About

Product Locator was borne of an idea that came to mind a few years ago. Faced with the possibility of not being able to get hold of the brand new Xbox 360, we had been scouring the various online stores to see which were taking pre-orders and which weren’t. Using this method, we managed to get ours delivered on launch day – but many didn’t, and then the stock started to run out. New deliveries were promised, but they only resulted in a few hundred here and there to satisfy the hundreds of thousands of gamers who wanted a nice new Xbox 360.

After a bit of thought, we came up with a method of checking which stores had stock and updating a database, which we sat a web site on top of. The Xbox 360 Locator was born. Linked in with SMS and email  alerts, we were providing the very best method of finding an Xbox 360 in stock within moments of a store making new stock available. It was great helping so many people find their new console. But after a few hectic months, stock started to become freely available in the retail channels, so the need for the Xbox 360 Locator declined.

But the following year, the same happened with the Nintendo Wii. So, with a few other people involved, we started the process again, targeting the Nintendo Wii stockists. Again, things went well, for a while. But the stores started to play games and decided to take the Wii out of affiliate programmes. (Every time we sent someone to a site, and they bought something, we would get a few pence as a commission. This commission doesn’t affect the customer’s price, but is paid by the store.) With the server and staff resources required using the method that we were using, this made the whole thing a labour of love, rather than a burgeoning business.

So. Back to the drawing board.

With a new method of collecting and storing details, and a way to get those details directly into WordPress, we feel that our new system is much better suited for quick additions, rather than focusing on large selling items. This means that the stores can cut commissions, as on average we should make enough to cover our new efficient process.

Of course, we don’t know that will be the case until we start to add new products and stores en-masse. Initially, we’re going to start slow, with the console market, which we understand. But over time we will add other items that are notoriously difficult to source at launch time: digital SLRs, new mobile phones and other gadgetry. You name it – if it gets hard to find, we’ll try to start tracking it!

Please send us feedback about the site and what we are tracking. Any and all suggestions are read, even if we can’t always reply to you individually.

Some small print:

productlocator.co.uk is a participant in the Amazon Europe S.à r.l. Associates Programme, an affiliate advertising programme designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.co.uk.