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Sales tax holiday set for Friday and Saturday [The Macon Telegraph :: ](Macon Telegraph (GA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) July 31--Back for another year Friday and Saturday, Georgia's annual back-to-school sales tax holiday includes some interesting items. Making this year's list of tax-free sale items: cleats, corsets and computers. Still on the taxable list are belt buckles without a belt, briefcases, MP3 players and janitorial supplies. "We're encouraging families to take advantage of the sales tax holiday," said Nick Genesi, director of communications for Georgia's Department of Revenue. Retailers are stocking up on tax-free-eligible items, including school supplies under $20, clothing under $100 and computers, computer equipment and software under $1,000. Brad Spiegel, owner of Quality Computer Systems in Macon, said he has been stocking up on inventory to meet the anticipated demand. "It really pushes about a month's worth of business -- two weeks on either side -- into one weekend," Spiegel said. Despite the compressed nature of the business, the sales tax holiday generally gives his business a boost. His store is offering discounts throughout the store, and free 7-inch Android tablets will be given to the first 30 customers to buy computer systems. "We stock up in inventory," Spiegel noted. If he were to run out of an item, Spiegel said, customers can still take advantage of the holiday by making their purchase and setting a delivery date. At Rumor Boutique in Macon, co-owner Ashley Johnson said the clothing store sees a bump in sales even without big discounts because shoppers are already in that "mode." "They are out and about and in shopping mode, and they stop in," Johnson said. At GA School Supply, a teacher's school supply house that sells to the public, the teachers have already stocked up on items from their lists, said co-owner Diane Vogel. Though teachers have missed the holiday's benefits, parents can take advantage of the sale, along with Vogel's 40 years of experience as a teacher to interpret their children's sometimes cryptic school supply lists. "A lot of people come to us because they expect us to be less crowded than the mall or Staples," Vogel said. "One thing we do is take that school supply list and go around and help pick up the items on that list. Some are worded in a way that is vague." The state has published a list of taxable and non taxable items at: http://1.usa.gov/1xd6OIs. To contact writer Mark Vanderhoek, call 744-4225. ___ (c)2014 The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Ga.) Visit The Macon Telegraph (Macon, Ga.) at www.macon.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |