I am a list-maker. Compulsive to the point of overdoing it. I have a spreadsheet I use to keep track of our Christmas budget. I put in the dollar amount for each child, and as I enter in the gifts and prices, I see the balance at the bottom getting smaller, showing me what I have left to spend. It’s also a good way to keep track of HOW MANY gifts each kid is getting. That’s not such a big deal now, but back when they were younger, it was A CHORE to try and make sure they all got the same number of gifts, and that our spending was even as well.
Did I mention I use a spreadsheet? To some of you that know me, that will come as no surprise.
A couple years ago, it was with great GLEE that I discovered the world of online shopping.
Specifically, online CHRISTMAS SHOPPING.
Even more specifically, BLACK FRIDAY shopping. While there are a handful of stores that will NOT make their “DoorBusters” available online (scrooges!), most do. So why in the world would we stand in line and fight the crowds for something we can get with the click of a mouse, while wearing our pajamas and sipping hot chocolate?
Now that my Christmas shopping is done, and the gifts are all wrapped (go me! Jealous much?) I present to you a rundown of the stores I purchased things from online, problems I had, as well as jump-for-joy moments I had…
Sincerely, Jenni’s
Online Christmas Shopping Extravaganza
Abercrombie & Hollister - Essentially, these stores are one and the same, with just a different logo. My kids like their hoodies and their shirts. Mommy doesn’t like the pricetags. So Mommy does the smart thing, and goes to their website and visits the clearance section. The clearance varies so much from store to store, and its hard to pick out different sizes and colors for 4 kids. THANK YOU ONLINE SHOPPING, because I can sift through the different colors with the click of a mouse, find the size I need and pay my bill. I do, however, have 2 gripes with these companies. Abercrombie has their juniors/adults sizes separate from their kids section, so TWO separate orders for me, and TWO separate shipping charges. My other gripe is that they never offer free shipping. EVER. But, when I can get hoodies and sweaters for less than half the ticket price in stores, I am willing to overlook the downside. Shipping was very fast though, so I have to give them credit for that.
Aeropostale – Of all the stores my kids like to shop at, this one has the best prices and the best sales. They always have free shipping (with a minumum order amount that varies) and the day I shopped there, nearly everything on their website was half-price. Adding in my 20% coupon I found online, this mommy was one happy shopper. Plus, Aeropostale has also added a kids line to their website, called P.S. (P.S. stores will be coming soon, only in a few select areas right now). Shipping was fast, and I was very pleased with what I got for the money.
American Eagle – I had two separate purchases from this store. One before Thanksgiving, and one after. I had free shipping on both orders, and a 20% off coupon both times. The first order I placed before Turkey Day came very quickly, within 2 days, even though I only paid for regular shipping. The second order, placed on November 30th, had a bit of a glitch. They charged my debit card, but when I went to check the status of the order, it kept telling me to “Wait 24 hours for tracking information.” Finally, on December 7th, I called their Customer Service # and they immediately corrected the problem. They upgraded me to 2-Day shipping, AND told me some of the items I had purchased were cheaper now. My order ended up being $25 cheaper than the first time. Now THAT’S good customer service! My only gripe with them was it took them a long time to remove the first charge from my debit card, so I had two charges pending at the same time.
Cabelas – Another store with GREAT customer service, from start to finish. I saw their Black Friday ad several days in advance and knew there were a couple things in there that I wanted to get. I also knew there was no way we’d have time to get to Cabela’s on Black Friday for their specials. I called their Customer Service # the day before Thanksgiving, and asked if I bought that items that day, if they would refund the different when they went on sale on Black Friday. The rep said they would, and sure enough I called their 800# on Black Friday with my order # in hand, they refunded the money straight back to my debit card. Cabelas also offered free shipping. We have never been disappointed with any purchase made at their stores or their website. Excellent products, excellent customer service.
Wal-Mart – I would rather be strung up by my pubic hairs than shop in a Wal-Mart store anytime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It’s just not worth it. So when they had a digital camera I needed to buy for someone, I decided to check out their website. Of the many things I do not like about Wal-Mart, there are two that stand out specifically. One, they are stingy with their shipping. They never offer free shipping, and with the huge conglomerate that Wal-Mart is, they should pony up the perks and offer free shipping more than once a decade. My other complaint is that the products Wal-mart offers on their website, And the PRICES of those items, many times will vary greatly from what they have in their store. THAT BOTHERS ME. Sometimes the website is cheaper, and sometimes the store is cheaper. I am always very careful shopping from Wal-Mart’s website, but if the price difference is small enough, it keeps me from shopping there on a weekend in December, and thats mostly worth it. Sidenote: Don’t be fooled by Wal-Mart’s free “Ship To Store” option. I have tried that twice– you order online, and they ship it to the store for free. All you have to do (supposedly) is go to their Customer Service Desk and pick it up. WRONG. Two different Wal-Mart stores, two different ship-to-store experiences from hell. Just say no.
Younkers – For those of you not in the midwest, Younkers is a store in the chain of Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. (Bergner’s, Carson Pirie Scott, Herberger’s). When you buy something from any of their store websites, you never know which store will actually send you the items. I ordered a set of Fiesta Ware dishes from Younkers.com 2 years ago, and got the dishes from Bergner’s, Carson Pirie Scott, and one from Younkers. So it just busts my chops when I get online on Black Friday to score their door buster deals, only to find they were completely wiped out of every single one of the 8 items I wanted to purchase. This year I wanted to get my mom a set of dishes. She was dying to have a set of Fiesta Ware dishes just like mine, so at $48 a place setting, I had to find a good deal. Younkers offered them at $19.97 each, over 1/2 price, but of course they were out of stock. (Wonder if they were ever actually IN STOCK to begin with??) So they got none of my money this year. Sorry Younkers!
Macy’s & Kohls – I put these two together because I ordered the same items from both places. See the above Younkers story?
I found the same Fiesta Ware 5-piece place settings at Kohls’ on sale for $26.99 each. Add in the coupon I had brought them down to $21.95 each. Problem is, I needed 8 different colors, and they only had 5. So I ordered 5 from Kohls, with FREE SHIPPING. Macy’s matched Kohl’s price, and I got two more sets from them for $26.99 with FREE SHIPPING. The 8th and final set I ordered from the company below.
Now, the best for last…
Amazon.com – I pink puffy heart Amazon. I wanna hump Amazon’s leg with glee, because they offer FREE SHIPPING all year round with only a $25 minimum purchase. I have bought so many things from them, from books to clothes, to Harley Davidson t-shirts for my dog. They have everything, and they offer great deals on Cyber Monday, baby. My youngest has been wanting a Wii game called “My Sims: Agents” with an average price tag of about $47. I had looked everywhere– WalMart, Target, Toys R Us, the price was pretty much the same at every store. BUT, I checked Amazon.com the other day, and discovered it was one of there Daily Deals… for $19.99!!! (and FREE SHIPPING, dude!) Go Amazon!
Many people are wary of online shopping, but it has been a great experience for me. I can get a lot of shopping done in a very short amount of time, and I don’t have to spend all day shopping at 10 different places. I don’t have to worry about shopping with my kids in tow, or finding time in between basketball practice and gymnastics. I just buy it, and its delivered to my door. Plus, it insures I won’t be on the 10:00 news as the woman that got trampled in the Wal-Mart store fighting over a video game. Because, me staying away from that store is really more for YOUR protection than mine. I’m just sayin’…
Disclosure: I got nothing from any of these businesses for pimpin’ out their websites. Period.
