Merry Christmas! Shopping Tips 2013

Safe travels and enjoy the holidays! Thank you for all those who took the time to read our blog and giving us new ideas on what to write about. We are definitely always looking for new ideas, so feel free to leave a comment.

Since today all the stores are closed and tomorrow is Boxing Day, I will take this opportunity to give a few shopping tips and mention a few promotions to look out for tomorrow.

Shopping Tips

The after Christmas sales is really the double and triple dipping opportunities. It is also the best time to stock up supplies for next year, especially Christmas decorations, cards, etc. Just remember that there are always sales throughout the year, so be sure to be making a purchase because it is a good deal and not get caught up on the Boxing Day frenzy. This is also the best time for retailers to trick us into buying something that we don’t need.

Be sure to look for deals online as well. Stores may not always have the best prices out there. Don’t be scared to compare prices. Every store wants to be the one who makes the sale, so a little price comparison can go a long way in helping you save money more. This is actually one of the best times to have your smartphone on you so that you can constantly compare prices of different stores. Otherwise if you have friends or family out there shopping as well, try to work out a system where you can give each other a call, depending on what store you’re at so that you can help each other make a purchase if one of you finds a better deal.

If you have a strong shopping system in place, you can definitely increase your savings.

Suggestions Going Forward

Often times we buy something and wished that we had bought it when it went on sale. What I generally like to do is keep a running list of all the items that I need to buy and things that I believe that I will eventually need to replace. The list is on me at all times just in case I come across a good deal, then I will know I need to buy it.  Keeping the running list will help you ensure that you don’t end up buying something that you don’t need and to help you catch all the good deals as they come up. For sure it takes a little bit of work to keep track of what you need and what you will need, but to me the savings is well worth the work. If I can save $20 on my total bill for taking 5 minutes of my time to check my inventory and writing it down, then that’s well worth my time.

The Money has to Come from Somewhere

I have reached a point where I cannot make a purchase for something that is regular price. It has become such a habit that it doesn’t even feel like work to look for a sale. It just feels like the normal thing to do. It actually feels like work to pay regular price for a item because it’s a bigger hit on my wallet, which makes me feel like I have to work more hours to make back the extra money that I spent.

Beware

Be sure to have all your loyalty cards with you on Boxing Day. Be on the lookout for bonus points promotions. Otherwise, be sure you are paying cash for something that is actually a good deal. If you by a TV or computer, be sure to check the specs of the item that you are planning to buy, often times they actually reduced the price of an item that is a lower tier model than the one you thought you have been tracking all along.

Retailers want to ride on the frenzy of boxing day, so generally they will discount items that they had trouble selling throughout the year and this is their chance of selling the inventory. Be sure you know what you are buying before actually making the purchase.

Promotions

Best Buy generally has good promotions during Boxing Day. Their flyer is already released so you take plan your visit to the store if you plan on going anyway. Just enter your postal code on this link and you will be able to view the flyer. This is a great opportunity to double dip by getting an item that you were planning on buying from them anyway, as well as earning loyalty points. We wrote about the Reward Zone program recently.

Shoppers Optimum is going with Seniors friendly by offering 20% off plus an additional $10 Shoppers Drug Mart gift card for spending $50 before taxes. There are however a few catches is that the discount only applies to regular prices and excludes sale items, prescriptions, insulin, products with codeine, tobacco products (where applicable), newspapers, stamps, lottery tickets, event tickets, Life Experiences, transit tickets and passes, electronic gift cards, passport photos, prestige cosmetics & fragrances, prepaid phone cards and milk in Atlantic provinces. The $10 gift card expires on January 23, 2014.

I would have liked to see Shoppers allow for sale items to be included in the $50. What if most of the useful items in the store are on sale? Then there may be nothing left to buy to take advantage of this promotion.

There are quite a few restrictions. I believe a great way to take advantage of this deal is to go as a family and make all the purchases one bill. That will make it easier to reach the $5 rather than just by one person.  Making group purchases really helps you take advantage of certain promotions.