Acquiring Vikings merchandise with the bottom line in mind may mean more work, but it can save quite a bit of money compared to full priced retail. Depending on how frugal you want to be, thrift stores like Goodwill, St Vincent de Paul, Salvation Army and other second-hand stores are great source for quality, pre-owned Vikings gear. Although it may not be brand new, buying second hand can save you significantly over brand new retail prices. A drawback to this approach is that it requires that you actually spend a great deal of time going shopping, something many football fans generally avoid. Another route would be to find a friend or relative who does like to shop and ask them to look out for your desired Vikings apparel or accessory next time they are on the prowl.
Buying second-hand may not be for everyone, but fortunately anyone can buy brand new Vikings merchandise for below normal retail if they do their homework and invest some time to the task. Closeout retailers, such as Big Lots, buy large quantities of varied items at reduced cost from wholesalers looking to clear out inventory. The retailer will then sell these items in their stores at prices significantly below regular retail. The store will often advertise these deals, so check them out often since once the entire cut-price lot is sold you’re out of luck. Outlet stores are also a good way to find low price merchandise but they are often specific to a particular brand and may not have a location near where you live. You can also watch for sales at regular retailers, although their sale prices are often still higher than what you can find at dedicated closeout, outlet or online retailers.
You might have the same problem with the discount stores as the thrift stores, namely that you would still need to physically go shopping. You can avoid this by shopping online, and if you know specifically what you are looking for you can have a search engine like Google do your comparison shopping for you. Often online retailers will have sales, just like their brick and mortar counterparts. It pays to bookmark a few that look promising and check back often, or sign up for their email list.
Whatever the source, Vikings gear can be found for less than normal retail if you are willing to look for it.
