Gap Cash...What Is It Good For?

Welcome to Saving Money with Andrew!

Last week, an SMwA reader came to me with a sad tale:

I wanted to get a bunch of items from the Gap. Some stuff for my boys, but also a pair of shorts for me. I added the items to my cart but waited to order, because I had Gap Cash coupons available to use in a few weeks.[1]

So I waited patiently, thinking why waste the Gap Cash? In the weeks preceding Gap Cash week, Gap kept tempting me with promotions, and the shopping cart total kept ranging between about $90 and $100.

Finally, Gap Cash week arrived, and I returned to my cart to finally place the [darn] order and the prices had nearly doubled! All of the promotions but one had disappeared. I checked out, redeeming all of my Gap Cash for a final price of $101.

I should have abandoned Gap Cash and just used the good promos. Surely, they knew when I would be able to redeem the Gap Cash and did this intentionally…I was outfoxed.

While I can’t say for sure that Gap did this on purpose, all signs certainly point to a strategic shuffling of promotions to keep this good SMwA reader from getting a good deal. There doesn’t appear to be anything illegal about this practice, but shoppers should be wary of promotions with limited time windows, as it is (unfortunately) common for retailers to raise prices or remove other promotions in advance of a sale. Buyer beware!

And now, Andrew’s pick(s) of the week:

I had a lot of fun listening to Device Orchestra, a delightfully strange YouTube channel featuring renditions of pop songs performed by an orchestra of household appliances, typewriters, and credit card readers. I never thought I needed to hear A-ha’s Take On Me performed by a trio of electric toothbrushes, but it turns out I did:

I hope this has been helpful. If you liked it, please share it on social media! Also, please send me your feedback, requests, and success stories.

[1] For those unaware, Gap sometimes gives out “Gap Cash” coupons. These coupons are then redeemable “during during specific 'GapCash' periods throughout the year”.