Unlock Target's Best Deals By Shopping This Hidden Gem In The Store

Who doesn't love a Target stroll? You know the type: you walk in to browse the aisles with a Starbucks drink and hand in order to grab some cleaning supplies and a new thing of shampoo, but leave three hours later down two hundred bucks and up cleaning supplies, a mini waffle maker, plus the entire Good & Gather snack line. You likely will forget the shampoo, being forced to return and repeat the pleasurable (if pricey) process all over again.

Anyone who has tranced out in a Target knows it's all too easy to get lost in the store, physically and financially. Some shoppers may welcome this bit of dissociative bliss (at least until they check their bank account), while others try to avoid it like the plague. Whichever type of shopper you are, Target deploys sneaky ways to get you to spend money. However, there exist some clever tricks to save money at Target. One such way is right under shoppers' noses, and just around the corner.

Savvy shoppers of both the speedy and store-savoring variety can shop Target's end caps to tap into hidden savings potential, and score last-minute savings on last-chance items. However, buyer beware: not all end caps are created equal.

Target stores house clearance items on end caps, the small shelving areas at the end of long aisles. Most of these end caps, if not all, face the less-trafficked outer perimeter walls of Target stores, not the end caps that face the main walking pathway of the store.

You'll want to head to these further end caps to find clearance items, not the end caps that are more easily viewable on a quick Target run. Those quickly browsable end caps in the main circuit, like those across from the store's central departments and displays, will likely be stocked with seasonal purchases, grab-and-go purchases from big brands, as well as new or promotional products, all at full price.

Some of the further-flung end caps sprinkled throughout the store will be where the bigger savings are. While each store is different, many Target stores tend to have a clearance end cap tucked somewhere in the beauty section, perhaps hidden between health supplies and the pharmacy. Sometimes, there are also clearance end caps hidden in the grocery section (perhaps between canned beverages and the cooler wall) and near office supplies. Wherever the clearance end cap is, the shelves will be stocked with various close-out items, as well as those just starting the markdown process. You can tell a clearance end cap from a regularly-priced endcap by looking for products marked with a tell-tale yellow clearance sticker.

While some seasonal end cap clearances are marked with big yellow "Clearance!" signs, other clearance end caps are more understated. Is clearance nail polish for $5.49 when full price costs $5.89 truly a clearance? Perhaps that savings is in the eye of the beholder. However, even a 10% or 30% discount on pricey delights like Lego sets might be enough of an end cap steal for most shoppers. Still, don't get duped by the bright, shiny, yellow sales sticker: learn to read it instead.

Just like getting to know Costco's price tag codes for extra savings, understanding the Target markdown schedule and how it shows up on clearance price tags will help you truly save. In the upper righthand corner of each clearance price tag, a clearance amount indicator is listed. These numbers stand for the percentage of markdown: 30, 50, and 70. Target markdowns occur Monday through Friday. Buddy up with your friendly Target sales associates to see which departments do their markdowns on which day.

70% is usually the maximum amount of discount before a product is sent to salvage, so a product marked with a "70" in the upper righthand corner might be worth snatching up. It might be worth holding off on a clearance item if it's only marked with a "30," but then again — someone else might scoop the stock up before you come back for it on your next too-long (yet never long enough) Target run.