Krazy Bins Brings the Bins Back to Akron, Eyes Cincinnati Expansion

Krazy Bins , the Northeast Ohio overstock retail chain known for its weekly price-drop model and treasure-hunt shopping experience, is in the middle of a significant growth phase — with a new Akron/Cuyahoga Falls location opening April 24 and a Cincinnati store on track to open June 19. Visit krazybins.com for the latest store list and hours. The expansion marks a new chapter for founder Noah Leavitt, a Cleveland native who launched Krazy Bins out of a vacant Mentor building in July 2020 — in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. "Lake County was a little less strict with closures," Leavitt said, "and it was really a wild and crazy turnout. It really just worked." From Logistics to Retail Leavitt's path to retail wasn't traditional. After growing up in Cleveland and attending the University of Cincinnati, he spent years in Chicago and later Seattle working in trucking and logistics, specializing in what the industry calls "reverse logistics" — handling overstock and returns for large national retailers. When he and his family relocated back to Cleveland in 2018, a former colleague offered him the use of a vacant former Toys R Us building in Mentor. Leavitt put together a business plan and opened Krazy Bins. The Model: New Merchandise, Dropping Prices Krazy Bins operates on a weekly pricing schedule, open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. — with Thursday hours running 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. On Fridays, fresh inventory hits the floor and bin prices start at $15 per item. Prices drop each day through the week: $10 Saturday, $6 Sunday, $4 Monday, $3 Tuesday, $1.25 Wednesday, and $1 on Thursday before the cycle resets. About 90% of the merchandise is overstock that never made it to retail shelves; the remaining 10 to 15% consists of customer returns. Anything visibly damaged or used gets discarded. "You could go in today and get 100 pieces of clothes for $175," Leavitt said. "Brand new, with tags." The Friday restock has developed a devoted following. It's common to hear people say they're using vacation days or sick days to see what dropped that Friday. What's in the Bins Inventory is sourced through national liquidation channels tied to major retailers, distributors, and manufacturers. On any given week, shoppers might find electronics and accessories, home and kitchen goods, toys and games, small appliances, apparel and footwear, toys, small appliances, home décor, sporting goods, tools, or seasonal items. The mix changes week to week and varies by location — and that's by design. Krazy Bins is not a catalog. It's a flow. Items are sold as-is, priced accordingly, with no artificial merchandising layers between the merchandise and the customer. A Network of Stores — and Lessons Along the Way After opening Mentor in summer 2020, Leavitt quickly expanded to Parma, which he calls his flagship location and has operated continuously for five years. He's also had locations in Akron, Twinsburg, and Toledo, and returned to Mentor in a larger space. Some locations closed not because of poor performance but because Leavitt operates under flexible, short-term lease agreements — intentionally leaving room for larger anchor tenants — and had to vacate when those tenants materialized. When he reopened Mentor, he moved into the larger former Kids R Us side of the original building, and the results have been significantly better. Each location taught him something new about store size, customer behavior, and community fit — lessons he carried directly into every store that followed. "Every opportunity of failure, that's something we gained so much data and insight from," he said. The Community Factor Leavitt now employs 90 people across his locations. He points to his Parma store manager, Rhonda, as an example of the internal culture he's built — she joined as an entry-level employee five years ago and now runs the store's entire operation. He describes the Krazy Bins customer base as a reflection of the communities the stores serve. At the Parma location, he said shoppers come from a wide range of backgrounds and cultures. "Everyone's happy, everyone's getting these great deals," Leavitt said. "When you can be a help to the community on top of running a successful business, it's kind of a double whammy." Lessons From the Bins Leavitt has built his business without a retail background, learning by doing and treating every setback as data. "There's no days off," he said. "You go to bed sleeping and thinking about your work — but there's nothing more fulfilling than it working." He's quick to point out that ownership also comes with something a corporate job rarely offers: control. When something isn't working, he can change it. When he has an idea, he can act on it. That agility, he said, has made all the difference. Visibility matters too. Leavitt stays active on social media and shows up in his stores regularly, and he believes that connection is part of what makes the Krazy Bins experience different from a faceless big-box retailer. "I