MoneySmart

Video: Tips for Black Friday shopping

It takes planning to land the best deals on Black Friday. Samantha Maziarz Christmann, The News’ Discount Diva, shares some tips with Brian Meyer:

Layaway makes a comeback online

Many retail stores have brought back layaway--the trusty, incremental payment method of old. And now it's available for online purchases, too.

 

Sites such as eLayaway.com and Lay-Away.com serve as middlemen for companies such as the Apple Store and KitchenAid, allowing folks to pay for items a little bit at a time before taking possession of them.

 

The service was revived after credit card companies tightened up on personal credit and recession-battered consumers gave up credit cards altogether.

 

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

Tremendous Savings on Books

 

I consider it sad news any time a bookstore closes. But at least we as consumers can seek some kind of solace in their going-out-of-business sales, right?

My personal favorite book store, the Book Outlet, is closing four of its locations. Thankfully, the main location on Niagara Falls Boulevard in North Tonawanda inside the majestic Wurlitzer building will remain open. But four others will be gone by January, maybe even the end of this month. Until then, they're selling their entire inventory at 80 percent off or more.

Stores are located in the Tops Plaza on Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo, the Northtown Plaza on Sheridan Drive in Amherst, the Southgate Plaza on Union Road & Seneca Street in West Seneca and at 2429 Military Road in Niagara Falls. Another location, on Maple Road in Williamsville, moved to Transit Road before closing this summer.

Two local Borders Express stores are closing as well. Stores at Boulevard Mall in Amherst and Eastern Hills Mall in Clarence will shutter by January. Those stores are currently trimming prices by up to 30 percent.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

Gaultier to Design for Target

Another celebrity designer has signed on to create a collection for discount department store Target.

Jean Paul Gaultier, most famous for outfitting Madonna in cone bra corsets during the 1990s, will design a collection "for the American woman" which will grace racks at 250 Target stores and online at Target.com this spring.

The French designer's collection will appear from March 7 to April 11. Gaultier is the third luxury designer to lend a haute hand to the discount retailer's Designer Collaboration series. Alexander McQueen and Anna Sui have both created affordably-priced lines for the mainstream store.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann 

Give your furniture the old switcheroo

Want a home makeover, but don't have the cash?

Who needs new furniture when you can artfully rearrange the stuff you've got? Moving things around makes a room feel fresh and can give your spirits a lift. The best part is that it doesn't cost a dime.

Among several interior design software tools available on the Better Homes and Gardens Web site is Arrange-A-Room, an awesome, free program that helps you try out room configurations without having to lug heavy furniture around the room.

All you do is pick your room shape and size, add furniture and colors and voila! You've got a pretty good idea of what you're dealing with. The site also have lots of great tools to help you try out paint colors, new kitchen cabinetry and other improvements before making a purchase.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

More $10 toys at Walmart

Last year, deep discounter Walmart responded to consumer spending cutbacks by offering a line of more affordable toys in time for the holiday season. It put 10 different toys on its shelves, for which it charged $10 apiece. Following the success of that strategy, the chain announced it will do it again this year. Only this time around, it's bumping up the offering to 100 toys at the $10 price point.

Included in the list of toys are brands such as Barbie, Tonka, LEGO and Transformers, as well as popular board games such as Monopoly and Connect Four. Some of the toys will be specially produced to fit the $10 mark, others are already on shelves and will take a price cut of up to 50 percent.

In addition, Walmart said it will match any price advertised elsewhere for less than $10.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

Attractive sales reps keep some customers away

 

If salespeople are too good looking, some of us just won't give them our money.

That's what PhD student Bianca price found in a University of South Australia published in the Journal of International Business and Economics. A behavioral study of female shoppers aged 18 to 26 found women were less likely to buy merchandise from women they deemed better looking than themselves.

Apparently, females are biologically wired to see attractive women as a threat to their viability. Does this ring true with you? Do the looks of sales staff affect your buying habits in any way?

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

Old Navy has $2 tank tops Saturday

This Saturday, August 15, Old Navy will be selling ribbed tank tops for just two bucks. No coupons necessary--the merchandise will already be marked down. There is a limit of five per person.

When offered before, these sales have gotten crazy, so you might want to go online now and pick out your colors. You may even want to try your size ahead of time so you can just walk in and grab the five you want.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann

More help for Web site coupon clippers

In her column today, our Discount Diva Samantha writes about some of the money-saving Web sites out there that do all the bargain hunting for you. She mentions BOGOfetcher.com and ShopItToMe.com. One useful Web site I found is alice.com, which finds good deals on everyday household items such as deodorant, laundry soap and more. The service even includes free shipping and reminds you when it's time to reorder. There are also specials and coupons. $0.79 for a 2.25 oz. stick of Old Spice deodorant can't be beat. Share your favorite money-saving Web sites here.

- Joseph Popiolkowski

Procter & Gamble launches "Tide Basic"

Procter & Gamble is testing sales of a new, cheaper type of Tide laundry detergent called Tide Basic, the Associated Press reports.

The product is on shelves in the southern and southwestern states for a trial run at 100 Wal-Mart and Kroger stores. It costs 20 percent less than regular tide, comes only in powder form and lacks the advanced cleaning technologies marketed with premium Tide.

It is an attempt to attract new consumers who do not normally purchase Tide, as well as a bid to hang onto loyal consumers who might be tempted to switch to a lower-priced brand amid the recession.

---Samantha Maziarz Christmann