QUICK TIP--AND THE PRICE IS...

Last week, I ventured into Gap and walked out with purchases totaling $119.83. The store had a Buy One/Get One 50% Off of Regular Price sale with another 20% Birthday discount. While in the store, I tried to see if the online pricing was better. The items that I was buying were discounted online but without the store promotion. Some items may have been priced a little less online but other items weren’t. The store would have price matched the online pricing. But, in the end, it was unclear whether having the store do that would have saved money, and there would be too much wasted time to figure it out. And so I completed my shopping with the store promotion.

A few days later, Gap changed their promotion. Now, it was Friends and Family, with 40% off of Regular Price and an extra 20% off. Would my purchases be priced better than when I had bought them? Howard and I were at the farmer’s market next to Gap. I still had the Gap receipt in my wallet. As we walked by Gap, I saw that there were no customers at the register. So I told Howard that I’d only be a minute, and ran in to see if there would be a price adjustment. Most stores have price adjustment policies. Generally, that policy is printed on the back of the receipt. Usually, if there is a price reduction within a week, the store will honor the lower price and issue a credit. This time, I thought that maybe I’d save $10 or $20 with the new promotion. The associate at the register scanned my receipt. Wide eyed, she told me that I’d be getting a credit of $71.31. $71.31 savings! I was happy. The associate was happy. I’ve found that most store associates actually like to see the customers save money. And Gap is particularly good with that.

Now, a look at grocery store prices. With kids coming to visit, I needed Cracker Barrel cheese. I look at supermarket circulars to get an idea of price. The week before I went to the store, the price was $3. But I didn’t get to the store that week. The next week, when I did get to the supermarket, the price was $4.29. After I bought at that price, the price went to $2.50 the next week. I got screwed. The supermarket doesn’t have price adjustment. Or maybe they do, but I just can’t keep up to play that game. However, it’s a good idea to look at supermarket circulars to stock up on sale items when you can. And there usually is a pattern to discounts. For example, Giant frequently has discounts on crackers, Cracker Barrel, many other items. Acme has periodic “Buck a Bag” pricing for some fruits and vegetables. (Or now, maybe it’s “Buck and a Quarter”.)

In these inflationary times—-or any time—it helps to have a sense of the lay of the land in terms of best pricing and to shop accordingly when you can.
I’m still doing the best price juggling act, but I also can’t keep up with all of the vagaries of pricing in every store. So, I just do the best that I can—which is often pretty good. But with all of the price juggling, I’m not so sure that I’m the Queen of Bargains that I’ve always been. Life’s just too complicated.

KEEP RECEIPTS AND CHECK PRICES FOR ADJUSTMENTS. TAKE A LOOK AT PRICING TRENDS IN THE STORES WHERE YOU SHOP MOST. YOU CAN SAVE MONEY WHEN YOU KEEP AWARE OF THOSE PRICING TRENDS.