Shopping Goodies
by Gisele Glosser
Shopping often involves discount and sale price. But having a good number sense will make you a better consumer. In this article we will examine and compare common sales offers used in retail stores.
Buy 1, Get 1 Free. In this world, nothing is free. The best way to compute the cost per item is to take the price for one item, and divide by two. Then you can determine if this is a good price. For example, if the price for one is $19.99, then the cost per item is roughly $20 divided by 2, or $10 each.
Buy 2, Get the Third free. The best way to compute the cost per item is to take the price for two items, and divide by three. Then you can decide if this is a good price. For example, if the price for one is $7.49, then the cost per item is roughly $15 divided by 3, or $5 each.
Buy 1, Get One 1/2 Price. If the price for one is $19.99, then the cost per item is approximately the sum of $20 and $10, divided by 2, which is $15.
Buy 1, Get the Second for $1. If the price for one is $19.99, then the cost per item is about $21 divided by 2, or $10.50.
For each of the offers above, we computed the actual cost per item. Once you know the actual cost, you can determine if an offer is a good, and the true value it presents.
Another common technique for boosting retail sales is through coupon offers. If there is more than one coupon, things can get confusing. For our first example, suppose the same store offers you these coupons:
20% off any purchase
$10 off your purchase of $30 or more