THE % IS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE $

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I recently was looking to purchase something on Kohl's.com. The price of the item was "originally" $525, marked down to $212.62 (plus tax), roughly 50% off. I thought this item would go perfect with another item, THEY MATCHED!

I got to the checkout point and realized, there were 3 additional savings options:

1.) Gift Cards
2.) Kohl's Cash and Rewards
3.) Promo Codes

THESE ARE SO IMPORTANT!!!

If I ignored these, I would pay (out of pocket) $227.50. 

Lee's BACK!



This is how I got from paying $227.50 out of pocket to $170.26. That is a savings of $57.24 OR 25%

1.) Searched for KOHL'S GIFT CARDS Online

Sometimes you can find gift cards for sale at less than face value. If, for example, my crazy aunt (not that I have one) buys me a $25 gift card to Home Depot, I will probably not use this before this expires. Additionally, I could probably sell this for $20 and $20 in cash is more valuable to me than $25 to Home Depot. In addition, someone that is looking to buy something at Home Depot, you just provided then with a 20% off discount. Alas, in my search, I could not find any Kohl's Gift Cards at a deep enough discount to tickle my fancy.

2.) Searched for Kohl's Cash Online
Kohl's cash is provided TO THE CONSUMER at NO COST (other than buying the goods they bought). This is obviously a tactic to get you back in the store, but ALSO to thank you for spending the money you did. 

People feel less attached to this "Kohl's Cash" because it is viewed as something different than a gift card. They didn't receive it from a friend of family member so I again, think they feel less attached. Regardless, I found a Kohl's Cash amount of $120 on $100 on Ebay. I noticed the address was Columbus and it made me think to look at Craigslist to see what I could find. I found the same offer on Craiglist for Columbus (from the same lady) and offered $90 which she accepted. If she had said no, I probably would have still purchased because she had a 100% rating on Ebay. Looking back, that would have been a stupid move which I will explain why in the next section.

There are other Kohl's Cash options ($27 for $30, $99 for $120, $80 for $90) which all seem reasonable right? You spend less than you get. But let's look at that. 

Option 1 - Save $3, save 10%. 
Option 2 - Save $21, save 17.5%.
Option 3, Save $10, save 11.1%.

Of these, I would obviously choose option 2 if the amount I needed made sense. It is the highest savings by percentage. Later I will put it all into perspective for you.

3.) Searched for ANY Promo Codes Online

The first one I found was on the Kohl's site it self, CYBERSAVE (20% off + Free Shipping). This seemed like a great deal, but let's be honest savers, WE can do better. So I searched a little longer and found a code, FFDEC25 (25% off of $100 or More + Free Shipping). EVEN BETTER! RIGHT? Wrong? MAYBE!!! The price of the item after tax came out to $98.18 (because they apply Kohl's Cash first). I HAVE TO SPEND $100, WHAT DO I DO?


Well it turns out that I can get more for even less. 

If I had used the 20% off code, I would have paid a total of $169.28 ($90 for Kohl's Cash valued at $120 then an additional, out of pocket, $79.28 after 20% off and taxes. Keep in mind, taxes are figured on the final out of pocket expenses)

In order to use the 25% off coupon, I have to spend another $1.82 to get my total to $100 before the 25% is computed. This was my path:
"Continue Shopping" -> "Clearance" -> "Bed and Bath" -> "Under $10" -> "Sort by: Price Low to High" and found two items CHEAP!

I bought a Tony Hawk Pocket Tank (Normally $24) and a Sonoma Life 4X6 Frame. In essence, another $37.00 worth of stuff for only $0.97 difference.

If the numbers don't add up to you, let me break it down:
***I had to spend $100.00 BEFORE taxes*** (I spent $100.01)

Main Item

Tony Hawk Item

Picture Frame


Total cost of $120 in cash = $90.

Had to spend $100, spent $100.01
25% discount on cost before tax.

Tax assessed.

Total cost AT Kohls


In total $561.99 (plus tax) for $165.01 (plus tax).



Now that we have that covered, let's put the totality of everything into perspective via an example:

You buy an item for $1,000. You have:
1.) A coupon for 25% off. 
2.) "Store Cash" in the amount of $120 that only cost you $99 (like above). 
3.) "Store Cash" in the amount of $250 that only cost you $210.

Route 1 - Only use the 25% off coupon. You spend $750 of your own money, plus 5% tax = $787.50. Net savings = $212.50 or 21.25%.

Route 2 - You use all discounts because, after all, you're spending less than you're getting right? First they apply store cash. So you have $1,000 - $120 - $250. Then apply your 25% discount of $157.50 ($630 *.25%). You now have $472.50 left, plus your 5% tax = $496.13. Your TOTAL OUT OF POCKET COST = $496.13 (Post tax and savings) + $99 (for $120) + $210 (for $250) or $805.13. Net savings = $194.87 or 19.49%.

The reason your savings are less is because the almighty %.

So the next time you're saving money (later today, early tomorrow), remember:

THE % IS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE $

For the sports picks: 

There's going to be a lot of cold and snow this weekend. Seven of the eleven early games are projected to have snow or ice pellets. Nine of the eleven early games are projected to have a HIGH temp of 34 degrees or less at kickoff. This means there should be more running and less scoring. At the same time, there could be more turnovers and some unexpected scoring. In that spirit I will be picking the two coldest games and my wild card pick as well.

Tennesee (+12) v. Denver Under 49 (13 Degrees)

Atlanta v. Green Bay (-3) Under 46.5 (16 Degrees)

Kansas City (-3) v. Washington Under 45 (Wild Card)

AND THERE'S MORE!!!

SEC - Aub v. Mizz (+2) Under 59

ACC - FSU v. Duke (+29) Over 62

B1G - OSU (-6) v. MSU Under 49.5

***These were previously posted on Monday, but wanted to re-post them for this special post. 12-3 on the season going into this weekend.

Let's GET OVER 1,000 POSTS THIS WEEKEND!!!