The Best (Not-MLK) Sales This Weekend

While retailers take any excuse to run a big sales promotion, they tend to shy away from Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, presumably because it seems inappropriate to use the name of the slain civil rights leader to sell stuff. In fact, Sears was mocked by Stephen Colbert for discounting mattresses by 50% for its "MLK Savings Event" two years ago; this year, Sears is just calling it a "Big Weekend Sale."

But it's still a long weekend, and people like to use their day off to shop. So here are a few retailers that are holding sales -- but not naming them after Dr. King.

Coupon site BeFrugal.com points us to Macy's, which is taking either 15% or 10% off everything in the store, depending on the department. If you're buying online, plug in the code WKND; if you're shopping in the store, print out the savings pass first. And be sure to read the fine print before you checkout.

That big weekend sale from Sears includes "up to 40% off" fitness equipment, which is one of our least-favorite deal phrases -- it could very well mean that you have a hundred items at 5% off and one that's 40% off. Even more ambiguous is the offer of "up to $30% off" appliances; when you click through to the fine print, it's clear that it's the dollar sign that's out of place, as the promotion is for discounts of 5% to 30%. And, yes, mattresses are 50%-60% off.

Guess, meanwhile, is taking 50% off for its carefully named "holiday weekend sale." The discount is good online and in stores, though it looks as if it's not an across-the-board sale, as the fine print specifies that it's on "select styles only." Fortunately, you won't need to guess which items are eligible for the discount; the price shown is the final price, so what you see is what you get. The sale is good through Monday.

Matt Brownell is the consumer and retail reporter for DailyFinance. You can reach him at Matt.Brownell@teamaol.com, and follow him on Twitter at @Brownellorama.