lady browsing through a clothes rail of dresses

It’s summer clearance sales time, and I know you are rubbing your hands together in eager anticipation of all the great deals you are going to find.  I know the routine, you plan your shopping day, pack your tote, add some water, and off you go.  But when you get there, the sheer number of overcrowded, disorganized racks is daunting.  With clothes on the floor and draped over the racks, sales shopping has quickly become way too much work.  Does this sound like you?

Let me give you some tips and tricks to make sales shopping a little easier:

1. Have a list:  When you head out with nothing in your brain except scoring on some cheap prices, you end up buying items that, while they may be cheap, really don’t fit in your wardrobe.  Just because it’s cheap, doesn’t mean you should buy it.  The most expensive items in your closet are the cheap ones that you never wear!
2. Try everything on:  Take it from me, if it is on the sale rack, there is a reason.  The best items are there because they were just too expensive to begin with.  These are the real steals.  But many items are there because there was a fit issue. If you see 6 of one style on the sale rack, avoid it. That is a true indication there is a problem with that style.  The best sales items will have only 1 or 2 left.
3. Shop early: Get there first.  The best of the best sell right away.  Don’t wait until the racks have been decimated by all the shoppers before you go!
4. Shop alone: Friends are awesome, but they are not always helpful when you are shopping.  We all have a bias towards what we like, and so often I see friends and family imposing their personal tastes on others to the detriment of the shopper.  Meet your friends or family for lunch after your shopping is finished and brag about all your great finds!
5. Read your emails: I know, I know… I am bad about this too.  (I just love the gmail app that puts all the promo emails in a separate folder so I don’t have to see them!)  But, at the end of the day, your favorite stores communicate with you primarily via email.  If you want to get a jump on the sales, you have to read those emails. 
6. Join the VIP Group:  Most stores will have a Facebook Group that is for their VIPs.  Typically, one of the perks of being in this group is early notification of sales.

Following these 6 tips should make sale shopping really beneficial to you and not overwhelming and exhausting.  It’s a great time to take advantage of discounted prices and round out your summer wardrobe.