bargains

Best Bargain Shopping for the End of Summer

August 30, 2018 By Tamila McDonald Leave a Comment

While summer doesn’t officially end until September 22, 2018, Labor Day is often considered the last unofficial day of the season. Many retailers hold their final summer sale around Labor Day, giving them an opportunity to offload summer-related items before the end of the season.

Specific product categories usually go on sale at the end of summer. This means savvy shoppers can find great summer sale bargains on a range of household goods, clothing, and even back-to-school items.

Understanding which categories are typically part of the last summer sale of the year can help you save big at the checkout counter, even when you shop online. If you are ready to scoop up a bargain, here are some items that usually go on sale this time of year.

Mattresses

Mattress sales often coincide with major holidays, and Labor Day is no exception. Large chain retailers typically make multiple mattress brands and styles available at discount prices as part of their last summer sale. This includes mattress-specific chains as well as department stores that sell mattresses.

Additionally, online-only stores like Overstock also reduce prices on mattresses this time of year. This increases the amount of competition, so the discounts can be very large. In some cases, you may find discounts at or above 50 percent, so keep your eyes open if you need a new mattress.

Outdoor Furniture and Grills

Most people purchase patio furniture and grills near the end of spring and beginning of summer. Since the barbecue season is coming to a close, retailers want to get these items out of their inventory as quickly as possible.

Summer sales often include discounts on outdoor furniture, grills, and even gardening tools. Swing sets and outdoor play equipment also have lower prices. If you need to replace any of these goods or want to prepare for next summer, buying these items now can help you save big.

Household Appliances

Another category that typically goes on sale near Labor Day is major appliances. This includes items like refrigerators, ovens, and even washers and dryers.

Stores like Best Buy, Lowe’s, Sears, and Home Depot commonly have substantial appliance sales near the end of summer. Discounts can reach 30 percent off or higher, and you may even get free delivery and removal of your old appliance.

Cars, Trucks, and SUVs

End of summer sales are also common at auto dealerships. Usually, the new model year hits car dealer lots in the fall, so they want to get rid of any older models before the new ones arrive.

For example, the 2019 cars, trucks, and SUVs will start becoming available at dealerships in the fall of 2018. This means you may find great deals on new 2018 and even remaining new 2017 vehicles as part of a summer sale.

If you really want to score a deal, also shop for a new car at the end of the month and later in the day. Usually, salespeople are working to meet their monthly sales quotas as the month closes and may be more willing to reduce a vehicles price near the end of the day so that they can finish up the deal and head home.

Televisions

While the biggest TV sales usually happen in November, some retailers begin making room for the new model year as early as September. This means you can find discounted televisions as electronics retailers and department stores, making it a decent time to shop for a TV.

However, if you want to score a real bargain, you may need to wait until October or November. Just keep in mind that Black Friday competition can be fierce for electronics, so you can always take advantage of sale prices now if you want to avoid the hassle.

Warm Weather Clothing and Shoes

Since cooler weather is on the horizon, you can find great discounts on summer attire. Stores are working to clear summer clothing and shoes out of the inventory, ensuring they have room for fall items.

Tank tops, shorts, summer t-shirts, sandals, bathing suits, and similar items might be available as either part of a summer sale or on clearance racks. Either way, you can purchase a number of items at great prices.

If you want to make the most of these bargains, look for shirts that can be layered under fall jackets, cardigans, or flannels. Then, you can keep using these pieces even when the weather begins to turn.

Additionally, you can always buy shoes and clothing for next summer, letting you save money now while building a great summer 2019 wardrobe. Just make sure, if you are shopping for your children, that you consider buying larger sizes than they need today. That way, if they have a growth spirt, everything will still fit.

Office and Back-to-School Supplies

Since school is either in session or will be soon, many retailers are starting to put office and back-to-school items on sale at the end of summer. This can include anything from pens and pencils to computers and printers, so keep your eyes open for bargains.

It is important to note that office and back-to-school supplies might not be at their cheapest yet, as they might not go on clearance until early fall. However, there could still be great deals to be had, and you’ll have a better selection than if you wait.

Wine

One category that typically goes on sale at the end of summer that may surprise you is wine. Often, wine retailers are preparing for the new harvest to come in, so they may discount select wines to make room.

Check at your local retailers, liquor stores, and even wineries to see if they are holding a sale. Discounts can vary, and not everyone offers one, but you may be able to save 20 percent or more on your favorite wines.

Exterior Paint

Most people complete outside painting projects during the summer. As temperatures cool, many exteriors paints go on sale, allowing you to save big if you need to repaint your house, fence, or outdoor furniture.

Home improvement stores, paint retailers, and even department stores like Walmart may have a summer sale on paint, so consider shopping around if you really want to find a bargain.

iPhones

Usually, the announcement of the newest iteration of the iPhone comes out in the early fall. This means you can get the current model for less near the end of summer because cell phone retailers are preparing for the new model.

Once a new iPhone model goes on sale, the previous version is always discounted since it is no longer the latest and greatest option. As long as you are okay with being a model year behind, you can save big by purchasing the device after the announcement.

Ultimately, end of summer sales are a great time to find bargains in all of the categories above. If you want to save big, start keeping your eyes open for sale flyers, particularly as Labor Day approaches.

Do you know about any other great summer sales? If so, let us know in the comments below.

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How to Get the Best Deals at Thrift Stores

June 18, 2013 By Jeffrey Strain 7 Comments

I have to admit that I really enjoy looking for treasure in what other people consider junk. I love to rummage around places looking for weird and unusual items, whether it be at flea markets, garage sales or thrift stores. I spent several years making a living doing this on eBay and although I no longer do it today, I still get the itch to hunt for those great deals I know are sitting there waiting to be picked up.

I have noticed lately that it has been getting more and more difficult to score good deals at thrift stores than in the past. Part of it might be due to the hit song by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (Thrift Shop) which has introduced thrift shopping to a whole new generation of people (warning, NSFW language).

While it might be a bit more difficult to score great deals today than a few years ago, that doesn’t mean that the great deals no longer exist. They’re there if you know how to find them. I find that there is a sort of art to scoring great deals while thrift shopping. Here are 10 strategies I use to get the best deals at thrift stores:

Neighborhood Counts

When you go to a thrift shop, one of the biggest mistakes that many people make when looking for great deals is that they go to the closest shop to them. What you really want to do is go to the store which is located nearest those who have the highest income in your area. The reason for this is simple. Those people who donate with higher incomes often donate more expensive items and clothes. While these may eventually make their way to the other stores in the area (stores located in higher income areas often get more donations than they can use and send surplus to other stores that don’t get as many donations, but it is usually items that haven’t been selling on their store, not new items that have just arrived), you have the best chance of scoring a really good deal at the thrift shops located in higher income areas.

Know the Stock Day

Unlike regular stores which constantly restock items on their shelves, thrift stores often only restock a couple of days a week, with one day usually being the main restock day. Knowing this day and getting their early on it gives you the opportunity to look at the newest items on display before anyone else increasing your chances of finding a great deal than if the item had been on the floor for a few days. You can simply ask one of the workers and they will almost always be willing to tell you their restocking schedule.

Return Regularly

If you’re hoping to get good deals, you have to go to the thrift shops on a regular basis. You never know when something great is going to come in. Sometimes great deals arrive weekly while other times nothing good seems to come in for months. Since they don’t carry standard merchandise like regular stores, but simply sell whatever is brought in, it’s important to go consistently if you are to score the best deals. The more consistent you are in going on a regular basis, the better chance you have of being there when that great deal is put out on the floor.

Make Friends with Staff

One of the best ways to score deals at thrift shops is to become friends with the staff. This usually isn’t difficult at all if you are a regular customer. if you tend to buy similar items on a consistent basis, they’ll learn what you are looking for and often let you know when new things that fit your past shopping habits arrive without you even asking. But don’t assume they will. Politely ask them to be on the lookout for your most coveted items and they may even put them to the side for you when they come in to give you first shot at them.

Shop End of Year and Spring

Probably tow of the best times to shop thrift stores for great deal is toward the end of the year and during the spring. In the spring, people are doing their spring cleanings (and many people are getting ready to move) which tends to send more items than usual to the thrift stores. At the end of the year, many people get rid of all the stuff they no longer need to take the deduction on their taxes. In fact, the thrift stores often get so many new donations toward the end of the year that they can’t get all the new stuff they received out until January or February of the next year, extending the quality shopping season. If you live in a college town, a good time to go is when students start packing up for the summer.

New Item Rack

While these don’t exist in all thrift stores, many have a “new items” rack where the latest items to be brought into the store are placed. if a store has an area like this, it’s the best place to start since not nearly as many people have seen what’s there and the likelihood that a great find has been found by another isn’t as likely. If you are visiting a thrift shop for the first time, ask if they have a new item area because often they aren’t marked well.

To Be Displayed Pile

Another excellent place to look is the “to be displayed” pile. You need to be a little more careful with this pile as it isn’t one that you should officially be looking through, but it’s just for that reason that it makes it an excellent place to score great deals. What many thrift shops will do is make a pile of the latest items that need to be placed on the floor in an area in the store near the storage room. These are items that need to be placed on the floor when the staff has time. They sometime create this pile to make it easier for staff to place it on the floor during not as busy times so they don’t have to go back and forth into the store-room. if you can find this pile, you will likely be the first person to go through it.

Rerack Pile

If you are searching for great deals on clothes, one area that many people forget to look is the recently tried on pile of clothes. The reason that this is a good place to score a great deal is because someone thought the piece of clothing was quality enough to try on. That’s a good indication that it was something that they thought had value. Why didn’t they buy it? Maybe the only issue was that it didn’t fit right. Most people walk by this pile without a second glance, but it’s a place where you can find some high quality clothes that others have already found in the shop.

Phone Research

The fact is that when you are looking for deals in thrift shops, you are going to come across things that are beyond your scope of knowledge, and I’ve seen a number of people use their phones as a way to confirm or dismiss whether something they just spied was a wonderful deal. In fact, you can usually tell who in the thrift shop are resellers looking for deals that they can resell at a profit somewhere else by the way that they use their phone to check on things they find while they wander through the thrift store. If you are unsure if something is worth it, but have a suspicion that it might be a great deal, doing a quick search on your phone can be a quick and easy way to find out.

Always Ask for a Discount

Some shops are much more willing to entertain giving discounts than others, but it never hurts to ask. Since most of the merchandise for sale is used, it’s usually possible to find something that differentiates it from being brand new. This differentiation may not be an issue to you at all, but it gives you the opportunity to bargain for a better price by pointing it out. The key to be successful with this strategy is to be kind and friendly when doing this rather than pushy and demanding. Saying, “I really love this item, but I noticed that it unfortunately has a small mark on the side. Would it be possible to get a few dollars off?” gives you a much more likely chance of getting a price reduction than, “Look, there is a mark on the side of this. It’s not worth what you marked it at. I want a discount!”

Do you have any special strategies when you go looking for stuff at thrift shops?

(Photo courtesy of Christopher Sessums)

Haggling For Bargains

February 8, 2009 By Jennifer Touchette 2 Comments

Please consider the idea of haggling: a buyer negotiating with a seller to get a lower price. It sounds like a great way to save money. Why am I not doing it?

I believe that like other consumers, haggling just isn’t on my radar:

I pay what I see on the price tag without question.
My first notion of haggling reminds me of buying a vehicle. Yuck!
I am uncomfortable asking for a discount.
Finally, it simply hasn’t occurred to me to apply haggling to non-big ticket items.

I love the idea of haggling, but I am way out of my comfort zone. My reluctance to ruffle feathers is one of the reasons – according to some financial experts – that many women often pay more for goods and services than men do.

In addition, I don’t have a lot of experience with haggling. My experiences are limited to negotiating for goods in a street market in Mexico and bargaining for a futon at a garage sale. That’s it. I have a lot to learn. On the other hand, the present financial climate seems like a perfect time to start. There’s plenty of inventory that sellers need to move, so why not ask for a bargain?

Bowing to experience, I asked friends and family about their haggling encounters.

Research: One friend needed a good office chair. She sits for long hours editing manuscripts and needs something with lots of support. After researching on the Internet, she had created a list of several chairs she wanted to try. She took her research to the field, visited stores and sat in many chairs.

Finally, she found the chair she wanted at a big office supply store. She had an ace in her pocket because she knew the online price was cheaper than the store’s price. So she offered to pay the online price, which was 20% less. After a bit of hemming and hawing, the salesperson agreed to let the chair go for the online price. My friend was amazed. “I thought,

Liquidation Sale Risks: Often Not the Deal They Appear to Be

December 18, 2008 By Jennifer Derrick 2 Comments

One side effect of a down economy is that many retailers end up going bankrupt or closing unprofitable locations. They are then forced to liquidate their assets and have sales in order to clean out the stores. Very often, even the fixtures end up for sale. With more and more retailers going out of business, this is your chance to pick up some real bargains, right? Not necessarily.

Liquidation sales are touted with such lines as “Huge Savings!”, “Blowout Prices!”, “Lowest Prices Ever!” and other messages designed to make you think that no matter what you buy you’re getting a great deal. The problem is that liquidation sales are not always the best deal going. Here’s why:

The liquidators run the show, not the retailer: When a company goes into bankruptcy, the retailer is no longer in charge. The liquidation companies operate the business, not the retailer. That means that they are not required to honor the policies of the retailer. They do not have to price match, price adjust, accept returns (even on merchandise that was purchased before the bankruptcy), or honor service agreements. In other words, everything you loved about your favorite retailer is gone, replaced by a liquidation company that is intent on wringing every dollar possible out of the sale.

Prices are often higher than or, at best, the same as other stores: When the liquidators take over, they often raise prices before marking the items down in order to make a little extra money. They know that people think liquidation sales offer bargains and will often buy without comparing prices. They take advantage of the consumer’s gullibility and there’s nothing illegal about it. So that toaster that was $15 before the liquidation sale now carries a “before sale” price of $20. Then the liquidator marks it down 25% which puts it back at $15. Many people think it’s a deal, not realizing that if they’d bought that same toaster before the “sale,” it would have been the same price.

You can’t use coupons, gift cards, store credits, or even store credit cards: If you’ve been holding on to a coupon, store credit, or gift card and think that a liquidation sale is a fine time to use it, forget it. These payment methods are not likely to be accepted at the sale because the liquidator didn’t issue them and doesn’t want to deal with them. Many won’t even honor the store’s credit cards because the credit department went out of business along with the retailer.

Warranties may not be honored and you certainly can’t purchase extra protection: If you purchase something at a liquidation sale and need warranty assistance, you will have to deal with the manufacturer directly. You will receive no assistance from the retailer. If you purchased an extended protection policy through the retailer before the liquidation, you are likely to find that it won’t be honored once the liquidation starts. And if you’re buying something at the sale and would like extra coverage, like a screen breakage policy on a laptop, you won’t be able to purchase that coverage from a liquidator.

Limited or non-existent return policies If you buy something at a liquidation sale, get it home and it’s broken, you probably can’t return it. Many liquidation sales are final with no returns. If there is a return policy it is likely to be very restrictive and may require return within 24-48 hours with all kinds of exclusions, fees, and hassles. If you really want to dispute the item, you may have to do it with your credit card company, but watch out for number 6 below.

Payment methods may be limited: In addition to not accepting gift cards or coupons, some liquidators won’t take checks. Some even won’t take credit cards so they can avoid the fees. If they won’t take credit cards, you lose any after sale protection your credit card might offer.

So what is the consumer to do? Should you always avoid liquidation sales? The answer is no, but you have to act wisely and not just blindly assume that a going out of business sale is the best deal.

First, as with any sort of shopping, know your prices before you hit the liquidation sale. That way you’ll know if the liquidator is tinkering with the markdown numbers or if you can get a better deal with a coupon elsewhere. (Some competing retailers may take coupons or gift cards issued by the bankrupt store just to get your business.) Often the best deals are found late in the sale after the liquidator has moved all the merchandise he thinks he can at the higher prices. When that happens, the markdowns are likely to get better. Your best bet is to watch and wait for the prices to come to you.

Second, understand the policies and terms of the sale before you buy. Can you return the item? Will the manufacturer honor the warranty? What payment methods are accepted? Will they price match or price adjust during the sale? If the answer to any of these is no or in any way makes you uncomfortable, make sure you can live with it before you buy.

Third, protect yourself because you’ll get no protection from the retailer. Avoid problems by making certain the merchandise is in good shape before you buy. Plug things in and make sure they work. Take items out of boxes and account for all the parts and make sure they’re free from damage. Check clothing closely for stains or tears. Check with the manufacturer of big ticket items and make certain they’ll honor the warranty. Pay with a credit card if possible (but make sure you can pay it off before the due date) to get their consumer protection policy.

Finally, unless you’re getting a stellar deal at the sale that you know you can’t beat elsewhere (and you know the merchandise is in good working order and you won’t have any problems with it), consider buying from a retailer that is still in business. You’ll be protecting yourself from potential problems and helping another retailer to stay in business. There’s nothing wrong with liquidation sales and it is possible to score some deals. Just don’t fall for the hype surrounding these sales. The liquidators think you’re gullible. Show them you’re not.