If you live near a Harold's store, you may not want to wait until Black Friday or later to start your holiday clothing shopping spree. A judge approved a giant liquidation sale which will be going on across all the chain's 43 stores in 18 states.

Harold's is an upscale retailer for women and men aged 30 to 50, which bills itself as "traditional, classic styled ladies and men's specialty apparel stores" and it has been in operation since 1948. So if you are thinking about the holidays, you could pick up a nice gift for those aunt and uncle types on your list, as well as a few wardrobe items for work and other special events.

In Tweeter's hometown of Boston, the closing of the remaining 94 stores of the electronics retailer is sad news. The chain started in the shadows of Boston University in 1972, selling stereo equipment to undergrads, and then morphed into selling more and bigger stuff. These days, BU students probably have more gear in one dorm room than Tweeter carried in its entire original store, but those kids are buying their goods elsewhere -- at the nearest Apple Store or on the Web. And so an era ends.

Tweeter is not alone, of course. Much of its competition is struggling too, like Circuit City, which is shutting down 155 stores. The investors who now own the Tweeter chain simply could not go on.

Steve & Barry's, the chain that sells everything for a maximum of $10.98, is closing 100 stores by the end of this month, and selling everything right down to the light fixtures. The chain has a handy web guide to tell you which stores will be closing when, so you know where to go to get extra-low discounts on hoodies, hats and college sweatshirts.

Most stores are closing by Sept. 24, so there isn't much time left. As the site says, "You'll never see deals this crazy again." So if you live near Montgomery, Alabama or Danville, Illinois or any of the other locations, go out shopping!