Expert: Sarah Conlon - 7/31/2008

Question
what are the best ways of shopping?

Answer
Hello,

This is a great question, as I truly love to shop.  To me, the best ways of shopping are to start by having an idea of what you want to buy.  If you know of a particular store that you will visit, I always go online to look for coupons.  You can usually find online promotional codes for nearly all websites that sell things by going on google.com and typing in the store name.  For example, if you wanted to buy some clothing at Ann Taylor, I would type in "Ann Taylor coupon" and likely some printable or online codes would come up.  You can usually find coupons for 10-20% off, or free shipping codes which are great.  

If shipping and waiting for your items to come in are not ideal for you, shopping in the stores can be a great way as well, since you get to see and try the merchandise.  Many stores have awesome promotions going on right now, since summer is winding down and fall merchandise is coming in.  I find the best deals and markdowns occur on Mondays and Tuesdays when stores mark down after the weekend shoppers have gone.  Always ask the store associates if there are promotions going on, because there usually are, even if they don't tell you.  

Last, I recommend becoming familiar with the store's return policy, in case you change your mind.  I do this often, and have never had a problem returning or exchanging something, because I always save my receipts and leave tags on things until I'm sure I want to keep it.  

I hope this helps.

Happy shopping!
Sarah