3 On Your Side: Holiday Shopping Advice
By Jim Donovan
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- This time next week, the leftover turkey will be in the fridge, the pies will be put away, and bargain hunters will be out in force in search of everything from door busters to fantastic freebies. But in some cases they may be too late! 3 On Your Side Consumer Reporter Jim Donovan offers up advice in order to get a good deal this holiday shopping season.
Black Friday - it used to be the best day of the year to find in-store bargains. Cyber Monday - that was the best day to find deals online. Well not anymore. "That no longer exists. The trend now, it's a season, it is the Black Friday season," says Mark LoCastro with DealNews.com. He says this year if you snooze, you'll lose! As retailers are trying to get you to shop now, not later. According to LoCastro, "They want to really create a sense of urgency."
Some stores are offering sales starting as early as tomorrow (November 22)! Walmart kicks off things at 8am. Frank Pellicori of Walmart says, "We're basically taking all the competitors and matching some of those select items and we're going to be running them here Friday all through till next Friday."
Some store sales will available to frequent shoppers only, like at Sears where they are holding a 28-hour pre-sale beginning Friday night. Kmart is catering to their frequent shoppers too with a 24-hour sale going on Sunday. Diane Brunetti with Kmart says, "With our Shop-Your-Way membership you can get some awesome deals."
As far as door busters are concerned, you may want to think twice about camping out. According to LoCastro, "Do not think that they have ample stock of these doorbusters. Usually they have 5, 10."
In fact if a deal is what you're after LoCastro says, "A big majority of all the Black Friday deals happening in the store are available online at the same price and sometimes even cheaper. Old Navy is a great example, they're offering 50% percent off site-wide which is one of the best deals we've seen from them." So don't expect to see every deal in a circular.
For the best price on an Apple product, DealNews says skip the Apple store. Instead LoCastro says, "If you shop at a certified Apple reseller, like Amazon, Best Buy, MacMall and MacConnection you'll have double the percent off, up to 20%."
And when is a sale not always a rock bottom price? According to LoCastro, "Not everything, is at the lowest price of the year come Black Friday. Toys are a great example." Toys see their lowest prices the second week of December.
By the way, if you still plan on braving the crowds early on Black Friday, there will be some freebies to lure you in. JC Penney is giving away snow globes again this year, no word on the number they'll have. While Pet Smart will give out free pet stockings to the first 100 customers containing dog and cat treats and coupons.
http://searsholdings.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=16310&item=137246
