Yeah I was somewhat surprised when I bought a new washer and dryer. Took my truck to the store so I would have space, get there, and they are like yeah its going to be two weeks for delivery. They keep none of those items on hand, as they are too large. Its all out in a warehouse somewhere else, and they just aren't prepared for someone who wants something now. It makes sense, but is not something I thought about before experiencing it.
Interestingly, the one place you could do this (walk in and buy a new washer/dryer/fridge and drive away with it) was Sears which has closed their stores in many major metro areas and are basically going out of business...
This is only true of a small portion of the sears with warehouse attached (aka the ones not in malls). Even then, I purchased my last two dishwashers there, and in both cases it took a couple days to deliver.
If you want something right now, go to one of the scratch and dent appliance places. Same basic deal as hd/lowes/bestbuy when it comes to appliances, just about the only ones those stores have in stock are the ones that got returned.
I worked at a Sears when I was younger. The location didn't have a large warehouse attached (smaller one, but it was only for smaller home and garden/electronics items), but there was one in town so for some items we'd sell and they'd go there to pick up. I do recall at points where items were sold from the store, but that was a rarity.
