Hot deals this holiday season thanks to pandemic inventory

BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Black Friday is the unofficial holiday after Thanksgiving, prompting people to turn their attention to gift-giving. And a financial expert says this season shoppers will find some of the best deals ever.

After months of not being able to find what you want on the shelf, this could be your year.

“Basically I mean, almost everything is going to be on sale,” said Mark Scribner, a financial adviser with Oxygen Financial.

He says first retailers had supply chain issues during the pandemic and now they have excess inventory they have to unload.

“So the deals are really probably going to be the best they’ve ever been during the shopping season,” said Scribner.

That’s on everything from basic house goods to electronics, but Scribner says to plan ahead so you get the best price.

“You should check the circulars that appear in your mailbox and online and all that before, but you want to show up with a budget and a plan,” said Scribner. “If you show up, you know, just buying whatever you want, you’re probably going to overspend. But you really should come into it with a very clear budget, and then it will help you kind of narrow in some of the things that you want to do.”

And once you find the perfect prize, Scribner suggests paying it off right away.

“The other thing that sometimes people are doing it, you see that kind of like buy now, pay later type of an experience where they break them up into micropayments,” said Scribner. “You want to avoid those as well, because if you can’t afford to buy it.”

Of course, shopping isn’t just about Black Friday, so check out various places in stores and online as inventory and deals change.

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