Like Black Friday, spending the day after Christmas shopping is a tradition for millions of Americans. In my opinion, December 26 is actually a much better day to shop. Not only are there fewer crowds (there will definitely be crowds – but it won’t be as bad as Black Friday), stores often have better prices on many items. Here’s my list of the top items to buy the day after Christmas (and if you can’t make it out today, many stores will keep their sales going for a few days).
Christmas décor, gift wrap, tags, etc. Most stores mark down these items to 50% off for the first few days or a week or so after Christmas, so it’s a great time to stock up for next year. The longer you wait, the bigger the discounts get – by this time next week, a lot of items will be 75% off. I like to give ornaments as gifts, so this is a great time to stock up for cheap. And if you’ll need a new artificial tree next year, now’s the time to buy it.
Gift sets. It seems like you can buy anything in a gift set, from sausages and cheese to perfume, body wash, and makeup. These are specifically put out for the holidays and they’re discounted immediately after. Sometimes you can even find coupons for them – for example, I have a $3 off Axe holiday gift set that doesn’t expire until New Year’s Eve. That will be marked down 50% off from around $10 to around $5 at many stores, so I plan to get this for my boyfriend for about $2. Non-food gift sets are great to put away for next year, save them for a birthday, or give them as a holiday gift to someone you won’t see until after Christmas is over.
Holiday food. Whether it’s sausage or holiday-themed candy, it’ll be at least half off today, so stock up! I use a lot of candy like M&M’s for baking, so it doesn’t matter if they’re red and green. And there are some foods I love that I only see around the holidays, so I pick up a few extras to last a little longer.
Beach towels. What, in December? Yes! Many stores try to sell them as gifts, and there won’t be much more demand for them until spring, so these should be discounted as well. Buy them cheaper now and you won’t have to pay full price in May!
Calendars. You know those pop-up stores at the mall that sell calendars and games? They need to move the rest of their inventory in the next few weeks before shutting down for the season, so their merchandise will be heavily discounted.
Clothes. There are great clothing sales this time of year. Sometimes stores are already trying to get rid of some of their winter merchandise, and if anything is leftover from summer, it’s likely to be around 80-90% off. I have found some amazing clothing deals this way.
Remember, most of these sales will last for several days, so figure out which of your favorite stores are having the best sales so you can plan your shopping trip. Don’t forget to look for store coupons to save even more!
Image source: http://www.backtothebooknutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/SALEtag.jpg