When not to hit the big discount stores
It is no surprise that you can save a lot of money at the big discount stores each time you go shopping. They purchase mass quantities of the items they sell so they can pass the savings to you. However, there are times when it might not always be your best choice.
For example, I came home the other day and my wife had a bought a stainless steel coffee thermos from Starbucks. I looked at the price and it was almost $25. Somewhat shocked, I asked her why she did not go to Wal-Mart or Target where a similar thermos would have probably been around $15, almost 40% less in price. She said something that struck me; if she would have went to a big discount store she probably would have walked out with a lot more stuff than just a coffee thermos. The end result would have been more than $25 in that case.
You really should identify the type of shopper you are before you walk into any store. I applaud my wife that she understands what type of shopper she is and in the long run she knows she probably saved us money by buying a more expensive thermos at a store that only sells coffee and its accessories. There was nothing else that she wanted to buy in that store.
Big discount stores are masterful in their marketing techniques and you probably do not even realize it. How many times have you noticed when you walk into a big store such as Wal-Mart near the entrance you see several different types of items boldly marked with what you think it is a good price. The items vary by day and season, but they could be some form of beverage or some type of cleaner like laundry detergent. The goal of these items is to catch your eye and get you to put one in your shopping cart even if you did not originally think you needed it. The same applies for all the candy and magazines when you are checking out. Surely on more than one occasion you have found yourself with extra stuff in your basket because you thought you needed it or it appealed to you in some way. This is what makes stores like Wal-Mart and Target so successful. All those catchy displays at the end of aisles or around the checkout stands are put there with a specific marketing goal in mind - to get you to notice them and possibly put that product in your shopping cart.
One of the things my wife does is make a list when she goes to the big discount stores. That helps her stay on target. However, even then it is sometimes hard and she is not successful, so her general habit is just to not shop there. If you are not a disciplined shopper, there are definitely times when going to a large discount store will not pay off in the long run. So examine your shopping habits and if you need to, pay a little bit more for an item at a specialty store rather than tempt yourself with the all the marketing schemes and products offered at a gigantic discount store.
It is no surprise that you can save a lot of money at the big discount stores each time you go shopping. They purchase mass quantities of the items they sell so they can pass the savings to you. However, there are times when it might not always be your best choice.
For example, I came home the other day and my wife had a bought a stainless steel coffee thermos from Starbucks. I looked at the price and it was almost $25. Somewhat shocked, I asked her why she did not go to Wal-Mart or Target where a similar thermos would have probably been around $15, almost 40% less in price. She said something that struck me; if she would have went to a big discount store she probably would have walked out with a lot more stuff than just a coffee thermos. The end result would have been more than $25 in that case.
You really should identify the type of shopper you are before you walk into any store. I applaud my wife that she understands what type of shopper she is and in the long run she knows she probably saved us money by buying a more expensive thermos at a store that only sells coffee and its accessories. There was nothing else that she wanted to buy in that store.
Big discount stores are masterful in their marketing techniques and you probably do not even realize it. How many times have you noticed when you walk into a big store such as Wal-Mart near the entrance you see several different types of items boldly marked with what you think it is a good price. The items vary by day and season, but they could be some form of beverage or some type of cleaner like laundry detergent. The goal of these items is to catch your eye and get you to put one in your shopping cart even if you did not originally think you needed it. The same applies for all the candy and magazines when you are checking out. Surely on more than one occasion you have found yourself with extra stuff in your basket because you thought you needed it or it appealed to you in some way. This is what makes stores like Wal-Mart and Target so successful. All those catchy displays at the end of aisles or around the checkout stands are put there with a specific marketing goal in mind - to get you to notice them and possibly put that product in your shopping cart.
One of the things my wife does is make a list when she goes to the big discount stores. That helps her stay on target. However, even then it is sometimes hard and she is not successful, so her general habit is just to not shop there. If you are not a disciplined shopper, there are definitely times when going to a large discount store will not pay off in the long run. So examine your shopping habits and if you need to, pay a little bit more for an item at a specialty store rather than tempt yourself with the all the marketing schemes and products offered at a gigantic discount store.