Eight Tips to Save in American Stores

The USA is a shopping paradise. The stores here do everything to make the customer happy, providing various opportunities to save money. The Forum has collected eight tips that will help turn your shopping trip into a wallet-friendly event. Moreover, we are not talking about seasonal discounts and sales, but about such unusual tricks as buying a gift certificate for yourself or sending the seller to the website of competitors who offer a lower price.

1. Store Cards

The bottom line: Each of the retail chains offers its own loyalty cards, through which you can get additional discounts on goods.

The principle of their work may be different: starting from promotional prices for certain goods (such as in the Safeway supermarket chain) and ending with a fixed discount on all purchases (for example, Macy's credit card holders receive additional 20% discounts on any purchase).

Tatyana Montgomery from Sacramento has long been using the Safeway card. "Without this card you pay full price. By the way, if you forgot the card, you can simply enter your phone number - they are connected. If there is no card at all, you can ask the cashier to make a discount or try to enter a friend’s phone - suddenly his number is in the system, ”Tatiana advises.

Specialist in economical shopping Tatiana Montgomery with her daughter Allison. Lena Veller photo

She also has a Gap store credit card, which is also valid at the corporation's subsidiaries - Old Navy, Banana Republic. “When you pay with this card, the store gives a 20% discount, which is added to other discounts. In the end, the price makes me happy,” the girl smiles..

2. Price adjustment

The bottom line: if you bought a thing, and after a while it went down, then you will overestimate it and return the overpaid difference. As a rule, this can be done within two weeks after purchase. With a must bring a check.

Thus, almost all large retail chains adjust the price.

It is useful to use such an opportunity before large sales, if you are careful that you can disassemble the items you like that you need. However, do not forget that the goods may not be cheaper.

Sometimes shops have their limitations. For example, Macy's reviews the price only if you originally bought the product without any coupons, and Nordstrom he warns that he can revise the price of a product only once, but designer items purchased during a sale are not subject to revaluation at all.

3. Price adjustment (Price match)

Substance: Almost all stores are ready to reduce prices for their goods, if in another store you have found the same thing at a lower cost. And it doesn’t matter whether you are comparing with online stores or regular ones.

Tatyana Montgomery thanks to this opportunity saves a decent amount. "I I bought a GoPro camera. It cost $400 at Best Buy, but I found the same one online for $350. And Best Buy gave me a discount,” she says.

However, as a rule, retailers only take into account the prices of well-known online stores. Sites like eBay, where non-new or forged goods can be sold, do not work in this case.

“By comparing prices on Amazon, I save about $60 on a professional printer cartridge, so it costs $400. This makes me happy,” admits Tatyana.

Irina Novik from California also often compares prices in different stores. Based on his experience, he says that it works especially well with large purchases — household and computer equipment, furniture, etc.

“I recently bought a washing machine and dryer. I found a low price on some website, called a local store and asked if they would sell it for that amount. They agreed. We also bought a wireless speaker for our son. At Best Buy it cost $150, we found it on Amazon for $120, and Best Buy sold it to us for $120,” Irina shares her experience.

Shops are constantly expanding the list of their competitors, with whom they are ready to compete in the best price. So, recently, Target has significantly increased the list of stores at whose prices it is ready to navigate. Among them: Amazon, Bed Bath & Beyond, Best Buy, CVS, JCPenney, Kohls, Macys, Office Depot, Petco, Petsmart, Walmart and even Costco, for purchases in which you need to get paid membership.

4. Discount coupons

Substance: All stores from time to time offer discount coupons that are published on their websites, in local newspapers or sent by mail if you leave your details.

Svetlana Panova from Florida often uses such coupons, saving significantly on purchases. “If you have ever purchased something from Macy's and left your contact information, they will constantly send coupons by email. You don’t even have to print out such coupons; you can just show them on your phone. There are also many discount coupons in local newspapers. I use them often,” she says.

5. Competitor coupons

The bottom line: Stores accept discount coupons of competitors even at the time when they have no promotion for this product.

Among them Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond, Office Depot / Office Max, PetSmart, Michaels, Bi-lo, Harris teeter, Lowes foods, Price Chopper, Publix other. The motivation is clear: the stores are ready to make concessions to the buyer, if only he spends money from them, and not from competitors.

6. Frozen Discount (Raincheck)

The bottom line: if in the supermarket the goods ended at a discount and you did not have time to buy it, take the so-called “raincheck” from the cashier and as soon as the goods reappear on sale, even at full cost, you can buy it at a discount price that was that day when you took the check.

As a rule, supermarkets give “raincheck” for food and household chemicals. However, the quantity of goods that you can buy at a discount price is usually limited.

Irina Novik often takes advantage of this opportunity. “At supermarkets like Safeway or Lucky, I always get these “rainchecks” if an item that was on sale is already out,” she says. — Even if the product appears the next day and you buy it at a discount, you don’t have to give the store your “raincheck.” Save it for the future, and in a couple of weeks you will be able to buy the same product, but at a discount that is no longer available.”

In some raincheck stores with no expiration date, in others, it can only be used for several months. For example, in Safeway It is valid for 90 days.

7. Gift Card Payment

The bottom line: if you pay with a gift card, you get a discount. You can buy a gift card for yourself before paying for the purchase.

This scheme works at Macy's, although not all sellers talk about it. “Macy's has a policy that 20% off is given to either store credit card holders or those who pay with gift cards. Therefore, you can buy a gift card and save money if you don’t have a store card,” says Marina (she asked not to give her last name), a Macy’s saleswoman.

Sites of other major retailers do not write about this opportunity.

However, there are several other options for saving with a gift card. First, certain discounts can be obtained by purchasing gift cards for almost all well-known stores, restaurants, etc. on sites such as giftcardgranny.com or giftcards.com. Secondly, Costco regularly sells gift cards to restaurants, gyms, spas, etc., which already come with a good discount included. For example, if you buy a $100 restaurant gift card for $75, you have already saved 25% of the amount.

8. Discount for tourists

The bottom line: Some retailers give all tourists a 10% discount card.

For example, such discounts are offered by Macy's and Bloomingdale's. You just need to go to any seller or manager and say that you are a tourist and want to get your discount. Usually it is valid for a month. With it, at a minimum, the amount of tax that you have to pay, you will discourage.

See also:

Personal experience. How to save in the US

How to save in the popular chain stores Target

Ten Little-Known Ways to Save at Costco

How to save money in Starbucks coffee shops

Seven ways to save hundreds of dollars with a library card

Personal experience. How to avoid mistakes when renting a home in the US

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