Great deals are easy to spot especially if it’s outside. A sidewalk sale at Gabriel Brothers attracts bargain hunters.

Credit: Beth Rankin

Whether it’s a new style for a new chapter in life or a necessity to complete decorating a residence hall room, there is a plethora of stores around campus to find what you need.

Wal-Mart, located on state Route 59, offers a freeloader student shopping card. Parents can put up to $2,500 on the card. Students can use it to buy books, residence hall essentials, clothes and more.

Wal-Mart is open 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday through Sunday. They offer the following: a photo center, a pharmacy, a tire and lube department and a vision center.

For products that are slightly higher in quality and style, Target is another good shopping spot. Like Wal-Mart it carries everything a college student could possibly need.

One Target location is in Stow, on Kent Road, and another close location is at Chapel Hill, on Howe Avenue. Both locations are open 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays.

Next to Target at Chapel Hill is Best Buy. For the students who need a room phone, a computer accessory or even TV, Best Buy is a 15 minute drive from campus. The store is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday.

Marc’s offers a smaller permanent selection, but discount prices. Students can usually find anything they need from shampoo to bananas.

The store is located on the other side of Howe Road in the Chapel Hill Plaza and is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday. On Sundays, the store is open until 7 p.m.

Gabriel Brothers in Kent offers a varied clothing selection at low prices. The Gabriel Brothers philosophy is to buy closeouts from places like the Limited, Abercrombie & Fitch, Victoria’s Secret and other name brands.

In addition to clothing, Gabes’ sells housewares and other closeout items.

“My friend bought stuff for his wedding at Gabriel Brothers,” Rock Café employee Drew Schultz said.

Some of the products that are being sold at Gabes are damaged. Shopping there takes a good eye, and the patience to try everything on to make sure that all the zippers, snaps and buttons work.

Gabriel Brothers is located on Route 59 in Kent, not far from campus.

“Thrift stores are a good idea,” Schultz said. “There is so much consumer waste. People want the authentic thrift store look.”

Goodwill located on Route 59 in Ravenna is a popular place for some college students to shop. It also offers a 10 percent discount with a student ID.

Nineteen-year-old Kent resident Amy Renkel shops at Goodwill.

“They have used things,” she said. “It is cheaper than most. I would definitely recommend Goodwill because you don’t have to worry about messing it up.”

There are also several malls in the area that students have access to. The closest to campus is Chapel Hill Mall.

Chapel Hill Mall is located on Brittain Road in Akron. It contains 102 stores including JCPenny’s, Kaufmann’s, Sears, Buckle, Express, Gap, Payless, Aeropostale, Bath and Body Works, Old Navy and more.

The mall is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon until 6 p.m. on Sunday. Department store and holiday hours vary.

Other popular shopping venues are Westfield’s Belden Village Mall in Canton and Summit Mall in Fairlawn. Both are a bit of a drive, but these malls offer plentiful shopping facilities.

“It’s really easy to get Summit or Westfield mall from I-76 if they don’t mind driving 20 minutes or so to shop,” sophomore exploratory major Stephanie Yatsu said. “Belden Mall is nice because they have every store that I like to shop in. Summit Mall is right down the street from West Akron, and I like to spend my time down there before I go to the mall or after.”

Each of these shopping districts offer a variety of shopping and restaurants around the malls. So if you’re looking for something from another store, chances are you will find it in one of these areas.

Contact general assignment reporter Heather Beyer at [email protected].