Some retailers have several cards with different rewards geared to how frequently you shop and how many years you've been a customer. Nordstrom recently revamped its program to include a stable of four cards. You can apply online for some retail cards. Unlike bank cards, retail cards usually don't expire. So even if you haven't used a department store card for a while, it still could be valid.
Credit quagmire Unfortunately, too much credit can be a bad thing.
Don't accept every retail card offer you receive. ''The more cards you carry, the more opportunity to go deeper in debt at high rates,'' says Ken McEldowney, executive director of Consumer Action. In addition, the more store card and credit card accounts you have, the more monthly bills you receive. Unless you're very well organized, it can be easy to miss a due date and then you'll get slapped with a hefty late fee. The firms that compile your credit score don't just look at whether you pay your bills on time. On one hand, they consider it bad if you are close to maxing out your credit lines, says Ed Mierzwinski at U.S. Public Interest Research Group.