significant based on the current QVC price, this was once a TSV and the savings over the TSV price is less so. Still, that TSV price is gone with the wind and isn't coming back, so I still considered the price to be acceptable.

Sorry to have been so wordy, but this is a subject currently near, if not so dear, to my heart!

The short answer, though, is it's worth a try since as-is items are also returnable.

Thank you all!

I appreciate that all of you were willing to share your knowledge and experience with such depth........and not in the least bit ""wordy"". ;-)

The other factor worth considering is that as the number of Dooney shows has increased in recent years, there are bound to be more returns. At one time not so long ago, Dooney was a regular, but not quite the regular it has become more recently. I'd imagine, the more they're on the more they sell and so the greater the volume of potential returns, some of which probably are sent back out as new, but some of which, for whatever reason (and I'd love to know how the distinction is made...) are put in as-is.

The bag you reference has been presented quite a bit lately so that probably accounts for the several different colors in which it's currently available as-is.

Good luck to you if you decide to give it a whirl!

I just received my AS IS Palomino Satchel- w/o accessories. I have seen a few posts that the Customer Service may adjust your price- has anyone had their price adjusted?

On 3/2/2014 MK in PA said:

I just received my AS IS Palomino Satchel- w/o accessories. I have seen a few posts that the Customer Service may adjust your price- has anyone had their price adjusted?

Not by much, but yes, they sometimes do. I got the palomino with accessories but damaged, and it's going back. I'll try again sometime, but not right now. Meanwhile, I got the blue in great condition, but not a single accessory... You'd figure even with as-is products there'd be some continuity but I guess there isn't.