MEMPHIS, Tenn. — WREG is on your side with a new and creative way to put some money back into your pocket!
The On Your Side Investigators always share information about what to buy and skip each month. This theory takes it a step further with a weekly calendar for finding merchandise on clearance.
Memphis area resident Terri Smith Anderson loves designer clothes and accessories, but what she loves even more is a good deal.
“Oh this was a real steal,” Terri says of a Tory Burch handbag she got for $45. It was originally more than double the price. She waited for it to go on sale, but more importantly didn’t even use her own money to buy it! She used a gift card Neiman Marcus sent to her for being part of a loyalty program.
“I never pay full price, not even for my groceries,” Terri said.
The bonafide bargain hunter knows all the tips and tricks to saving while shopping.
“Before I go into the store, Retail Me Not, what are they offering,” she explains of how she checks the popular website for coupon codes before shopping.
Terri even used Groupon to nab a pair of Cole Haans at Saks Off Fifth, the markdown store for luxury retailer Saks.
“I got these for $33 and they retail for $158.”
Terri says her first stop at places like Marshall’s and TJ Maxx is the clearance rack.
“As soon as I walk in the door, I go straight to the clearance section, because you can find lots of deals and steals in the clearance section.”
Deals that can lead to even deeper discounts, if you know when to shop.
Kyle James of Rather-Be-Shopping.com developed a calendar for several popular stores, based on when the retailer moves items to clearance.
“I started walking into stores and just started asking employees, assistant managers, is there a particular day when you guys mark stuff down?”
James told WREG, “Sundays is Joann’s, Mondays is Gap, they actually mark stuff down every two weeks on a Monday.”
He has a range of other stores on his calendar for the best days to find clearance bargains, from Macy’s and Anthropologie on Tuesday to Babies-R-Us on Thursday.
“With knowing what day they restock it or add stuff to it, it helps you with your selection and you can shop the clearance rack and you can end up getting more stuff that you need,” explains James.
These days can change from state to state, and store to store.
The On Your Side Investigators checked with area retailers.
Sure enough, Joann’s said they usually move their seasonal merchandise to clearance on Sunday, which makes sense because that’s also the start of weekly sales.
Similar to James’ research a Macy’s associate said they do most markdowns on Tuesday or Wednesday, and a Ross employee said they typically start on Monday and finish by Wednesday.
On the flip side, one Old Navy worker said they move items to clearance on Sunday, but in June, it changed day to day.
We also checked at Gap, JCP and Marshall’s where workers said it varied.
Bottom line, find out what that day is for your favorite store.
Terri gets phone calls and text messages from her go to clerks when there’s a sale.
Her secret is simple, loyalty.
“You start talking to the associates and just get to know their names and learn about them, because they’ll tell you about the store, they’ll tell you when the new inventory is coming in, they’ll tell you when they’re going to mark things down.”
See James’ full calendar here.
