Wednesday, March 16, 2016

How can you tell if something is really on sale?

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Shitty picture taken with my shitty phone because my shitty computer is in the shop.
Way back when I was a university student in Canada, I had a part time job at a luggage store in the mall. We always had banners hanging from the ceiling that would enrage certain customers, because they said things like:
up to 80% off!
or
60% off! *select items

One brand of luggage we sold was pretty shitty--the largest piece was worth about $40. But it was always "marked down" to that price by something like 60%. Legally that meant that we had to display that shit for a certain amount of time at the "regular" price before it could go "on sale." (I realize the scare quotes are getting excessive, but I think they are warranted here.) So we would display it inconspicuously in some back corner of the store for a few weeks, while I would do my best to politely discourage people from buying it. At the "regular" price, it cost the same as several much better quality options. Finally we would put up a 60% OFF SALE! sign up and mark it down to the proper price--and then repeat the whole process with some identically shitty luggage in a slightly different color.

The point is that even though the "regular" price was kind of bogus and a total rip-off, there were laws in place to prevent us from immediately putting it on the floor at the lower price and calling it a sale. But recently a bunch of American stores have been caught doing exactly that, including Nordstrom Rack, KohlsJ. Crew, Macy's, JC Penney, and Bloomingdales. I don't know if it's that US laws are less strict (though some of these retailers have faced lawsuits), or if the companies just decided to go ahead and engage in this kind of deceptive marketing/pricing because why not. This BuzzFeed article on the problem is quite good.

I suspected something like this was going on with J. Crew Factory, because they send me weekly "40% off! *Prices as marked" emails, and everything is always the same price as usual. (The key word for recognizing an actual sale is "extra," as in "Extra 30% off everything with code NOTSCREWINGYOUTHISTIME." This fake sale pricing seems to be especially a problem in outlet stores.

So the moral is that it's a good idea to always comparison shop and not to be seduced by a big percent off sticker, because chances are these companies will keep trying to fuck us over whenever they can. 

I've been thinking about how this lesson might apply in particular to beauty shopping, and I'd love to hear your thoughts on the matter. One thing that has occurred to me is how much range there is in the "regular price" of drugstore products (thanks to Michelle for reminding me that I'd been meaning to write about this). For instance, I bought the lipstick above, Revlon Super Lustrous in Berry Haute at Target at their regular price of $4.99. Meanwhile, CVS sells the Super Lustrous line for $8.99 a piece. Now, CVS constantly has sales, especially if you have their store card, and right now they have a BOGO 50% off deal on all Revlon products. But even if you bought two of these lipsticks as part of that sale, you'd still be spending more than you would at Target--and they just suckered me you into buying two things instead of one. It may just be pricing based on volume, so that Target sells more product than CVS and therefore can lower the price (though my local CVS is always packed with college women and most things are sold out--the pricing seems to be national). Another problem with simply concluding that one should always shop at Target (or the equivalent) and never at CVS (or the equivalent) occurs if you are like me and live in a city center and have a hard time getting out to the suburbs where all the big box stores are. Maybe that extra few bucks is worth the hour you'd have to spend on the bus or the extra gas or whatever.

I'll stop rambling now and ask you to add whatever thoughts you have in the comments. As usual, I advise you to comparison shop and be suspicious of marketing. And I always try to be sure that when I post about a deal on here, it's an actual deal, but always feel free to point out if there's ever anything shifty going on. 

(An aside: Berry Haute looks like a pretty purple in the bullet, but on my lips it turns into a much less interesting pinky-mauve. And it's not as moisturizing as Cherries in the Snow. Not a bad lipstick, but still a little womp womp.)

19 comments:

  1. The.Body.Shop.

    I have been thinking about this recently too. Going to read that buzzfeed article now...

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    1. Yes, good call! Those body butters are ALWAYS on sale.

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    2. YES. And I'm frequently the victim of, "if you buy one more item you'll get one free" Which is super annoying because really, I only need a cleanser, but I walk out with 4 items and spent way more then I originally intended. Though I'm getting better about it.

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  2. I'd buy my drugstore makeup at Target if I could, but I don't have a car and the nearest Target is miles away, so I have to swallow CVS's absurd markups. I did just score a NYX Butter Gloss there for $3.70, though!

    I wasn't impressed with Berry Haute, either. I think it's the slight sheerness that gives it that washed-out look. It's my mom's favorite lipstick, but even she always mixes it with a brighter purple!

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    1. I thought I was being bold and daring with Berry Haute, but it's so tame, and I already have plenty of tame lipsticks.

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  3. I've pretty much resigned myself to not buying regular things at CVS unless they're on some sort of spectacular sale, like the BOGO on Shea Moisture I scored once. Exception would be Wet N Wild, because they seem to be the only place around here that has the display almost fully intact at any given point. I mean, I do get their coupons and all that, but that would require me to pay attention to what's on sale every week.

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    1. Yes, and sometimes the sales at CVS, like that one, are really great! And the rest of the time it's hard to tell. It seems like WNW is the same price just about anywhere, so CVS would be a fair bet (and they are frequently BOGO)--although I find it weird how much the price of e.l.f., which is similarly one of the cheapest of the cheap brands, can vary between stores.

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  4. I've pretty much resigned myself to not buying regular things at CVS unless they're on some sort of spectacular sale, like the BOGO on Shea Moisture I scored once. Exception would be Wet N Wild, because they seem to be the only place around here that has the display almost fully intact at any given point. I mean, I do get their coupons and all that, but that would require me to pay attention to what's on sale every week.

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  5. Thanks for the credit! The buzzfeed article was very interesting. I think we better start evaluating all our purchases independent of price anchoring.

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    1. Yes, I hadn't realized how widespread this was! I knew about the "Compare at" prices, at least, because we also had those at the luggage store and customers ALWAYS asked what they meant.

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  6. The trick to revlon at cvs is to use a coupon with the sale. I feel like the coupon machine is always printing revlon coupons, often $3 off (no minimum) or $3 off a $10 purchase. If you combined that with bogo50% then you come out ahead, at least on the super lustrous lipsticks. I also try to wait until they do sales like 40% off on a brand, as it's a better deal than bogo50% and they don't require you to buy more than one. Those sales aren't quite as frequent, of course, but if you're planning a specific purchase instead of impulse shopping, it pays to wait.

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    1. That's how I always shop at CVS too. Though there are times when the coupon math becomes complicated enough that I get annoyed and don't buy anything. I guess that's a win for me anyway?

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  7. I find I do much better, money wise, if I just ignore sales all together. Because I'm definitely guilty of buying things that are on sale simply because they're on sale. So I wind up spending much more then I had planned on spending. If I just go in and buy what I need/want and ignore the sale signs, I can be pleasantly surprised when the total is less then what I was expecting.

    The other one that gets me is store points. Ulta or The Body Shop are two major chains that have them. And on one hand, they're nice. But I frequently forget to use them, and I've definitely been suckered into buying more things from The Body Shop in order to acquire more points.

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    1. The points (and GWP, etc.) are tricky, for sure. I try to keep in mind that they offer things like that because it benefits them more than it benefits me. The house always wins!

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  8. I find that buying makeup at CVS or Walgreens is only worth it in certain situations. Where I live CVS is one of the few places that sells Milani. If it goes on sale and I also have CVS coupons or their extra bucks to spend, then it is worth it. A local WalMart also sells Milani, but I really don't like Walmart, and for several products in the Milani line, the prices are similar.

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    1. I forgot to add that unless it changed recently, CVS has a good return policy on opened beauty products. So if a person wants to try a product for the first time, it can be worth it to buy from CVS, because if the shade or formula is not a good match, then at least it can be returned.

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    2. Yes, I have taken advantage of CVS's return policy a few times lately. I wonder if that is part of what is built into the prices, because I noticed that they didn't deduct coupons--for example, I bought two things at BOGO 50% off and returned the higher priced item, and they gave me the full price as a refund, even though I returned it with the receipt showing the discount. Target supposedly also accepts returns on opened cosmetics, but I have heard people mention that they've been hassled when trying to return things. Maybe it depends on the particular store/employee you deal with.

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  9. I definitely only buy drugstore lipsticks when there is a buy 1 get 1 50% deal or better. Once in a great while, there will be 40% off and that's the only time I'd buy a single one. If there is one shade in particular I really want, I hit up Target since their prices are lower overall. Even better if you can use a coupon.

    As far as retail pricing goes for clothing and shoes, if I think a product is well-made and I can actually see myself using it and the price is not astronomical, I'll usually buy it. I normally will allow myself to spend more on shoes than on clothing since a good outsole is worth investing in. I usually don't let the "original" price factor into my decision much. For me, the bottom line is whether or not I think the final price is worth it compared to the quality and usefulness of the product. I used to waste my money on several pairs of crappy shoes that were $15 just because they were cute and cheap. They didn't last very long and it would've been better to have just saved the money and invest in one pair of good ones that will last. You live, you learn!

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  10. Dude I love cvs. I usually take advantage of extracare bucks and roll my bucks on top of other products that give more extra bucks paired with 20 percent off coupons and manufacture coupons and I get in my email and I pay very little or just tax out of pocket for makeup. I wouldn't dare buy reg price without extra bucks deal attached though.

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