Maximize Your Shopping Experience at the Target Store in Chester, Virginia

The Chester, Va., Target (on Jeff Davis Highway) is a great store for anyone looking for a good value without the crowds and somewhat dirty appearance of the Walmart. This Target is clean, easy to navigate and has some unbelievable bargains. It is also very family friendly. I probably go there with my kids at least once a week to browse and occasionally treat my daughter to a cinnamon stick in the Starbucks cafe. Here are my five best tips for getting the most value for your dollar and making the most of your shopping experience at the Chester Target.

1. Always check out the bins in the front entrance to the store. These bins have rotating merchandise that is between $1 and $2.50 and they often have great items for special treats for small kids as well as practical items such as dishcloths or kitchen items. They even have good craft supplies on occasion. There won't always be something in this section that you want or need, but it is worth checking out for those times when they do have a great deal.

2. Always check the endcaps on both ends of the aisles. This Target store uses the endcaps on the main aisles to display special markdowns or new items. While you can find some good deals this way, the real bargains are on the other side of the aisle. That is where they display the clearance items that can be 30-percent off or more. Often there will be items that are 50- to 70-percent off, if you are willing to look through the clearance endcaps. Although they use the back endcaps for clearance in every section, I personally find that the best sections for clearance items are the card and party/home office section and the toys and games section. Although the baby section is hit or miss regarding good clearance items it is always worth checking out as well if you have a baby in the house.

3. When shopping for clothing, remember that there are always two clearance racks in each clothing section. One with 30-percent off items and one with 50-percent off items. You can find some great deals here, but you have to be willing to look through the items on the racks carefully because they are not always on hangers with the correct size listed, and they are not organized in any particular way. It is worth it though to find kids clothes that are often $2 or less!

4. Don't be afraid to buy the Target brand items, even in the grocery section. We often buy the Market Pantry cereals (usually $1.88 a box) and I also use the Market Pantry version of Crystal Light, which is $2 or more cheaper than the actual Crystal Light product and tastes great. I also recommend trying the Archer Farms food items that they sell - these often cost less than the competition and they're very good.

5. Use the price scanners. The Chester Target is very good about marking clearance items with the actual lowered price, so you don't have to figure out how much the new price is. However if you do need to check on a sale price or just don't remember how much an item was that you put in your cart, the price scanners are very conveniently located throughout the store. There are scanners in the grocery, pets, bedding, household decor, toys and clothing sections. These scanners are also very helpful because each one has a customer service phone that you can use if you need assistance and they also have trash cans. The trash cans are great to help keep the store clean because they are so convenient so more people actually use them!

I hope that you find these tips helpful and I highly recommend the Chester, Va., Target for a great discount shopping experience!