Champaign Surplus Store Inc - (217) 356-4703

As someone who spends all of his free time camping/backpacking/canoeing, I'm often asked what I think of champaign surplus. The truth is, not much. Despite teling myself ill never go back everytime I go, I still go in there for some things from time to time. I've never met anyone on their staff that seems like they've ever been camping before. My purchases are usually under ten dollars and I am made to feel like my questions are wasting their time. I'm sure if I was there to buy some of their trendy, overpriced, outdoor gear I would get better service. After spending five minutes with a clerk on one occasion, she refused to answer any more of my questions with the response, I think we're done here. She then moved on to another customer. On another occasion I was told to sit and wait while a clerk looked in the back for something. After a half hour, another clerk asked me what I was waiting for. He told me, Oh her shift ended. On her way out, she told me to tell you she couldn't fi

Champaign surplus has the best selection in the Champaign Urbana area for camping and outdoor supplies and clothing. Their regular prices are a little high, but they don't have much competition in town. However, they do have some good sales, sometimes with a coupon in the paper or on their web site. They also have a very good selection of Yakima car rack parts and will help you put the rack on your car. They even told me about a good Yakima rebate and gave me the proper form to mail in.

Last week we came in to the Champaign Surplus store in Champaign about an hour before their closing time. The store was rather empty, and we came in and looked for apparel when we noticed some of the female workers there were following a black man around the store. We were shocked and insulted as we witnessed a few of them pretending like they were going on with their work, or trying to be helpful, when they were clearly keeping an eye on him and giving him special treatment when he was just shopping. We left the store and additionally found out that their products are very overpriced--for example, long underwear they sell for $45 at their store can be bought at amazon as low as $25. Forget it. don't bother driving there. They are rude and have no respect for customers. We have nothing positive to say after what we saw.