This Weekend, Shoppers Get a Break from Sales Tax

Kayla Desroches/KMXT

This weekend, Kodiak residents will be able to shop without the extra cost of sales tax. Sales Tax Free Day means patrons will save 7 percent on retail purchases, and Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Trevor Brown says that discount applies to everything from clothing to gas. He says it’s also a good time for people to make investments and big purchases.

“If you’re looking at buying something for the summer or whatever, now is a good time to think about it. And it helps people get out, find the retailers in town, and maybe they’ll discover a store that they hadn’t been in before or things like that, and allows them to purchase locally instead of sitting at home and doing it on the internet.”
 
The day also benefits the businesses. Brown says the first quarter of the year is usually the slowest.

“There’s very limited tourism this time of year, plus the weather kind of keeps people in. It’s after the holiday season when everybody’s kind of recuperating from the spending in the fall for Christmas and other holidays.”

This is the seventh year of Sales Tax Free Day.

“Several years ago, the city agreed to our proposal of holding a sales tax free day during the winter months. It’s been fairly well-received by the community and the retailers. We’ve done surveys in the past and a lot of the businesses see a considerable spike in their sales on that day.”

Sales Tax Free Day will be this Saturday. Keep your eyes and ears open for notices in the newspaper and on the radio for announcements of deals.