We run a retail clothing store and offer Layaway services to our customers. Few use it, but some do. The most common reason is that they don't have the money now, nor the use of a credit card (or choose not to use cards often), but DO want to be sure they get exactly the item they have chosen. They do not want to wait and risk having that item sold before they can save up the money. Our store as general policy does not stock a lot of one thing - we try to be unique and stock a limited number of each item so customers don't meet others wearing the same things. So the risk that we might sell out of an item (in a particular size) is real. When an item is put on Layaway, it is labelled and stored in a separate storage area so it can't be sold accidentally.
We do not charge extra for this service. We do require an initial payment of at least 20% of the sale, and the customer can come in any time and pay off a part of the remaining balance until it is all paid, at which time they take the item home.
There is a risk for the customer IF they fail to complete the sale in a timely manner, and they are told of this clearly when setting up the Layaway. Normally they have 2 months to finish paying it off, but we often stretch that. If they cancel the Layaway within 1 month of the start, we will keep 25% of their deposit. If they cancel after 1 month but within 2 months, we will keep 50%. If they simply never complete the deal and we cancel after 2 months (usually later), we will keep the entire deposit. This is to compensate the store for the lost opportunity to sell the item at full price to another customer. We may have to sell it at a discount later if the prime selling season for the item has passed. Plus, it discourages frivolous use of the program. By far, most Layaways at out store are completed normally.
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