Post-holiday Deals and Steals

By Sarah Mahoney

Send this article to a friend

Think you used up all your creativity finding holiday bargains? Serious shoppers know the weeks following the winter holidays are when the best deals materialize. But tracking them down this year will take a little extra skill, since so many retailers -- badly burned by the dreadful Christmas season of 2008 -- went into the holiday with extra-lean inventories. Bargain hunters need to think both big (new boat, anyone?) and very, very small.

“I buy the bags of red and green Christmas M&M’s on sale,” says Kimberly Danger, author of Instant Bargains. “I separate the red ones for Valentine’s Day and save the green ones for St. Patrick’s. We also stock up on holiday-shaped cereal as soon as it goes on sale. My kids are 10 and 6, and they couldn’t care less that they’re eating Christmas cereal in January and February.”

This post-holiday season, save mucho moolah on:

Bargain bedding
Everybody knows January white sales are a given, but those dedicated to bin-pawing can find extra-exceptional deals. “I got a set of 600-thread-count sheets originally priced in the 100s, for $69,” says Desiree Northend, who lives in San Jose, Calif., and blogs about home decor at Lookiloos.com. “And my four sons love flannel sheets. Because they are seasonal -- and yes, they sometimes have snowflakes or skiers on them -- those are often likely to get marked down at a steeper rate than year-round sets.”

Next winter’s gear
While big savings are always available in apparel, you’ll save more by thinking past the markdowns to next year’s list. “I know my kids will need new parkas, snow pants and boots next year, and I can make a good guess about sizes,” says Danger, who lives in Mankato, Minn., and blogs at mommysavers.com. “It’s an easy way to save at least 50 percent and be more organized.”

New undies
It’s not just department stores that go nuts trying to empty their lingerie racks after Christmas, often cutting prices up to 50 percent. Even specialty stores slash prices -- the January sale at Victoria’s Secret is typically one of its biggest.

Sinful extravagances
While you can expect high-end department stores to slash their prices as much as every other chain -- and maybe even more so, given the recent struggles of Saks and Neiman Marcus -- the real steals in luxury goods these days are found on membership-only Web sites, including Ruelala.com, Ideeli.com and Gilt.com. Simply log in, request a membership and ignore the semi-intimidating “by invitation only” blab -- you’ll likely be signed up within a day or two of requesting an invitation. Then, you’ll receive daily emails about upcoming sales, with as much as 70 percent off the season’s most coveted items, from Prada to Gucci to Fendi.

Stems and sails
If you’ve been thinking this summer may be the year your family tries boating, you’re in luck. The National Marine Manufacturers Association says that January, the height of the boat show season, is also one of the best times to get a deal, especially in cold-weather states.

Diamond dazzlers
While both December and February are busy months for jewelers, January is slow-going, so stores are motivated to move all the bling they can. Shopping online can reduce costs too. Kiplinger’s reports that for every dollar an online retailer like Blue Nile spends on stones and settings, it charges $1.25. A brick-and-mortar store like Zale’s, on the other hand, charges $2 for every dollar it spends.

Electronics upgrade
Thanks to the price wars on flat-screen TVs and notebook computers at chains like Wal-Mart, Target, Best Buy and Costco, this holiday season saw some seriously low prices. Prices drop even further in January when new models are unveiled at the International Consumer Electronic Show, which means everything still in stock is yesterday’s news.
More in Smart Living>>

Tell us what you think!