SAN ANTONIO — It sounds crazy to begin holiday now while it is still roasting hot, but the economy has been insane. That means Black Friday, at least this year, may be too late for some of the best deals.
Traditional Labor Day sales include those big-ticket home items.
“Definitely if you need to replace a mattress, replace a fridge, Labor Day weekend is the time to do it,” said Kristin McGrath of RetailMeNot.
Also look for end-of-season summer sales.
“If you’re looking at summer clothing, patio furniture, grills, those are all really good things to shop for during Labor Day sales because retailers are absolutely trying to clear out those seasonal items and make room for fall and winter,” said Julie Ramhold of Dealnews.com. “We know that some retailers were taking extra discounts off of summer clothing like a month ago. The truth is, that if they still have those items kind of hanging around, they may discount those a little bit more in Labor Day sales to try to encourage shoppers to leave with more than maybe they had planned.”
Plus, stock up on school supplies.
“We may see bigger, better discounts on things like backpacks, lunchboxes, even the standard supplies like pens and pencils,” Ramhold said. “Labor Day is kind of the last hurrah to shop for back-to-school items and get a good deal on them.”
Do not discount starting your holiday shopping because some popular gift categories are unexpectedly discounted.
“This is not something we always see,” said Trae Bodge, a smart shopping expert. “Toys in particular. I usually see the best toy deals in December. I am seeing more classic toys on sale right now. So if someone on your list is looking for something like Jenga or Connect Four, something like that, you’ll probably find good sales there.”
Electronics is another category that sees the best deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but this year, Labor Day is also offering deep discounts.
“I am seeing deals on things like TVs, laptops, and phones,” Bodge said.
A lot of these deals are because of overstock.
“The reason why we’re seeing this is that a lot of merchants are stuck with extra merchandise because of delays that happened during the pandemic,” Bodge said. “Retailers ordered things, waited a long time, and now all of this merchandise is coming in, which is why we’re seeing these unexpected categories.”
Inflation is still increasing the base price of many items, but shoppers can still find savings.
“It’s really easy for people to think that inflation just means they need to not shop,” Ramhold said. “They don’t need to spend any money, but the truth is that if you’re in the market for a good deal, they’re still out there. It just may be that the price isn’t quite as low as you expected.”
The best place to look for a big bargain is here:
“Right now, retailers have extras,” McGrath said. “So head to the clearance rack, especially when it comes to clothing.”
Get the best deals possible by looking for coupons and using cashback apps.
“It’s really important for consumers to look for ways to save, for example, by using coupon sites, maybe combining a deal with the retailer deal plus maybe cashback through a coupon site,” Bodge said.
“Whenever you’re shopping, especially if it’s on a big ticket item that you’re going to have to spend a lot on, definitely take a moment to price compare, see what other retailers are offering,” McGrath said. “If you need some time to pay off that purchase, see if any retailers are offering special financing.”
It is hard to tell right now if deals will be better for Black Friday, so if you see an item that is a high percentage off, you might want to purchase it instead of waiting.