Local retailers offer after-Christmas discounts

While many are busy returning or playing with the presents Santa left bundled under the Christmas tree, others have turned their attention to next year.

“Many people tend to come in after Christmas looking for the deals,” said Suzy Cortez, store manager at Maricopa’s Walmart.

Walmart is one of the few retailers offering blowouts on their Christmas leftovers. The store  this week is featuring 50 percent off lighting, trees, decorations, wrapping paper and all other holiday-related items.

In addition to the standard holiday fare, the store is offering up to 50 percent on select clothing, rolling back prices on popular DVDs and even giving a $50 gift card with the purchase of an X-Box 360 Elite.

“We have a pretty large selection of things we need to get rid of,” Cortez said. However, Walmart is not the only local store cutting back prices on holiday items.

The local Ace Hardware is looking to create some floor space for its new seasonal items by discounting its Christmas stock by 60 percent.

“Anything related to Christmas needs to go,” said Maricopa Ace owner Tom Bechtel. These items include lighting, artificial trees and decorations; however, Bechtel said customers should not expect to find any clearance specials on gifts. “We sold most of the holiday gift packages during our sales prior to Christmas,” he said.

Other stores like Fry’s Food Store and Bashas’ are also clearing their shelves of Christmas leftovers by offering deep discounts.

Photo by Jim Williams