Money Minute: Retail loopholes that could save you big money

Forego the coupons, but don’t forget your smartphone.

Now more than ever, Canadian consumers are leveraging the power of those little handheld devices they can’t seem to leave home without to find deals and shop smarter.

According to the latest stats from StatsCan more than half of Canadians with Internet access shopped online in 2012 and 58 per cent used tablets and phones to access the Internet.

But it’s the savvy consumer’s penchant for using the device to find discrepancies in online/in-store prices and compare competitor’s prices that is helping smartphones earn the reputation as the Swiss Army knife of shopping.

And while many big box retailers like Best Buy and Home Depot will match competitors advertised prices and even knock-off a few extra dollars to show a little shopper love, finding deals isn’t limited to the tech-savvy.

Ever daydreamed of sneaking past the “guards” at Costco to peruse the aisles chock-full of family-sized products and deep discounts? As it turns out, there is a tech-free loophole for getting some of those coveted deals without the membership fee.

Yahoo Canada Finance’s Ashleigh Patterson shares some tips on retail loopholes and taking advantage of online and in store prices to save you some money.