July clothes shopping includes three days of tax savings

Shop Painted Pink at 1941 Mulberry St. in Montgomery from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays. You can also find Painted Pink on Facebook and Instagram. Pictured from left are Lindsay Davis, operations manager, and Anne Tyler Crider, manager.

The summer shopping season is in full swing at Painted Pink in Montgomery.

“When the weather heats up, so does everyone’s event calendars,” said Pat McDonald, who owns the women’s boutique. This year, Painted Pink celebrates 16 years in business in the Capital City’s Mulberry Business District.

Between weddings, parties and other festive occasions, Pat and the ‘Pink Ladies,’ as they’re called, keep the shop open seven days a week to serve their customers.

“It is so much fun to take part in their important life events. We have a great team at Painted Pink, and I enjoy coming to work every day – it is a fun environment,” Pat added.

Summer Savings
For the second year in a row, Alabama will observe its annual Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday the third weekend in July. Set for Friday, July 20 through Sunday, July 22, shoppers statewide will have the opportunity to purchase certain school supplies, computers, books and clothing free of the state’s four percent sales or use tax.  Hundreds of cities and counties also participate, for a savings of up to 10 percent in some areas.

While the holiday was created to help families save money on items their children need for school, clothing stores like Painted Pink also get to extend the savings on qualifying items. Articles of clothing – like shirts, shorts, pants, dresses and jeans that are priced at $100 or less – are tax-free. Even some accessories, including backpacks, scarves, shoes, sandals and belts qualify.

“Every year, we have a lot of shoppers who come in here that weekend, and don’t realize some of our items are tax free,” Pat said. “And they’ll say, ‘Oh! I might look around some more.’ ”

Shop Alabama
In conjunction with the back-to-school and summer shopping season, the Alabama Retail Association encourages shoppers to buy from local and Alabama-based retailers through our #ShopAlabama campaign. Keeping your dollars in your community allows local retailers, like Painted Pink, to reinvest back into local causes.

“We are so grateful to the community for the support we get, and we love to give back! We support many local organizations by donating for silent auctions. There is so much need – we try to help in whatever way we can!” added Pat.

To learn more about Alabama’s back-to-school sales tax holiday, visit alabamaretail.org/alabamasalestaxholidays