Shopping for a Few of My Favorite Things

Just as Black Friday is the biggest in-store shopping day of the year, Cyber Monday is the biggest ONLINE shopping day of the year. People who work the Monday-Friday, 9-5 type gigs frequently miss out on Black Friday sales, but often wait until the following Monday, Cyber Monday, and do a lot of their holiday shopping online from work. While a lot of Cyber Monday deals will not be publicized until Monday, here are a few of the sales I did find:

Best Buy: (<– Click on the link to take you directly to the Cyber Monday sale page at Best Buy!)

Special discounts are available at Best Buy across several product categories, such as Car & GPS, Home Appliances, Music, Computers, and Video Games. Sale prices available Sunday, November 30 - Monday, December 1.

Circuit City: (<– Click on the link to take you directly to the Cyber Monday sale page at Circuit City!)

Big savings are available at Circuit City on camcorders, desktop computers, laptop computers, digital cameras, mp3 players, digital photo frames, and much more! Sale prices available Sunday, November 30 - Monday, December 1.

Office Depot: (<– Click on the link to take you directly to the Cyber Monday sale page at Office Depot!)

Not a fantastic sale. Office Depot is offering Buy One, Get One 50% Off on a few select items. I would check back on Monday to see if any other offers are available.

Some online merchants are explicitly stating “Come back on Monday, December 1, for Cyber Monday specials.” Among those that I found saying this were:

• Staples
• Overstock

I decided to take a break from hunting down holiday bargains tonight and instead offer up some advice on how to leverage every holiday shopping dollar you can get your hands on. As a result, I wrote this article, titled the same as this post. Please feel free to go read the full article - it should open in a new window.

Here’s a summary of a few of the money saving tips that I included in my article:

• Turn spare change into cash or gift cards.
• Shop online at places like Plastic Jungle to get discounted gift cards, then use those gift cards to do your purchasing of holiday gifts.
• Use reward program points that you have collected throughout the year to obtain free magazine subscriptions and the like that can be gifted to others.
• Sell your junk or the bad gifts that you got last year and forgot to return on eBay to earn extra money for your holiday shopping.

These are just a few of the pointers offered in the article, so I hope you will go read it. I’ll be back tomorrow with another round of awesome deals for the holiday shopper!

Well, the Black Friday doorbusters have passed, but there is more great shopping to be had! Here are a few more of the fantastic deals available to online shoppers for the 2008 holiday season:

• PetSmart: For your four-legged friends, check out PetSmart’s pet gift options for under $5. Also, spend more than $40 on the site and you can save $10 with coupon code SHOP (expires 12/2/08 at noon).
• Gap: Sweaters for the entire family are on sale! Buy one sweater at regular price, get another for 50% off.
• Old Navy: Now through Sunday, November 30, select tees, sweaters and hoodies for the entire family are just 2/$15!
• JCPenney: Select jewelry and watches 40% - 70% off online only.
• Victoria’s Secret: Lots of great online offers, including:
  • 20% off entire order (excludes Ugg® Australia, Frye®, and the 2008 Fantasy Bra). Use coupn code GET20. (Expires Wednesday, December 3.)
  • Flannel pajamas now 50% off, plus get free slippers with coupon code SLIPPER08. (Expires December 9.)
  • 150+ sweaters 50% off, plus get a free scarf with coupon code LUXE08. (Expires December 22.)
  • Remember, you can use up to three coupon codes for savings and free gifts at Victoria’s Secret!
• Crate and Barrel: Get free shipping on orders over $100 at Crate and Barrel. Also, there are lots of inexpensive gifts to be had!
• American Eagle: At American Eagle, all tops are buy one, get one 50% off. Free shipping is available for orders over $100. Also, be sure to participate in the “Scratch. Shop. Save.” instant win game to win gift cards or get additional discount codes.
• Target: All kinds of free shipping offers, in addition to their advertised 2-Day Sale.

Have you found other great online deals? Please feel free to post them in the comments section!

Happy shopping!

With the economy in a state of royal craptitude, 2008 will be the year of the discount when it comes to your holiday shopping. This will be most evident on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving in the United States, and the day that traditionally kicks off the holiday shopping season.

Here are a few of the doorbuster bargains that will be available tomorrow morning at retail chains across the nation:

• Wal-Mart: Black Friday doorbuster specials available from 5 a.m. to 11 a.m, in-store only. Ad may be viewed online. Specials include:
  • Emerson® 32″ LCD HDTV for $388
  • Garmin® 3.5″ Nuvi 200 GPS system for $97
• Kohls: Black Friday doorbuster specials available in store from 4 a.m. to 1 p.m., or online from 1 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST. Ad may be viewed online. Specials include:
  •  60% plus 20% off all fine and sterling silver jewelry
  • 50% off the entire stock of toys
  • All shoppers will receive a $10 Kohl’s Cash coupon for every $50 spent, with the coupon redeemable between Nov. 30 - Dec. 6 for sale-, regular-, or clearance-priced merchandise.
  • Online shoppers also receive free shipping on orders over $75.
• JCPenney: Black Friday doorbuster specials available from 4 a.m. to 1 p.m. Ad may be viewed online, and many items are available online at doorbuster prices. Specials include:
  • Protocol® Portsmouth 5-piece luggage set for $38.88
  • Extra 25% off entire stock of sale-priced fine jewelry
  • Online shoppers receive free shipping on orders over $25 with coupon code 44FS25 
• Best Buy: Shop online on Thursday, November 27, or instore on Black Friday, November 28, as early as 5 a.m. Specials include:
  • Magellan® Roadmate 1212 Portable GPS for $79.99
  • Seasons 1 and 2 of hit television show Entourage on DVD for just $9.99 apiece
  • Toshiba® Satellite laptop (model L305D-S5892) with AMD Turion X2 Dual-Core Mobile Technology for $379.99 (in-stores only)

Obviously, this is but a small piece of the doorbuster specials that will be available to eager shoppers on Black Friday 2008. Before you head out to the stores, check your favorite retailers’ websites for coupons that can be printed for in-store use and advertisements so that you know exactly what you’re looking for when the doors open. Wear comfortable shoes, travel light, and be sure to stay hydrated as you shop, shop, shop for holiday gifts for your loved ones.

Have fun, support our economy, and be safe this Black Friday!

For the weekend of November 14-16.

Here’s a roundup of some of the better sales that I’ve found for this weekend:

Kohl’s:

Doorbusters: Friday, 3 p.m. to midnight; Saturday, Midnight to 4 p.m. EST (online) or 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. local (in store)

Check out specials including:

• 10% off selected coats already 50% off for the whole family
• 50% off selected bras and panties
• 50-55% off selected men’s sport coats and suit separates
• Extra 15% off shoes already 20-50% off
• 20% off selected vacuums, deep cleaners and hard floor cleaners
• Free standard shipping for online orders over $50

JCPenney:

Doorbusters: Friday, 3 p.m. to close; Saturday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Great deals such as:

• 50% off plus 10% off women’s outerwear
• 50-60% off plus 10% off men’s outerwear
• 65% off plus 10% off gold and fine sterling silver jewelry
• 50% off entire stock men’s belts and wallets
• 30% off Rosetti® and Worthington® handbags
• Bonus coupons available!

Best Buy:

Online only Friday and Saturday

• Free accessory with an iPod® Nano
• 20% off speakers
• 10% off all small appliances and personal care items (shavers, etc.)

Sears:

Saturday’s “Big One Day Sale”

• 15% off all appliances and floor care (financing and delivery options are available)
• 20% off all Craftsman® Lawn and Garden  (financing and rebate options are available)
• All fitness equipment on sale
• Much, much more
• Free shipping on online orders over $99

Others:

• Macy’s is offering an additional 15-20% off selected items sitewide using coupon code EXTRAOFF. There is a printable store pass that can be used in store, as well.
• Nordstrom is still running their “Half-Yearly Sale,” which offers up to 40% off selected items site/storewide. If you shop online, remember to use coupon code HOLIDAY08 to receive free shipping on orders over $100.

Not just this weekend:

• Ebay is offering 10% off though November 30, 2008 with coupon code CHOLIDAYNOV2008. Just make sure the seller accepts PayPal, that you pay for the item prior to the November 30 expiration date, and that the address on your PayPal account matches that on your eBay account.
• Victoria’s Secret is still in the midst of their greater sweater sale, with many sweaters up to 50% off. Plus, use code SCENT08 and receive a free fragrance gift set.

This is merely a taste of the great bargains that are available right now, and I believe that we will see even more phenomenal sales as the holidays draw closer. Retailers are worried, and that is going to mean great deals for shoppers!