Been to Staples lately?

I just made a shopping run to Staples...Turns out we have a Staples card for the district and don't need a purchase order to buy things there. Not that I recommend circumventing a careful purchasing process, but sometimes you just need "stuff". Certainly, if the person doing the purchasing is one of the folks who makes purchasing decisions anyway, this can be a handy thing.

I mention Staples specifically because they are fairly ubiquitous in the States and because I got some great deals this morning. The beauty of being able to shop at an actual store instead of through our usual outlets is the ability to grab things that are on sale. Today I got a $500 networked HP color laser with full toner cartridges (they were running a special) for $250. Other models were on clearance for $200; they just didn't have the full cartridges and slightly larger footprints.

Wireless cards and access points were cheaper than CDW government rates; a 500GB external hard drive was mine for $120. Some of the prices were merely competitive with the likes of CDW, but I didn't pay shipping and I had the items today. Now that it's before-school crunch time, this is a real bonus.

The clearance tags are worth a look; if you don't have a Staples in your area, see what retailers will offer your school district a "corporate" buying card and snag their summer deals.

Happy shopping!