I have missed out on posting a few times for Toonie Tuesdays, so I am doing some catch-up, even though it is Thurday! Please feel free to submit your own comments or suggestions for Toonie Tuesdays by clicking on "comments" or by sending me an email. I would be glad to share your experiences, thoughts and ideas with other interested readersBACK TO SCHOOL SHOPPING: CLOTHES
Back to school in our household is really only "back to playschool"- but I thought that I would post about it anyway since all of us with children are constantly buying clothes in the next size up, especially when it comes time to think about "back to school".
I suppose that things get more complicated as children get older, but with little ones, it is pretty straight forward: they need clothing and we still get to pick it out (and purchase it), for the most part, anyway. For this article I have some thoughts on buying affordable clothing.
1) Buy off season. Check out Sears, Zellers or any clothing store near the end of the season and you will undoubtedly find an abundance of clothing reduced to clear. This is really the only time that I buy new clothes unless we see something that we really like or come across other sales throughout the year. Off season purchases are often sale prices with an extra percentage off of the lowest ticketed price. This usually means substantial savings for clothes that are still current and trendy because the styles are less than a year old. Check out the stores RIGHT NOW and you MIGHT find a few summer items left at good clearance prices. Sears is great for this (Canada). I find this to be especially true for bigger ticket items such as snowsuits. If you can guess what size your child will be wearing, the end of season the winter prior is definitely the time to buy.
2) The above suggestions for off-season buying are also handy when shopping at children's consignments stores. Consignment stores often have agreement with their clients to clear out items at reduced prices at the end of the season. I have seen nice infant bunting bags and children's snowsuits at rock bottom prices at the end of the winter. I suggest looking in the yellow pages or checking online for your local consignment shops. Who knows, maybe you have some things that you want to take in to sell while you are at it?
Note: Consignment stores vary in the percentage of sale dollars that they will give you when your items sell. You may also want to look into other fine print regarding unsold items. In Canada, Once Upon A Child is a favorite for some parents because you can get cash at the door when you bring in your items (they will choose what they want and tell you what they are willing to pay). You may want to try your local free online classifieds because you may get a better dollar than consignment. It all depends on how much work you want to do and what you are willing to take for your items.
3) Thrift shops, thrift shops, thrift shops! I can't stress enough how well you can do with picking up good quality used children's clothing at thrift shops. Locally, we have Value Village, St.Vincent de Paul, Goodwill and the Salvation Army. All have their ups and downs - so you will have to ask around or better yet, check out your local stores for yourself.
Watch for specials such as Value Village's 50% off days!!! Go early to get the lowest prices on a large selection of items including winter gear, all clothing, shoes, hats, crib bumpers, bedding and much more. One thing I want to mention is my own skepticism regarding Value Village and the overall perception that many of us may have that they are a non-profit organization. Value Village is not a non-profit organization and I decided to email them to find out more about their contributions to the community organizations that they do work with. I received this email from them:
["We have contracts with over 125 non profit organizations. In those contracts, we agree on a bulk payment rate. The non profit solicits the merchandise, picks it up and delivers it to the store. Donors also bring merchandise into the store as a donation. The non profit is paid for donations whether they are delivered by the non profit or dropped off at our store. When the rates are negotiated, we work with the non profit to assure their costs associated with obtaining the merchandise are covered and that enough residual is figured into the price for funding of their very important community programs."
Customer Care for Savers, Value Village ( Washington , Oregon , Alaska and Canada ) and Village des Valeurs in Quebec]
I have to admit that having this further bit of understanding does make me feel a little better about dropping off donations to them - though I probably won't do it. I prefer to donate to non-profits and especially places that give away the goods to people in need (for free). There are a couple of places in my town that do this and it makes me feel good to know that donations go directly to the people who need them. Having said that, I know of some of the organizations that do get money for goods from Value Village, and it is their major funding source and therefore, very important. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind being the consumer at these places, I just think others should be aware that for example, your shopping dollars are not going to community organizations when you buy at Value Village - Having said that, many thrift stores such as Bibles for Missions, Salvation Army, Goodwill and St.Vincent de Paul PROBABLY give a great deal of your money to community organizations and people in need. I can not be sure of their bottom line because I have not asked them individually or done any research.
I could go on and on but I won't. My suggestion is to do your own investigation (or simply ask a few questions) before assuming that your money or donations are going where you think you are. You should always feel free to ask how your contributions will be used, what the overhead or administrative costs of the organization are or any other questions that come to mind.
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