College: Where to get your supplies

Ever been to a place, and have no idea where to go to get certain supplies? Yes? No?

For me it is a huge YES.

My freshman year, my dad and I had no idea where to go to get my school supplies, so we walked to the nearest Dollar General, and bought almost everything for my apartment. We walked with bins full of bed sheets, food, notebooks, etc. back to my dorm(almost a mile away).

Well after 7 years, I realize that I should have done a bit more research about the different stores to go to in my area depending on the categories.

WEATHER :

the weather is so important on what you need to pack. In West Africa, Senegal, the weather didn’t reach below 18 C, so we didn’t need big coats. However in Erie, PA ( One of the snowiest place in US), I needed the big guns(big coats). The best places I found on a budget were Burlington, Marshall’s, TJ Max and Amazon to buy my clothes.

DORM SUPPLIES:

My dad and I didn’t know where Walmart was, or didn’t even know how Amazon worked. So we decided to walk to the nearest Dollar General to buy my lamp, bed sheets and even a comforter. We then found a way to get to the mall, where we changed the comforter to a better quality. After 7 years, I found more places to help you get your supplies at: IKEA(furniture store), Target, Walmart, Dollar general, JC Penney and Amazon.

BULK ITEM AT A DISCOUNTED PRICE

Sam’s Club is an amazing place to go. If you do not have a Sam’s club, you may have a Costco. Same concept: Buy in BULK. You can buy toilet paper that can last you 6 months, food for the whole month , etc. AMAZING PLACE. But you need a membership to buy there. So easy way, is to go there with your Student ID and get the student card for 25$ a year(Sam’s Club price).

Amazon is another choice too. They have now the option for you to have supplies delivered every 3 months or when you need them. Easy thing to do when you do not have a car or far from a bus location.

FOOD 

For food, you have Walmart, Wegmans, Sam’s club, Dollar General, Publix, but also Amazon for your choices. I prefer Wegmans for my meats and Sam’s club for fruits and bigger items. Walmart will be a place I go from time to time for other seasonings I can’t find in Wegmans.

I hope this will help you through the transition.