Less than 1% of J.C. Penney’s revenues come from items bought at full price. By contrast, nearly three-quarters of merchandise sold by the department store chain is discounted by at least 50% off. What this tells shoppers is that J.C. Penney’s original prices are pretty much meaningless. They’re floated out there to see if any suckers bite, and also to make the inevitable markdowns seem more impressive. Soon, though, J.C. Penney promises it’ll stop playing games, cut to the chase, and offer a more simplified, sensible pricing structure. For example, a T-shirt that used to retail for $14—but typically wound up selling for $6—will just be priced at $7 from the start.
There aren’t many people who are complaining that this winter has been too warm, too storm-free, and altogether too comfortable. But there is one group griping the weather just isn’t cold or snowy enough: retailers that sell coats, boots, shovels, mittens, long underwear, and other winter gear.
With retailers trying to eke every possible dollar out of consumers, we are in the midst of the mother of all shopping marathons, with last-minute sales and stores open 24 hours a day during the final stretch before Christmas.
Don’t fret if you missed out on big online sales offered on Cyber Monday, or the site-wide discounts that followed. In the current e-retail scene, it’s all but guaranteed that when one set of deals expires, another slew of site-wide discounts will be released.
After blockbuster sales figures on Black Friday, retailers are expecting consumers to keep up the shopping pace on Cyber Monday. Shoppers have plenty of tempting offers to choose from.
Leave it to Walmart to one-up the competition. During the winter holiday season, the retail giant has a history of starting price wars over things like books and DVDs, and pushing the envelope with free shipping offers and special price guarantees. This year, several national stores announced they’d open on Thanksgiving at midnight—so technically, Friday—with [...]
Which retailers grant full refunds on purchases returned within 180 days? Or a full year? Or pretty much whenever the customer feels like it?
Also, plenty of stuff it’s best to avoid, including bad bosses, toxic spouses, diet soda, and voting for “American Idol.”
It’s the shopping event that never seems to end, and that you just can’t get away from—even though it’s already over. It’s Black Friday, the day that celebrates unadulterated consumerism, fittingly with a name straight from a slasher horror film. This weekend at the stores, you can expect plenty of Black Friday-type door busters and [...]
Here’s a roundup of resources for the best deals, along with some perspective, related to the monster shopping day that is Black Friday.
By tradition, Thanksgiving is a day of rest. But while you might have the day off from work, retailers hope that you don’t take the day off as a consumer. As more and more stores are open for business on the holiday—and with online shopping possible 24/7 and special deals for Internet shoppers this Thursday—the [...]
