BLOOMINGTON — If you're looking to find a bargain for items in and around Bloomington, your best bet might be searching through Indiana University's old stuff.
The Indiana University surplus store sells all of the university's discarded items, including books, clothing and furniture. It even sells specialized items such as marching band uniforms and unused football cleats.
Indiana University is required to try and sell any belongings it has purchased with tax money under state law.
Surplus store manager Todd Reed estimates half of the store's sales come from computers. All of the money stays within the university system, with 80% of the proceeds from the marching band uniforms returning to the Marching Hundred.
"I was a student at IU and my oldest son is working on his master's here, yet I had no idea it existed," said suplus store shopper Susan Burns. "Neither did my son."
Burns drove from the south side of Indianapolis to explore what the surplus store had to offer. She walked away with a set of Pokémon manga books, several topographical maps, and a trio of wireless computer keyboards.
"I love solar keyboards, they're usually $150 to $160 when I look on Amazon," Burns said. "The last time I went on to find them, they weren't making them anymore. I found three here, and they were only $20 each. I'm in heaven."
The IU Surplus store is located on Discovery Parkway just north of State Road 45. It is open on weekdays from 12 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
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Taj Simmons the In Your Community reporter for Monroe and Morgan counties. He joined WRTV in August of 2023. The Oakland, CA native is not a Hoosier by birth, but is excited to learn all about the area and tell the stories of the people who make this state feel like home. Share your story ideas and important issues with Taj by emailing him at taj.simmons@wrtv.com.
