I am a huge fan of Nike shoes. I grew up in the prime of Michael Jordan’s career and since Mike wore Nike so did I. I was pretty sure they made me jump a little higher.
Now that I am older I still have a bit of a brand loyalty to Nike products, but I HATE paying the big price tag that comes with the Nike Name. While you can get good prices from time to time at places like Academy sports or other retailers, the place where I have been able to get the best prices is at the online Nike Store.
This strategy does not apply to just shoes. You can buy pretty much anything that the Nike Store has to offer, but since I pretty much only buy shoes from them my examples will focus on them.
What makes Nike great for online shopping is that once you know your size they are really good at being consistent with their sizing. So once I knew that a size 12 in Nike was good for me I was ready to be patient and look for the deal no matter what sport or style of shoe I was looking for
Nike Store Clearance and Sales
You didn’t actually think I was going to start with a full price item did you? If you did then you need to connect with me on twitter or facebook to get updates and get to know me a little better.
While the sales on the Nike site are usually in the mediocre range, the clearance section can be SPECTACULAR. Nike updates their styles every year. This means the old style, which still looks great, goes on clearance once the newer model comes out.
Day in and day out you should be able to get 40% off in the clearance section on some sort of shoe. Now it may not be the type of shoe you wanted so you have to check back regularly. To maximize your savings you have to not be desperate to buy something right away.
If you are able to be patient, I have gotten as much as 60% off the regular price and have seen as much as 80% off the original price. That is a hefty discount for shoes that frequently cost more than $100. BUT WAIT! There’s more.
Nike Promo Codes
As you are searching for good deals on the clearance section, you will want to sign up to receive e-mail updates from Nike. These updates include sales, special offers, and most importantly promo codes.
The codes can be for as little as 5% cash back or as much as they feel like throwing our way. I have seen as much as 30% off, but usually the best we can hope for is 20%. Sometimes they do include free shipping as well.
By coupling these promo codes with clearance or on sale items you can really give a boost to your savings. BUT WAIT! There’s more.
Use the Rebate Sites When You Shop Nike
I have three main cash back rebate sites that I use: MrRebates, Ebates, and Top Cash Back. Each one is good for different retailers and for Nike MrRebates takes the cake with a whopping 12% cash back (this excludes Air Jordans which you cannot get cheap anyway).
Here is how it works. You sign up for an account at MrRebates.com (it doesn’t cost anything they pay you, not you them). Once you are all signed up you log into your area and search for Nike. Click on the link they give you and whatever purchases you make you get 12% back into your account and get paid the next month.
If you are not using cash back rebate sites when you shop online then you are just giving away money. And people who read this site DO NOT GIVE AWAY MONEY.
So now you got 60-80% off plus 20% off with a promo code plus 12% cash back. You have gotten a great deal!
An Ideal Scenario
You may have already worked this out but I wanted to make sure you can see the great savings you can get by employing this three prong strategy. For this example I am starting with the intention of replacing my running shoes that run about $100 at full retail.
The first thing I get will be an email telling me that Nike has the promo code “GoSavingFreak” for 20% off and free shipping. So, of course, we head to the Nike site to see if there is anything that will be a good fit for my feet.
I find a pair of shoes on clearance that are 60% off. So we went from $100 pair of shoes to $60. Instead of plopping those shoes in my cart I head over the MrRebates.com.
Once I have used the MrRebates link to go back to Nike I then put those shoes in my cart and head to checkout. Put in the promo code for 20% off. That brings my total down from $100 to $32 after clearance discount and promo code.
Finally I get my 12% cash back the following month.
So we started at $100 and dropped to $40 with the clearance. Next we drop to $32 with the promo code. Finally we drop our total to $28.16 after we get $3.84 back at the MrRebates site.
And that is how you kill it using all the Nike Store discounts. If you have any other tips on how to save money at the Nike store I would love to hear them. Share them with everyone in the comments below, on the facebook page or tweet it to me @savingfreak.
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