Anything from a little break to a big reduction in state sales tax awaits those who shop for back-to-school supplies, electronics, appliances and most other retail purchases Friday and Saturday.

The 2017 Louisiana Annual Sales Tax Holiday has the attention of at least a few potential buyers who want a hand-held GPS from Magic Video on South Lewis Street and for any shoppers who plan to either buy or layaway appliances at places like A & A Appliance Center on East St. Peter Street.

People will pay three percent state sales tax instead of five percent during the two-day holiday. The exemption covers $2,500 of the price on each eligible item.

Local taxes still apply during the period, according to the state Department of Revenue.

“We actually have a couple shoppers that are going to wait to buy hand-held GPSes for deer hunters,” Magic Video president Andre St. Upery said Tuesday afternoon. “They’re about $1,000 a unit, so they’ll have some significant savings there.”

The family-owned store isn’t open for business on Saturdays, he pointed out, so he anticipates an increase in shoppers who also might be looking for audio and video products such as as Samsung and LG televisions.

“So if you come in to buy a big screen for the football season, you can save on the (state) sales tax,” the 52-year-old St. Upery said.

He plans to get the word out on the two-day holiday.

“I’m going to see if I can make some people happy this weekend. I’m looking at the delivery board and I’m going to make sure those people know what’s going on Friday,” he said.

According to Byron Henderson, state Department of Revenue public information director, the exemption applies to the first $2,500 of the purchase price of each eligible item when the customer:

• Buys and accepts delivery of eligible property.

• Places property on layaway.

• Acquires property that previously was placed on layway.

• Places an order for immediate delivery, even if the delivery must be delayed, provided the customer has not requested delayed delivery.

As for the savings, Henderson said in a news release, someone buying a $2,500 flat-screen TV and a $2,500 refrigerator would pay a 3 percent tax on each item, rather than 5 percent. If something has a price tag of $2,800, the full 5 percent tax would be charged on $300 of the cost, he said.

The layaway aspect appeals to many shoppers, according to Richard Pellerin, who owns A & A Appliance Center. The business was opened seven decades ago by the late Alton Segura and the late Anthony Hebert. Segura bought out Hebert in the early 1970s.

Pellerin, 47, was looking forward to giving customers the reduced tax break. Like Magic Video, his business is closed Saturday but will be open Friday.

“It think it helps out, especially for people going to school. I think it helps a lot of people, especially with sales tax going up and everything when the new governor came in. He upped it a little bit,” he Pellerin said Tuesday afternoon from A & A Appliance Center.

The local store’s owner also said the sales tax holiday is beneficial to homeowners who want to by a “really nice, big refrigerator for home, or a washer, or dryer, or stove.”

It has been his experience that some shoppers who want to buy one or more of those appliances a week or two before the sales tax holiday wind up waiting for the opportunity to save money.

The two-day period also appeals to people who either have put items on layaway or plan to put an item on layaway, Pellerin said. Those who are remodeling kitchens or other areas of their home often decide to go the layaway route, he said.

“On $2,500, they save an extra 75 bucks. It’s in their pocket and it helps them out a little bit. They’ll buy washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators and, right now it’s still pretty hot, we’re still selling air conditioners,” he said.

At Apple Core on East St. Peter Street, which sells school supplies, owner Dianne Henneman acknowledges that the sales tax holiday makes “more of a difference on big ticket items.”

“Overall, it’s a good things for customers shopping in Louisiana. Everybody likes to save money,” Henneman said.

However, the reduced state tax rate is available on school supplies, she pointed out. With Iberia Parish students going back to school Friday, the store has been and will be busy as teachers finish shopping and parents and guardians get what their children need for classes.

Apple Core held an event for teachers Friday, which was well-attended, she said.

Louisiana is one of 16 states offering sales tax holidays in which state sales tax charges are temporarily dropped on back-to-school items and other qualifying products. Most fall on the first weekend of August.

Other states with sales tax holidays are Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Georgia scrapped its program.

The Louisiana sales tax holiday doesn’t apply to vehicles that must be titled or licensed, or to restaurants or taxable services such as laundry or hotel rooms.