Loving Target Clearance

So, almost immediately after setting up my Target registry a lot of the stuff I had added went on clearance. Not bad for me, but now I have to add stuff again that will actually be at the store when people go to look for it. I figured though that I'd try to catch what I could if it got really cheap. And I got lucky!

I got stuff that I needed(/wanted...) worth $225 retail for $55 and all new! Not bad eh? It wasn't all luck, I have Target all figured out. Well mostly.

If you wanna know how, keep reading! You know I love sharing my bargain shopping skills with you :)

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Target merchandise gets marked down on a rather reliable schedule so sometimes you can catch stuff right when it gets marked down. When I worked there I frequently watched the Price Change Team go through women's clothing (my dept) and then I'd run through and see what just got marked down to 75% off. That's as much as they mark regular merchandise off before selling it to Goodwill.

Most stores will follow this schedule:
Monday - Electronics, Kids Clothing (includes baby dept) and Stationary
Tuesday - Domestics, Women's Clothing, Pets and Market (food items)
Wednesday - Men's Clothing, Toys, Lawn & Garden, Health and Beauty items
Thursday - House Wares, Lingerie, Sporting Goods, Shoes, Music / Movies, Books, Decor and Luggage
Friday - Auto, Cosmetics, Hardware, and Jewelry

The price change team has to manually change it that day, so it's usually around noon when they're changed.

Also, their holiday markdown schedule is usually as follows (with the exception of Christmas, which can vary):
50% off the day after holiday for three days
75% off the fourth day after holiday for three days
90% off the seventh day after holiday for 1-2 days.

Generally items are marked down to 30% (some items go 15% first), 50%, then 75%. (The percentage off is located in the top right corner of the red clearance sticker.) And, items are marked down (usually) every two weeks. So, if you see that an item just got marked down, check back in 2 weeks on it's markdown day and your chances are best for catching it. If you really need it and it's not 75% off, just buy it so it doesn't get sold out. Then if you want, check back later, buy it again and take back the more expensive one later.

I'm lucky too because I have 2 Targets within 15 minutes of me. One of the had a ton of stuff today and the other only a couple. So if you can and it's worth it to you, check a couple stores because inventory is very different between them.
That's pretty much it!