Back on July 27th, we featured several tips which were designed to help “back to school” shoppers save money as they prepare their kids for school this academic year. A number of school districts are already in session while the remaining districts will get started over the coming month or so. But many parents are still shopping for their kids, taking advantage of tax free weekends in a bid to save cash.
Thanks to conversations we’ve had with parents who do the shopping, SayEducate has compiled some additional tips which can help you save money when searching for “back to school” bargains including the following:
Clip Coupons – We left this one off of the list thinking that coupon cutting and back to school didn’t go hand in hand. Sure enough, a neighbor came over to our house the day before the big sale started, handing us a 40% off coupon for the local craft store. Turns out that this store carried certain colored pencils not found elsewhere, yielding significant savings for our family.
Buy In Bulk – One of the mothers of our children’s classmates made an important point and that was to anticipate some of your supplies running out mid-year. Just when you think you have enough ruled paper or colored folders for the next nine months, you may be out of stock come January. Why not stock up on things being sold for “back to school” prices instead of paying full price come winter? Whatever you don’t use can probably be set aside for the following school year.
Shop Used – One parent remarked that her son’s high school now requires students to have a laptop. Thinking that every student of a certain age already had their own computer, I didn’t realize that some schools had this requirement. Most decent laptops cost at least $500, a big expense for many families. However, one of our local PC repair stores sells refurbished laptops for about $150 to $250, with open source software installed. Best of all, her son’s computer is powered by Windows XP not the dreaded Windows VISTA program.
Keep Receipts – In our first article we encouraged people to delay some of their purchase in the event that something on the “back to school” list isn’t really needed. But, should you go ahead and make a purchase, keep your receipts handy in order to get a refund or credit later. Why get stuck with a backpack your child really doesn’t want or need?
Finally, you’ll want to come up with a shopping plan before you head out, one based on securing items you need and within your budget. We’ve learned that some families with two or more children are spending at least $500 this school year which explains why “back to school” time is the second most profitable shopping season for retailers after Christmas.
Adv. — You can get ready for hurricane season by stocking up on all of the essentials needed to keep your family fed and safe. Visit nBuy.com for all of your shopping needs including travel, home, car and school supplies.
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