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Back to school time usually means heading out to the stores to buy school clothes and supplies your kids need for the new school year. It’s an annual ritual that most families partake in during the months of August and September. While it may be a family tradition you and your kids enjoy, the effect on the balance in your bank account or on your credit cards may be quite different. You want to find ways to save money on back to school shopping.
There is no reason that you have to empty (or put a big dent in) your bank account when it comes to back to school shopping. Learn some surefire and fun ways to get the clothes and other school supplies your kids need for the upcoming school year in a cost-effective way. Make saving money a game you play with yourself and your kids while shopping. See who can find the best items for the best prices.
7 ways to save
Know the dress code rules. Nothing is more frustrating than spending hundreds of dollars on clothes to find out that your child won’t be able to wear it to school because it doesn’t abide by the school dress code. Make sure you read, understand and know the school’s dress code before heading out to make your back to school clothing purchases.
Make a list of what you need. After you clean out your kids’ closets and do inventory of what they already have, make a list of the items you need to buy. If you make a list and take it along to the stores with you, you are less likely to spend on items that you don’t really need. By sticking to your list, you avoid impulse buys or overbuying, which can really run up you back to school tab.
Set a budget and stick to it. Set a spending budget—either for each child or in total. Set the budget in your calculator and subtract from it as you make purchases. When your budget hits zero, stop spending. Setting a budget helps you to buy only the items you need and to do some comparison shopping to get what you need at the best price possible. Knowing you have a limit and what that limit is usually helps you to stay within your budget.
Shop second hand. Garage sales, consignment shops, second hand children’s clothing stores and thrift stores all hold treasures when it comes to clothing, shoes, accessories and at times even school supplies. You can find many gently used items at very affordable pricing, so don’t dismiss the idea before you take a look. Second hand shopping helps you to get more bang for your buck, so your child may walk away with a bigger wardrobe than if you bought everything brand new or it can reduce the amount you spend on back to school overall.
Shop online. Online retailers often sell the same products that you can find in brick and mortar stores. Since online stores don’t have the overhead that brick and mortars have, items may sell for less online. Online stores also offer free shipping or very low shipping costs to keep your shopping costs down as well. So if you find an item in the store that you like, be sure to check for it online to see if you can get a better deal on the price. If you do all of your shopping online, you may never have to leave the comfort of your home or office to make all of your back to school purchases, which saves you even more money on gas.
Use coupons. Watch your mail, email inbox and local sales papers for discount coupons. Be sure to clip, print and use the coupons when you head out to do your back to school shopping. There are even coupon websites where you can sign up to receive coupons of your choice as they become available. Registering for a coupon account is free and you can quickly and easily print out coupons on your home printer.
Shop clearance and sales racks and shelves. Before you start going through the racks of clothing or shelves, head to the front or back of the stores you’re shopping and peruse the sales and clearance areas first. These racks and shelves can hold a myriad of clothing, shoes and other treasures at deeply discounted rates. You’ll often enjoy savings that range anywhere from 10 percent all the way up to 85 percent off the original price.
Back to school time can be exciting for kids and parents. It can also cost a pretty penny buying back to school clothing wardrobes and school supplies, but it doesn’t have to be that way. There are simple and easy ways you can accomplish two goals—buying all of the clothes and supplies your kids need without blowing your bank account or running up the balances on your credit cards in the process.
