Are you one of the fortunate (or maybe in some cases, not so fortunate) Americans that are allowed to buy fireworks in the United States? I know living in a rural Kansas community, we have always been allowed to buy them and shoot them off. We have a few restrictions, such as not setting them off after midnight and those who live in town can only shoot them off from July 1st through the 4th. But for us, we can do them all year if we so choose, because we live outside of the city limits, in the country. Of course, we’d need to take note of extremely dry times so we don’t cause grass fires or other fire hazards. We’re also not allowed to use certain kinds of fireworks, like bottle rockets. We’ve gotten so accustomed to not using them, that we don’t mind much. There’s plenty of other things out there that we will enjoy.
Fireworks are kind of a cornered market, only showing up once a year. Is it possible to deal shop for them? Yes, within reason. You’re still going to need to set a budget that will work for your family, because it’s super easy to go out of control with these things. But, there’s a few ways that you can save some money and find some great deals. I’m sure this advice varies by region as it seems fireworks trends change depending on where you live. My sister lives 2 hours from me and she prefers to buy them here in my town, because they’re always cheaper here!
How We Save Money When We Buy Fireworks
1. Shop around
You may have a favorite place to buy your fireworks from, but you may be surprised to learn that not every store or tent prices them near the same. You will see wide varieties of prices, depending on where you shop. Sometimes, you’re supporting a non-profit organization or ministry and you don’t mind paying a little more, but if you’re just giving someone’s wallet a little extra padding, you may want to rethink automatically going to the first tent that you see. Consider giving your kids a list of the most popular items you buy and going and pricing them at each local fireworks store. That way you can get the best deal out there and you can even support several different stores. Spread the love a little bit. As mentioned above, you may want to even check in another town if it looks like you’ll be traveling to nearby towns during that time period. You may find that smaller communities have better pricing than cities (or even visa versa).
2. Sign up for Mailing Lists
We have a certain favorite store that we’ve learned is usually priced lower than most of the other tents in town. To top it off, this store is air conditioned! Because they treat it more like a store, they actually have an email list where they will mail you a daily special. My kids look forward to receiving their daily emails to see what the new coupon is.
3. Watch for Coupon Mailers
We’ve also received multiple coupon mailers. Today, I got one that said I can save $7 on a $50 order. With my 7 kids, we easily spend $50 during the week of the 4th of July. That’s $7 more that we can have to burn….literally .
4. The Special of the Day
Some fireworks stores change their specials each day. They keep you coming back that way. We willingly do, too because we have saved a lot of money by buying their specials. We once bought a 7 ball artillery shell for $1 because of the special of the day. We bought as many as they’d let us have!
5. Pay Attention
When they’re ringing you up, be sure to pay attention to the prices they’re charging. Sometimes they are doing it on memory and may try to overcharge you unintentionally. Make sure that the prices are what you think they’re going to be and if they’re not, show them where you found the price you were thinking. Also, many times, stores will offer a freebie with purchase or to kids. Be sure to find out if the location you’re shopping at does this and take them up on the offer. Sometimes they forget to offer!
This covers everything that is available to us to save money on fireworks. I realize that your area may be different. What are some different ways that work for you?
I hope you have an amazing Independence Day! Have fun and be safe!
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