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| Shopping and Services in the US |
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Clothing
Clothing may be purchased in department stores, specialty stores and discount stores. These stores are often located in shopping malls. The American system of sizing clothes may be new to you so consult the appendix of this guidebook to determine your size.
For more information on any of these or other consumer protection laws in New York State write the Office of the Attorney General, The State Capitol, Albany, NY 12224 or (518) 474-5481.
Please refer to our page on for conversions of American sizes.
Food
Most likely, you will be shopping for food and general household items at supermarkets, such as the Big M and Tops. Some of these larger centers offer not only the regular items normally available at grocery stores, but also include their own bakeries, butcher section where one can special order meat items, a pharmacy, banking, video library, florist, photo developing, etc.
Furniture
Buying furniture can be a large undertaking. Retail furniture stores can be quite expensive. In an attempt to save money, you might try discount stores or those that specialize in used furniture. Other ideas include "garage sales." People who are moving or who have bought newer items occasionally sell their own articles at garage sales.
The used furniture and garage sales are listed in the classified section of the daily newspapers. Ask fellow students where to find furniture bargains. It's often possible to buy furniture or household goods from students who are graduating or returning home. Colgate residence halls are furnished with a bed, dresser, closet, and lamp.
Laundry and Dry Cleaning
For students residing in the dormitories, there are washing machines and dryers available in the dorms at low cost - $1 per load for both the washing and drying machines.
There is a somewhat expensive service, called 'Bizzy Bodies', that picks up your dirty laundry from campus, washes, dries and irons it. Off-campus laundries which clean or wash clothes can be found by consulting the telephone directory yellow pages. Dry cleaning, storage and minor repairs are some of the services offered by most laundries. Hamilton's laundry is located at 15 Eaton Street.
Self-service, automatic washing machines are found in laundromats where you do your own washing. This is less expensive than using commercial laundries. You can purchase soap from vending machines at the laundromat, but is usually cheaper to buy your own in a grocery store. Laundromats also provide automatic dryers and dry cleaning machines. Be sure to read the instructions on the machine carefully before washing your clothes.
Return of Merchandise
Some stores allow customers to return unused merchandise for a good reason (for example, the wrong size). Purchase receipts must be presented to obtain a refund. A store credit may be given if you do not have a receipt. Some businesses will give the customer credit for another purchase. It is important to remember that there is a time limit for exchanging merchandise, usually 30 days.
Sales Tax
Sales taxes are levied on most merchandise items. The current tax rate in Madison County is 7.25%. This means that an additional charge of 7.25% is levied to the printed price of an article.
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