I always go to the outside walls of the store
or what my husband affectionately calls "the gauntlet." That
is where all of the clearance stuff is. Usually if it's in the main
shopping area and not on sale, then soon it will be in the clearance rack.
I am waiting for a light to go on clearance right now. My son (3) and I
visit it every time we shop, which is at least once a week. Hope this
helps you. -- Michele Ferguson
I have some advice about saving money at Target
stores. I used to work for Target and mark down/clearance the
merchandise everyone wants. The best time to go looking for goodies
labeled with the bright orange stickers is Monday-Friday. We never
worked weekends. So your best bet finding new reduced items would be
Monday - Friday. We also use to get off work around 2 PM so that would
be all that would get marked down till the next day. Most stuff
gets put on the end caps at the end of each isle. (In that back where
you don't always go.) Most people know this already, but if you are new
to the game, that's where to look. Hope this helps a few readers! --
Stacy, 28, TN
I'm a bit of a pro at shopping for bargains at
Target. My Mom is an employee of a Target store here in Chicago and has
been for the past 5 1/2 years so I've found out most of the worth while tricks.
One way, at least for the Targets here in Illinois is if you walk around the
outer edges of the aisles and look at what are called the end-caps (the small
areas at the edge of every aisle) you will find a great amount of clearance
items, and worth while ones at that. One thing I love about Target
clearance is the stuff is usually still in great condition, not like most other
store where the stuff is badly damaged or completely broken. Usually it's things
that they have to move out to make room for more great stuff. Every department has at least one clearance section and there is always stuff on clearance.
Another thing is at the Target here in Chicago just inside the Men's fitting
room they have a ton of underwear, socks, boxers, undershirts and things of that
nature, for the whole family. I just bought my son (who is beginning potty
training) 11 pairs of underwear for 11 cents a piece!!! Not only that, but
Target has some pretty good prices and some really good deals at times and I'm
not just saying that because my Mom works there but my advice to you is if you
love the service and quality at Target as much as I do get there early and allow
yourself some time and just cruise all the edges of the aisles!!! --
Melissa Hansen, Mother of 1 son Isaac, Chicago, Illinois.
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My best bargain at Target was after Christmas.
Since they expand their toy department at Christmas time, they put a lot on
clearance about two weeks after the holidays. I stocked up on gifts for
birthdays for the rest of the year. I saw the same toys at other stores
for twice the price! -- Chris
Hi! I am an avid Target shopper and I
wanted to write in why I always buy my formula at Target as opposed to
another large retailer. I need to buy a specific type of formula for
my baby who was a preemie and had lots of tummy problems. Both Target
and another store carries this formula. At Target I buy a 24oz
container of formula for 13.99. When shopping at another store I saw
the same formula in a container that LOOKED twice the size of what's
available at Target. Well, my love of Target made me
do the math. The other store's container seemed twice as big,
but only held 32 ounces of formula for 19.99. When you do the math,
Target is cheaper by .04 per ounce! I save nearly a dollar on every
canister! That's $6 a month for me! Not to mention the coupons I
receive from the company AND found on select cans of formula at Target.
Last month I really thought I won big! The concentrated liquid was
on clearance! I saved at least a quarter per can! (I cleaned
them out). While I don't buy baby food there, sometimes they
clearance Gerber finger foods and such. MORE SAVINGS!! If I got
into the amount of money I have saved buying clothes for my kids at Target I
would go on another hundred pages! We are certainly a Target
family. Quality product, reasonable prices and yet they don't look
cheap! I also used to work there and saw first hand their work
ethic and community involvement. Target is a store people can be proud
of! -- Tricia
I am a Target shopper. The best deals are
Wednesdays. That is the day they do markdowns. Also, shop on
Wednesdays and Thursdays for the best deals. The ads come out on Sunday,
But a lot of the prices go up. I have gotten 12' market umbrellas for as low
as 14.00. Toys that sell for 29.00 for 8.00. I also buy up the good deals and sell
the items to friends for a profit. My friends don't mind paying a few dollars more because it saves them the hassle of going to Target to get
it. -- Traci Blumenthal
I've found it pays off to zip into Target about
once a week after a major holiday, (ie: Christmas, Easter, Fouth of July etc).
Not only are their decorations and holiday household goods hugely marked down,
but so are their seasonal children's clothes. Eventually all the holiday
leftovers are 90% off, so I buy holiday clothes for future years for often less
than $1.00 apiece. Great for gifts too, if you can think ahead to what
size other's kids will be. -- Brendae Carlson, Hillsboro, OR
I love Target! At department stores, I
always ask for (and usually get) discounts on items that are slightly damaged
and that are fixable. I found out the other day when I bought two candles
(that had obviously been dropped!), that at Target, all you have to do is ask
the cashier and they are authorised to give a 10% discount on dent-and-scratch
items. Ten percent off is better than nothing off! -- Caroline
VanHouten
My tips for shopping at Target, are to shop the
endcaps of the display aisles, especially near the interior aisles, (ie.
housewares, cleaning supplies). Target generally places their clearance items on these
endcaps.
They also clearance office type items, such as telephones (I recently purchased a Southwestern Bell Freedom Phone for $8.40, in metallic
silver (also had light blue). The very same phone in white or ivory was $19.99 in the telephone section. They also had scanners on
clearance. Another area to look for the best bargains is the clearance racks for
clothing (particular toddlers and misses). Many times, they may only have
one or two items left and make room for an entire display, by putting these single items marked down on their clearance rack. I always
shop there first. Also shop right after the holidays, for the best selection on
holiday merchandise. I have purchased beautiful Christmas cloth
tablecloths and last year by waiting until January 2nd, I purchased several
Mikasa Crystal candy dishes for $1.49 each. I put these away to give as
gifts to our Pastors full of candy next year. They also clearance out all
of
their holiday stoneware, etc. In fact, one gal had purchased 2 sets of 4
when they were 50% off and came back and picked up 2 more sets when they were 70% off. Not a bad way to get set up in housekeeping on a
budget. -- Kristi in IA
I go to target and hit their clearance section. I
have found for my son shirts for 1.94 and pants for 3.84. I saved almost $50.00
by buying from the clearance rack. Last Christmas I found Pokemon t-shirts for
$1.94 each. I bought each one of my nephews and my son 2 each for Christmas. So shop the clearance racks first before looking at the regular
priced ones. -- Rebecca
Last fall, my husband requested
a nice electric shaver for Christmas. I do holiday shopping a few months ahead
of time, so I did some price comparisons at Target to know how much money I'd
need to have for the purchase. I noticed some
red-tagged shavers on the bottom shelf. When I looked, I couldn't believe
my eyes - it was the shaver my husband wanted! The best part
was, it was marked down to $19.99 from the original price of $89.99 - a
savings of $70.00!! My husband got a wonderful Christmas present and I got to
save a lot of money. So, when you shop at
Target, look high and low for bargains. --P.S.
Davis, Abilene, Texas
I love target. They always keep there clearance
items on the end of the isle, closest to the wall. My husband and i go
"clearance shopping" at target. Going thru all of the end of isles,
we have picked up some awesome deals! I just got a night light for my
little girl who is 2 that actually screws into the wall, so she can't pull it
out, and it was $2.00. -- Julie Beam
I love Target! My favorite money saving
strategy is to always walk down the ends of the aisles first. That is
where the clearance merchandise is usually kept. I have found some great buys! My best one was bike horns
and handle bar streamers for kids bikes that were on clearance for $.19 each.
I bought all they had! They made great birthday presents throughout the
year for my children's friends! Another time, I found children's backpacks
that had a matching fanny pack inside for $1.29. I bought several of
these too for Christmas gifts. I took fabric paint and wrote the child's
name on the backpack. They were a holiday hit! -- Ruth
I do sometimes shop at Target -- MOSTLY for
their clearance! I have found some "loose" packages of mens'
underwear, only like $1.00 or so. I have also found packages that were open
and marked down!! the toy section when they have one of their MAJOR markdowns
IS REALLY GREAT! I have found frames, socks, shirts, jeans, underwear, games
and other stuff only on their clearance racks. Lets see, I am NOT really sure if
I buy anything other then that! My friend and I also met to start our day with
a cup of coffee!!!! ALWAYS
FUN! -- Maureen in NJ
Whenever I shop at Target I always head straight
for the clearance isle. I am always able to find OTC medicine our family
uses on clearance and one that I have a coupon for. My trips to Target
are never less than an hour long but, the savings are worth it.
Stay at Home Moms - Money saving ideas and tips for frugal stay at home moms
