Bargain hunting? Check TJ Maxx and Marshall’s

I finished my Christmas shopping on Christmas Eve, with the exception of two gifts. Money, and the lack thereof, is a huge issue in my house this year as it is in many others. I think it’s going to be a long uphill road that we all travel before it gets better. I’ve been trying hard every day to spend less and spend smarter, and that especially applied to Christmas shopping. I had received $25 gift cards for both TJ Maxx and Marshalls and was hoping to be able to put them both to good use. Apprehensive about finding gifts for everyone in time for Christmas, I made my way out to the stores.

I went to Marshalls first. Even though the store is located only a couple of miles away and is in my town, I haven’t been there in about five years. On a couple of occasions in the past hubby had bought some jeans and/or sneakers for himself and told me the prices were decent. I was surprised by how many different kinds of things Marshalls carried. There was a lot of clothing – mens, womens, childrens and babies. I’d say the store was more than half clothing, although it also carried toys, perfumes and colognes, housewares, bedding and linens, shoes and bags. They even had a seasonal department containing Christmas and Hannukah decorations and gifts! I’d been thinking about getting a baby carrier (the kind you wear) for my sister in law. I’d seen them sold in other stores for almost $40 and Marshalls had them for $15.99. I saw nice Cross pens on sale for $9.99. My Dad loves a nice, quality pen so I knew I couldn’t go wrong there. I was surprised at how many brand names I saw in Marshalls. I was even more surprised at how much you could save on some of the items. The only part of my trip that I wasn’t thrilled about was that the store I went to was laid out in a giant square and I had to go around it a couple of times in order to find everything.

Next I went to TJ Maxx, a couple of miles in the other direction in the next town over. I thought the TJ Maxx appeared quite a bit more organized. TJ Maxx contained a similar mix of products to Marshalls but seemed to have more in the way of housewares and bath and body products. I could have easily spent my money in the housewares department but it wasn’t me I needed to shop for. I found a really nice selection of small gift items that were just right for those non-family member gifts that many people buy as gifts for people like teachers, bus drivers, professionals, etc.  I’d been debating getting a nice bag for my brother’s girlfriend.  I found a Liz Claiborne bag for $17.99 that I’d seen selling in an online store for almost $50.

According to a recent Roper Survey, nearly half (45 percent) of the shoppers surveyed plan to spend less on gifts this year. The Debt Diva, Clarky Davis, suggests the biggest way to make your money go further is to shop at offprice retailers such as TJ Maxx and Marshalls. I have three tips to offer. The most important is to know your budget and stick to it. Also, know your prices before buying. If you do your price comparisons and research before buying you’ll know if a sale price is a good price. Lastly, shop as early as possible. It means less stress because you’re buying at a leisurely pace and it will save you money. An excellent time to start shopping for next year is right now, as in today.

I’d actually thought that TJ Maxx and Marshalls were just stores that bought leftovers from other stores. I found out that their merchandise is all first quality merchandise that can be found in other stores. Their prices are low because the buyers can buy as needed or ahead and aren’t locked in to a specific purchasing volume. Their stock constantly changes, with most stores receiving multiple shipments each week.  If you’re looking to find a bargain for yourself or as a gift for someone else, take a look in TJ Maxx or Marshalls. You might be surprised at what you find.

Tags: christmas, gifts, Shopping

Category: Family