Reported by: John Matarese
With the economy still in recession, many stores are advertising super low prices on back to school items this year.
But who really sells the most for the least? I went shopping... to find out where the best deals are.
Looking for Best Price and SelectionLike a lot of families, Beth Debord and her kids are back to school shopping, armed with their teachers list of "crayons, washable markers, pencils, glue sticks, and lots of things like that," she says. Beth's two goals: Good selection and low price.
Beth tells me "we usually go somewhere we can find everything all at once." So where should she shop?
To find out, I went undercover...swapping my suit for some casual digs. I put on a hat, and sunglasses, and grabbed a mini HD camera. Then I started to shop.
TargetFirst stop: Target, where I found lots of good deals like Crayola crayons for just 25 cents a box. Washable Crayola markers were a $1.50, and 8 number 2 pencils were just 44 cents.
Target was also very organized and clean, remarkable given the number of people back to school shopping right now.
Wal-Mart
My next stop was Wal-Mart. The back to school section was even smaller than Target's and Meijer's and appeared less organized.
But if you want low prices, you will find them at Wal-Mart.
I found folders for just 15 cents spiral notebooks for just 35 cents. Those Crayola washable markers that were $1.50 at Target were just 75 cents here, half the price.
StaplesMy final stop was Staples, which impressed me with its aisle after aisle of school supplies, all well organized. And the choices, when it came to notebooks, paper, pencils, and pens, was outstanding.
While Staples had a few loss leaders, like spiral notebooks for just 33 cents, most other items were slightly more expensive than the big box stores.
For example, a box of 24 Crayola crayons were 89 cents, the highest price I found on that size crayon box.
