Canadian Finance Blog

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 02:00 AM PST

I saw a comment on reddit the other day about some after Christmas sales that were going on at the end of the year. It basically asked, “If this company can discount their product 80% over the holidays, how badly are we getting screwed the rest of the year”? It brings up an interesting point. If you know that a company or a product always goes on sale at least once a year, why not just wait until it goes on sale and then stock up? Here’s some shopping tips for places and products that always go on sale once a year.

Clothing

To be fair, clothes do go on sale more than once a year, and if you shop at the right places, can get deals throughout the year. However, my brother-in-law only purchases new clothes once a year, as he can get enough new clothes each holiday season to last him throughout the rest of the year. While it may be difficult for some people to live with an unchanging wardrobe for so long, others are perfectly content to stock up on dress shirts and jeans to rock through each of the next four seasons.

Video Games

Steam, an online digital distribution service, always has huge sales at the end of the year. I just bought a video game for 50% off, and there are plenty more going for even cheaper. One can also find plenty of good games on Amazon and at their local retailer. Stores stock up for the holiday season and heavily discount the ones that didn’t sell as well as they planned. If you budget it correctly, you can drop a hundred dollars at the end of the year and get enough video games to last you throughout the whole next year.

Cars

There’s a magical moment in the vehicle world where the car dealerships get the first shipment of new vehicles and has to really discount the old stock. It is, unfortunately, often not when the dealerships say that the sale is going on, but shortly after, when they did their best to sell the previous years’ model, and were unable to. Even though you can see advertisements for the new cars in mid-August, it is often best to wait until December of the model year to purchase a new car, as it is still “current” but marked down as last year’s stock, which it will be in a few weeks. While it may be a “year” older, the age of the vehicle is much more dependant on the mileage as opposed to what year is stamped on the door.

Sports Gear

Every sport has its season, and the best time to purchase the gear for that sport is right when the season ends. Sports stores are looking to get rid of stock to make room for the next sports gear, and players have no interest until the next season starts. This is where the best deals are to be found, but they only come once a year, so you have to be disciplined enough to spend money now for something you won’t be able to enjoy for a year. Snowboarding, for example, is a winter sport and as such, the best deals are found in early spring when everyone is thinking of purchasing shorts and soccer cleats, not toques and bindings.

Holiday Items

While December 26th doesn’t exactly scream “wrapping paper”, purchasing seasonal decorations and treats right after the holiday they represent can be a fantastic way to save money on the costs that holidays bring. If you purchase next year’s wrapping paper now, for example, you’ll save 50-90% on the cost of the paper, and you will be prepared for Christmas next year. While I don’t recommend saving Halloween candy for a full year, there’s no harm in getting next year’s costume, or next year’s easter egg basket, or Canadian Flag for next July 1st.

What shopping tips do you have to save money on annual sales?

Annual Shopping Tips originally appeared on Canadian Finance Blog on December 29, 2010.