Feb

3

Confessions of a (Discount) Mall Shopper

Filed Under Shopping 

sawgrass mills
Bless me Readers, for I have sinned.  I shopped yesterday with Wild Abandon, and almost went home with something I didn’t even want, but for the divine intervention of my friend Debbie who wouldn’t let me do it.  But let me explain..

Yesterday we took a quick (ha!) trip to that mecca of off-price shopping of South Florida, Sawgrass Mills.  Mall manager Simon Malls has several Mills Malls around the country, offering probably the best selection of off-price and closeout stores anywhere.  Sawgrass is a big place, but I wanted only a quick trip to pick up my favorite sneakers,one pair each in black and white,  which I know I can get there for less than anywhere else.  I went with my old friend Debbie, another self-confessed Frugalista, who knows the place much better than I do.  As a person who hates shopping, I was glad to have her with me so we could get in and out quickly.

First stop, Marshalls.  I knew that Marshalls carried the shoes I wanted but hadn’t had success finding them in other stores.  We hit on the first shot, with the shoes in black but not white, and tan, and a similar shoe on sale for $15 in brown.  We hid the brown ones in an empty box at the bottom of a pile and set off to see if we could find the shoes cheaper anywhere else.

Walking through the halls, we were bombarded with shopping messages, from the aggressive kiosk vendors to the sale signs in every window.  Well, I was doing well, focusing only on the shoe shops, when we chanced up a Maidenform outlet and I remembered my need for a new white bra.  ”Just a quick stop,” I promised, and entered the store, immediately heading for the racks that said “Sale –60% off lowest ticketed price!”  A few minutes and a visit to the fitting room later, I approached the checkout counter with the white version of the black bra I was wearing. Marked $32, marked down to $22, less 60%, I expected to play about ten dollars for my purchase.

Imagine my surprise when the register showed a price of only $3.99!

bra1

Add tax and I was on my way, down only $4.23.  Here’s the tags:

But wait, there’s more!  My latent shopping instincts were ignited! From that moment until Debbie dragged me out, I was on a binge.  I was feeling flush with cash, given all the bargains around me, and I went wild.  In and out of stores I ran, trying on , looking, reading, pretending to be working on this column but actually just looking for stuff to buy.  So out of character for me, who only spends money when she really really has to.

By the end of the day, I had actually not bought too much, but I was wiped out, and still didn’t have my shoes.  In despair, I purchased a pair of sneakers, not really what I wanted but comfortable and a buy at $22.  Then, back to Marshall’s, where I picked up the two pair I had found on our first stop, and announced that I was done.  And that I would keep the $22 shoes, which I had been wearing for a few minutes in the mall, although I didn’t really like them — I just didn’t want to go all the way back to the other store to return them, especially since they were now “worn”.

Debbie to the rescue.  She knew exactly where the other store was located, drove me around the massive parking lot to the proper entrance, and waited while I returned the aforementioned footwear.  Good Call, Deb!  I would have brought them home and eventually donated them to some shoeless girls somewhere.  Instead, I treated us to a movie.

Today’s lesson: A bargain is only a bargain if it’s something you need and will use.  Everyone should have a friend like Debbie, especially in big, scary discount malls.

To read more about shoes, click here.

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