My Mom’s Back To School Shopping Hack

Happy Pumpkin Spice season everyone! I know I know summer isn’t technically over yet. Fall vibes seem to take over earlier every year.. but us fall lovers are just desperate for more than 2 weeks of our favourite season, ok?

I wanted to share a super easy hack that was passed down from my mama. This hack was born out of financial hardship, however it’s so brilliant I think we should all take what we can from it. It’s so simple, are you ready?

Shop one year in advance.

Yes, it’s that simple. I’m serious! Let’s say your little one is going into grade 1. What you are going to do is print the school supply list for both grade 1 AND grade 2. On School Zone (or whatever your school uses) you should be able to access the list for each grade. Complete your shopping for grade 1. Then after the first day back when everything goes on *crazy* clearance, you are going to shop for grade 2. When I say crazy clearance, I mean it’s almost unbelievable. Last year when I shopped for this year, I was able to find around half the items on the list for 10-25 cents each!!

You don’t have to successfully find every single item in order for this to make an impact. I’m sure inflation has hit everyone this past year. By shopping the clearance section for next year and saving $30, you can easily replace the cool new outfit that you just bought your kid when they outgrow it in three weeks (three months if you’re lucky) yay! 😉

Some stores start their clearance exactly on the first day back, and some stores wait a few days to start marking down their items. You just gotta keep checking (googling specific items is a great way to do this) and see where it is cheapest. It’s fun, and makes next year easier! If you can make space for one more box in your basement or garage, always being one year ahead on back to school shopping will make you feel like you really have your life together, and who doesn’t love saving a few bucks? Have fun!

Suzi ♥ 

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