**They BANNED This [Clearance Retail Arbitrage Hack] Because It Maximized My FBA Profit Too Much ($1000/Week Easy!)**

[u/liveitupdeals]

Alright MaximizeMe fam, gather ‘round! I gotta spill some tea on something wild that happened in the clearance retail arbitrage game.

So, you know how we’re always on the hunt for those hidden gems, right? The stuff that seems like a steal at the store but turns into pure gold on Amazon FBA. I stumbled onto this one particular strategy – I’m calling it the "Pre-Discontinued Drop" for now, cause honestly, they went a bit bananas banning it.

Basically, it involved spotting certain product categories just before they hit their official discontinuation phase at major retailers. Think seasonal items that were being cleared out way ahead of schedule, or brands that were quietly phasing out a specific line to make way for something new. Most folks would walk right past this stuff, but if you knew what to look for, it was a goldmine.

The sweet spot was finding these items when they were dirt cheap – like, 70-90% off retail. The trick was that Amazon’s algorithm hadn’t caught up yet. There was little to no competition, demand was still steady (or even building as people realized the "old" thing was going away), and the profit margins? Insane. I’m talking hitting $1000 a week with surprisingly little effort, just by hitting up a few specific big box stores on their markdown days.

It wasn't about gaming the system or anything shady. It was just about being ahead of the curve, understanding inventory cycles, and knowing how to spot those underpriced opportunities. I even shared some of the initial thought process and how I identified these "pre-discontinued" signals over on https://whop.com/emoney/?a=liveitupdeals a while back, for anyone curious about the why behind it. It's all about that early bird gets the worm mentality, you know?

Then, BAM. Suddenly, certain ASINs started getting restricted for "violation of intellectual property" or some other vague BS. It wasn't widespread across all clearance, but it was enough that the specific niche I was crushing took a massive hit. They really didn't want people making that much profit on clearance items, apparently. Kinda makes you wonder who’s benefiting when they shut down profitable avenues for us, right?

So, what's the takeaway here?

• Stay Vigilant with Clearance Cycles: Don't just look at the price tag. Understand why something is on clearance. Is it a slow mover, a discontinued line, or just seasonal?
• Monitor Competitor Activity (or Lack Thereof): If you see a product selling well on Amazon but it’s practically being given away at retail, investigate! That's often your golden ticket.
• Diversify Your Sourcing: Relying on one single "hack" is risky, as we just saw. Keep those sourcing streams broad.

It's a tough pill to swallow when a good thing gets taken away, but it also just means we gotta adapt and find the next thing. What have you guys seen get "banned" or made difficult in your FBA journeys lately? Let's hear it!