As spring begins and weather warms up, March is a great month for sales of all kinds. Plan for these great buys and spend less money:
Spring cleaning
March is synonymous with spring cleaning, so look for discounts on household supplies including furniture polish, window cleaners, tub and tile cleaners, and more. Spring cleaning also means buying or renting carpet or floor-cleaning machines, or hiring a company to do it for you, so look for specials on those.
March is also National Frozen Food Month, so look for supermarket deals on frozen vegetables and meals, including pizza.
Pizza is always popular with those who watch sports on TV, which means you can expect deals from companies like Papa John’s taking advantage of the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship games, otherwise known as March Madness. Let’s hope for discounts or coupon deals for chips, snacks and beverages, too. And look for deals on big-screen TVs perfect for game day.
St. Patrick’s Day, Easter and Passover
St. Patrick’s Day is Sunday, March 17, so expect supermarket specials on ingredients for traditional corned beef and cabbage and other Irish fixings.
Easter is two weeks later on March 31. Stores began putting out chocolate bunnies and marshmallow Peeps well before the end of February. You won’t get discounts shopping early, but you will get the best selection. As with Christmas, Valentine’s Day and other holidays, the real sales start the day after.
Shopping early for best selection also applies to Passover items like matzoh, gefilte fish and my childhood favorite, macaroons. Shop last-minute for the biggest discounts. This year, Passover begins at sundown Sunday, March 24.
Final winter clearance sales
Stores will be clearing out the last of winter merchandise at bargain-basement prices, so this is the time to get a head start on next season’s needs for coats, sweaters and other winter apparel.
March also is great for sales on big-ticket items including luggage for summer getaways, small electronics such as digital cameras and MP3 players to take with you, and washers and dryers to launder everything when you get home.
If you like this “What to Buy When” monthly feature, let us know. Tell us about the best deals you find.
And remember, a bargain isn’t a bargain until you use it.
If you like this article, you may also like:
- Tips to avoid wasting food year-round
- Secrets to saving at high-end food stores
- 5 tips to reduce your energy costs
- 8 sales-tax holidays for appliances, storm supplies
- 4 most effective frugal housecleaning tips
- How to get the best used furniture deals
Evelyn Kanter
Evelyn Kanter is an award-winning journalist who has been reporting on good deals, and warning about bad ones, for longer than she cares to admit publicly. A native and lifelong New Yorker, she helped launch the “Sales and Bargains” column in New York Magazine, and was the first consumer reporter for CBS News and for WABC TV “Eyewitness News”. She’s the author or editor of more than a dozen travel guidebooks and apps, including Peaceful Places New York City, and owns and operates NYC On The Cheap and EcoXplorer. A long-time tree-hugger, Evelyn also writes about green travel, green cars and saving the green in your wallet, for national and regional magazines and newspapers, including a column syndicated by Motor Matters.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.