Category: Shopping

I have been writing about back to school shopping for years now around this time of the summer and it is a subject that about a gazillion other bloggers chime in on too, so it must be a biggie! The challenge or chore of it all is a headache for some and a burden for others, but it doesn’t have to be that way if you choose to follow a bit of advice. Here is my very best effort at making the experience not only a money saving one, but as stress free and even as much fun as possible.

If your child is in his or her middle school years, you are probably a real veteran at BTS shopping and perhaps you think you have this routine “knocked” and you’re all set. But, and it’s a pretty big but, every year there are new players and rules to consider so it can’t hurt to review all of it before you venture out to actually do it! Plus, if your child is off to college for the first time, it’s on a whole different level.
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To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven. – Ecclesiastes 3:1

You don’t need to be a Bible student to know that when it comes to shopping, seasonality is a big factor in the art of saving money and finding the very best deals. 4th of July sales are the perfect example of that situation and offer some of the best opportunities if you know what to look for and you have a real need! You already know that buying only based on your wants isn’t always a good move and buying a “bargain” that you might never actually use is downright foolish!

But, if your Independence Day plans include hitting up the malls or shopping online, get ready for what can be some of the best sales and celebrations of the year. Smartening up on what to buy (and not to buy) during the July and the summer sales and clearances will make the summer more fun and the outdoor party season much more enjoyable for you and your family! Continue reading

Please note this post contains affiliate links which help to fund this blog at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

I do love a deal. There, I said it, but by now it’s really not a secret, is it? If you are like me, a typical “bargain hunting” shopper, you probably have signed up for emails from some of your favorite online retailers like Staples, Bed Bath & Beyond, Kohl’s, and Walmart, etc. They are constantly sending offers like coupons and discounts on their latest promotions that you probably love just like I do. It can be a great way to find some online bargains, so long as you only use them when you need them.

Logically you think if you need clothes, check out the deals at Kohl’s, copy paper then look at Staples, and new cookware or a bathroom scale, Bed Bath & Beyond, right? But did you know the magical part of buying and selling online is that all of these retailers sell stuff you’d never guess they have and sometimes they are shockingly good deals! You’d never expect to get these bargains at these sites and that’s why today I am sharing with you some really surprising things that I have discovered! Continue reading

L.L. Bean has long been known for its lifetime return policy, which it ended just this past February. But don’t despair. The company is still offering an amazing policy that most people are pretty happy about! The store now offers a still-generous one-year window for returns.

L.L. Bean ended its legendary lifetime return policy to clamp down on customers who were taking advantage and using it to replace heavily worn products.

“Increasingly, a small, but growing number of customers have been interpreting our guarantee well beyond its original intent. Some view it as a lifetime product replacement program, expecting refunds for even heavily worn products used over many years,” the company wrote announcing the policy changes to customers.

I spent so many years (over 39!) in the retail environment that I can personally verify that some people out there do abuse return policies to the point that it has to be “built” into the retail price these days to cover for what stores must throw away that was returned for bogus reasons. Continue reading

For today’s guest post on Christmas shopping all year long, please welcome back fellow blogger Anum Yoon.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—unless you leave all your Christmas shopping until November and December. The long lines, the rush to get to the mall on Black Friday, the stampede to pick up this year’s hottest toy—it’s all part of the game, and it’s a game that can make you very, very tired.

What happens when you don’t put off your Christmas shopping until November? Does it matter? It actually does, and you’ll be a lot less likely to encounter the emotional dumpster fire that ignites as the clock steadily marches closer to Christmas. Not convinced? If you need more reasons than that alone to start shopping sooner, here are five more reasons to start picking up presents year-round. Continue reading

Bargain hunting can save you money, and who doesn’t love a bargain? Of course, we all do. But for some people, looking for the next “great deal” becomes an addiction. The call of the clearance rack wins out over practical matters like common sense and whether you need or want what you found. You may not even have a place to put it. I’m almost positive you have some things hanging in your closet right now that still have the tags on them from way back when you got “that great bargain”.

Getting a “bargain” on something that you will never need or use is a complete waste of your time and money! Continue reading

Happy Halloween! Today’s a day for tricks and treats, but no one likes getting tricked by retailers who make you spend more money! I’ve spent most of my working life inside retail stores starting way back in 1972. That’s when I began a job as an assistant buyer at R.H. Macy’s, a real learning experience for me as to exactly how a retail business is run and how it makes lots of money. Some of that knowledge was valuable then and is still just as valuable today. There’s an old saying “the more things change the more they stay the same”, and that couldn’t be more true in the world of retail.

Retailers, marketers, sales professionals, and CEOs are determined to make you buy more than you planned when you shop. In addition, retailers have an arsenal of sales tactics that may seem silly, but serve as heavy-duty artillery when it comes to persuading you to part ways with your cash. Remember the phrase accredited to P.T. Barnum when he said “a sucker is born every minute”? That’s where the tricks come into play. Continue reading