Everybody knows that school supplies get marked down—sometimes to just pennies! Right before school starts. But you may be seeing back-to-school merch a lot sooner. Before you get annoyed about “holiday creep” (the reason stores put Christmas decorations up before Halloween), consider the up side: earlier sales mean you can save sooner and also space out your shopping.
Check out stores now, scoping the sales at a website such as Spoofee.com or SundaySaver.com, which collect all the circulars so you can compare. When you see items and prices you like, go shopping. And if you don’t, you can wait because you have plenty of time, and the sales will just keep on coming.
Two of the best days to shop:
August 11, aka Back-to-School Saturday. Two dozen retailers are offering deals on clothes and other goodies. Find the list at Teen Vogue online.
Your state’s tax holiday. If your state participates, you can hit the sales and save on sales tax too. Look for your state at the Federation of Tax Administrators page.
For more ways to save on back-to-school (or on new stuff just for you, from clothes to office supplies to gas), read “9 ways to shop smarter” in the September issue, on newsstands now.
Back-to-school shopping secrets
By Jody Rohlena on July 16, 2012 06:01:00 pm
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