I have made some great purchases, I don’t remember at this point if I have scored any penny deals, but I got a rolling tool cart for $40, about what the CASTERS would cost me. I managed to get several of the Energizer WeatherReady Lanterns for less than $5 (with three AA batteries). I made the mistake of telling the employees what a good deal they were when there were 15 or so left on the shelf, and when back the next day to get more for friends - empty self.
Part of the luck is catching an item that is miss-shelved and no one but you realizes what a deal it will ring up at. It is also about how many other people there are who are watching the deal you are waiting on. (And probably keeping my stupid mouth shut would help as well.) Someone else saw those pistol safes, they got to them before I did. I don’t know if the price had come down or if a new person saw the existing price and jumped on them. At the risk of starting a political discussion, this is capitalism at the most basic level. A reverse auction if you will. I don’t need another (fill in the blank), but if I find one marked at 25% of the original price, I’m going to seriously consider it. Someone else needs that item, and will happily buy it at 50%.
I got several two packs of Milwaukee 11in1 screwdrivers for around $7/pack. I tossed a couple in the work toolbox, gave some to friends and donated another pair to a robotics team that my daughter is on and I mentor. I was not willing to watch them disappear waiting for them to hit a penny cause some other cheap so and so wanted them. Maybe he is on some other forum bragging about scoring my pistol safes and lamenting the missed screwdrivers.
The deals exist. The information linked above is basically what is being posted about here. S’truth!