TAMPA, Fla. — With Black Friday kicking off the holiday shopping season this week, Taking Action Reporter Jackie Callaway found more of this year’s best deals are now available online.
That may be because nearly seven million more people shopped online than in stores during Black Friday weekend in 2018, according to the National Retail Federation.
“All of these stores are starting more and more of these sales earlier,” said Heather Brickell, who researches Black Friday’s best buys for her My Sweet Savings blog.
On Walmart’s website, the Thanksgiving sales start Wednesday at 7 p.m., while shoppers can add Kohl’s Black Friday deals to their cart starting at midnight, including a more than $200 Shark vacuum on sale for $84.99.
Experts recommend shoppers not overlook the television shopping channels which offer some of the lowest prices on electronics and computers.
Discount gift cards can also save money for consumers on holiday budgets.
Raise is one of several sites that sells gift cards to restaurants and retailers for less than their face value.
In addition to stacking sale savings with online coupons, an app called RetailMeNot has thousands of coupons – many for $10 off or more at some of the most popular stores.
“Type in the store you are shopping and it will bring up every single coupon for that store,” said Brickell.
She also advises consumers not to overlook CVS andWalgreens where rewards customers can stock up on free stuff. For example, CVS is offering batteries, baby wipes, aspirin and other items for free when customers use the store’s ExtraBucks rewards program.
Check out the Black Friday money saving guide at www.mysweetsavings.com.
