Be willing to pay more for good shorts, IMHO. Good shorts or lack thereof can make/break a ride. Try on lots of pairs and brands if you can. Some people like thick chamois, some minimal.

See if your LBS price matches online prices.

Jerseys - at a minimum, get 2. If you're going to go cheap on something, go cheap on jerseys. You can get house brand (Performance, Nashbar, etc) for really cheap from time to time.

armwarmers ++. IF you have small arms, you may want to try on a bunch in person first. The only brand I found that fit my tiny forearms was Specialized.