Well, I'm one of those "friends" and I've learned a few tricks to the trade. While it's true that kids cost a lot to raise, they don't have to cost quite as much if you give a few of these simple but smart bargain hunting tips a try.
Warning: Bargain hunting does have the possibility of becoming an addiction. You may find yourself unwilling to ever pay full price for anything again!
Tip #1: Buy clothes the year ahead.
This tip might not fly with your teenagers, but for little
kids it is great. All of the main mall-type stores do end-of-season clearances (Kohl's, Old Navy, Gymboree, JC Penney's,
etc.) you just need to watch for them. Old Navy's summer and
winter clearances often get to only 97 cents to $2 per item
(shirts, sweatshirts, pants, etc). Gymboree has similar
clearances on older lines in which you can pick up items for
$3-$10. Pair this with coupons you get from signing up for
their newsletter online and shopping during Gymbuck time
(periodic offer where you spend $50 and they give you $25
Gymbuck dollars to use in the store at a later time) and you'll
really make out! If your son is a 2T this winter and you can
reasonably guess that he'll be a 3T next winter, stock up. If
you end up with items that you can't use that next season, then
you have brand-new merchandise that you can sell on eBay (and
make quite a profit too!).
Tip #2: Check online for the lowest price first.
There are great Web sites available that help you to compare
prices before you ever leave the house. If I'm doing some online shopping,
I check out Froogle.com.I enter in a term like "Beautiful
Bride Barbie Doll" and it shows me everywhere that the doll is
available and where I can get it for the best price.
Tip #3: If you are not happy with something, be brave and
speak up!
If something doesn't work properly don't just give up and
throw it out, complain -- nicely. I bought a potty chair from
Fisher Price and had problems with it leaking. I called
customer service and they were fantastic. They immediately
shipped me out a new one. I had problems with the new one too,
unfortunately, and they sent me a refund. I bought a container
of Breyers ice cream that turned out to be not as I expected.
They sent me a coupon for a new carton of ice cream. I had a
Lean Cuisine meal that didn't end up looking anything like the
picture on the box. They sent me a coupon for a new Lean
Cuisine.
Some companies even go the extra mile. I had a bad vanilla creme from Fannie Mae candies last Valentine's Day and they sent me a 1 pound box to make it up to me! Contacting the companies is very easy -- most have a Web site and a "contact us" form that you can fill out in just a few moments.
Tip #4: Be smart with your coupons
Check through your online coupons and Sunday paper coupons
before you go anywhere. I never hit a store without first
checking great Web sites like
TheSavingDepot.com or
Savingsmania.com for printable coupons. You
can find anything from 25 percent off an item at Borders to $5 off of
$25 at Toys "R" Us. Jenny Pape, a mom of three from Warrenville,
Illinois, says, "I get anywhere from 2-10 copies of the coupons
every Sunday by buying multiple (newspapers). For the $1.79,
you get hundreds of dollars in coupons!"
And she really knows what she is doing with those cents-off vouchers. "I regularly match sale ads from the various stores with manufacturer and store coupons," she says, which allows her to stockpile cheap or free items.
"Recently, I went to Jewel. I bought 20 or so Butler GUM toothbrushes for [just the cost of] tax. The store puts these on sale for $1 quite often. There are always $1 off 1 coupons out -- makes for free toothbrushes. There have also been 'buy one get one free packages,' so 2 for free!" This is just one small example of how Jenny puts coupons to great use.
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