Four Hot Buys During The Month Of February

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- When you go shopping there are wants and there are needs, but it's hard to pass up a bargain and February is full of them.

The month is wedged nicely after the holidays and before the spring rush into summer break. WCCO-TV went through dozens of consumer articles and then double checked with local retailers to find the best buys this month.

Digital Cameras

Sales, promotions and trade-ins all come together this month.

"You can get a $230 doll point and shoot camera for 100 bucks," said Gil Robles of National Camera Exchange. "February is a great month because there's a lot of transition in the market place, it's after the holiday season where all the latest products were introduced, but it's also a time when new technologies and conventions, like CES happened a couple weeks ago."

Cameras on the shelves six months or longer will get the biggest discounts first.

Luggage

New merchandise is coming in, and that means retailers want to get the old stuff out.

"There's certain luggage that will be reduced 30 percent, there's certain luggage that will be down 35 percent and there's certain luggage that we will want to get out of here to get the new stuff in and that could be at 50 percent as well," said David Saad of Luggage World.

Bicycles

Discounts on bikes are much like discounts on cars every year. There's a new model, they want to get the old one off the floor and the new models will come out soon. Cold weather gear will get deeply discounted as summer stuff comes in.

"For enthusiasts, you might save hundreds of dollars or even a thousand dollars," said Jake Helmbrecht of Freewheel Bike Shop.

Indoor Furniture

First there's Valentine's Day, when bedroom furniture is set for sale. Then there's President's Day, one of the biggest sales days in the industry.

"You'll see anything from 25 to 50 percent off during that timeframe," said Jason Schneiderman of Schneiderman's Furniture.

Sofas, tables and chairs all get their prices slashed to move in the stuff people want for spring, like outdoor patio sets that arrive in late February or early March, meaning all of this must be sold.

Other deals to keep in mind this month: Chocolate usually goes down in price after Valentine's Day, and get your gas grills and air Conditioners while they're out of season. Consumer experts said last summer's models won't be that different from this summer's, but prices will be much better now.