Walmart shoppers get $100 in free money for back-to-school shopping – but not everyone will enjoy the savings
WALMART shocked shoppers with $100 gift cards as they browsed back-to-school supplies.
Eight lucky customers received the money-saving surprise.
A California Walmart excited eight consumers each with $100 gift cards to assist in their back-to-school shopping.
Bobbie Jo Lewis, the store manager of the Murphy Canyon location in Serra Mesa, San Diego, handed the cards to the customers.
"Here's a $100 gift card to help your parents with back-to-school shopping," Lewis said, KFMB — a CBS affiliate — reported in August 2024.
Lewis gifted Ramona Cervantes with one of the cards while she shopped for fourth grader Bruce Hermanson.
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"We're all excited, and now I'm even super excited," said Cervantes.
Before receiving a gift card, single mom Taylor Stemler was planning to purchase the minimum for her daughter entering the fifth grade.
"It's super kind, I'm a single parent so we were stressed about back-to-school shopping today so it will be a world of difference," said Stemler, per the outlet.
One mom used some of the gift card money to purchase supplies for teachers.
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Another woman used the money to help students affected by the January 2024 California floods.
"I don't have enough donations to cover this, and I was buying out of my own pocket," said Valerie Brown, according to KFMB.
Brown volunteers for the San Diego nonprofit Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD) and is assisting in filling donated backpacks for students who are still dealing with the effects of the floods.
"We really want to make sure that we set them up for success," she said.
First-year college student and military veteran Joel Justiano was also surprised with a gift card.
"$100 will take me a long way, I appreciate it," he said, per the publication.
How are parents staying under budget?
Parents are willing to go to extremes to save money when purchasing school supplies for their kids return to school.
- Purchasing school supplies whenever they go on sale
- Shopping at multiple stores to find the best deal
- Saving school supplies throughout the year
- Shopping exclusively when there's a deal
- Extreme couponing
- Looking for half-used items around the house
- Joining buy-nothing groups on social media
- Trading supplies with other parents
- Dumpster diving
Justiano is attending Miramar College to become an air trafficker controller after getting out of the US Marine Corps.
"I didn't have to worry about that when I was in school because my parents did it but when you are shopping for yourself and you see all the prices you are like dang, it's a lot," he added.
Per the National Retail Federation, families will spend more than approximately $874.68 on back-to-school shopping, which has increased by about $200 since 2019.
"We use things from last year. If the backpack is in good shape we can use it again for next year," said mom Kayleigh Slavin.
OTHER OPTIONS TO SAVE
Even those who weren't one of the lucky eight to receive a gift card from Lewis can still find savings at Walmart.
In April 2024, an employee shared how shoppers can save money using the retailer's app.
"The Walmart app is a goldmine for savvy shoppers," they said while speaking with GoBankingRates.
"Activate push notifications there for clearance events, flash sales and exclusive mobile coupons," the worker continued.
They pointed out that the app-exclusive deals sometimes surpass in-store pricing, which makes the organizational and convenient tool even more useful.
"It's your ticket to deals and discounts right in your pocket."
Another Walmart employee revealed shoppers can take advantage of the retail giant's price match policy if they find local offers on items they've already bought.
"Walmart's price matching can be a secret weapon," the staffer said.
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"Just show proof of the same in-stock product priced lower at a local brick-and-mortar competitor and they’ll adjust your previous charge," they continued.
"It's easy savings — just takes asking."
