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Changed the title and URL, everyone. Sorry.
I hadn’t planned to post anything this afternoon, but about a million people (maybe a million-and-a-half) sent me a story about Crissy Thompson from Gainesville, Georgia. Crissy sometimes spends just $10 a week on groceries. For her family of five. How does she do it? Coupons. Jay Watson spent a day with Crissy to learn the secret of her success.
Crissy was pregnant with her third child and had reached the point that she was breaking even paying for childcare while she worked. She and her husband agreed it would be best for her to try to stay home with their children but they had to find a way to save money.
The family’s grocery bill was $200 to $250 dollars a week. She began clipping coupons, trying to match them up with sales in the weekly fliers from grocery and drug stores. As Crissy’s husband Joe puts it, “At first it kind of blew my mind because she’d bring things home and I’d be like is this legit or what? Are we going to get in trouble?”
It was legit alright.
And it took a bit of research and work. It still does.
Crissy says it takes her about an hour a week to get ready for her shopping trip, a trip that takes three to four hours and involves three to seven stores in the area.
Some of this stuff is amazing. As in eye-opening. For example:
I learned from Crissy is that you can use one coupon per item.
All this time I had misunderstood what it says on each coupon, only one coupon per purchase. I took “purchase” to mean “transaction.” It’s not.
For example, Crissy grabbed two boxes of cereal that were buy 1, get 1 free. The cereal was $3.79 a box. Crissy had a three dollar coupon for each box of cereal. She made over $2.00 when she pulled those boxes off the shelves. I thought I could only use one coupon, no matter how many boxes or cans or whatever I’d bought. So that’s good for me to know.
Yeah — I thought it was “per transaction” also. It’s per item? Wow. Some of Crissy’s other secrets:
- She keeps her coupons in baseball card binders.
- She often buys produce at a local farmers market.
- She plays the “Drugstore Game”. (Don’t know the Drugstore Game? You will soon. Next Wednesday’s guest post explains the rules.)
- She doesn’t buy or clip coupons for items she doesn’t need.
- At some stores, like Target, you can use both a manufacturer’s coupon and a coupon printed from the merchant’s web site in order to double your savings.
- She doesn’t care about the stigma attached to coupons. Every dollar she saves is a dollar she keeps in her bank account.
During her day with the film crew, Crissy Thompson purchased $192 worth of stuff for $20. What’s her all-time best deal? She once paid two cents for over $380 of merchandise at Target. “No matter what your income level is,” she says, “you want to make that dollar go as far as you can.” Amen!
[11Alive.com: If I didn't see it with my own eyes..., which is the source of the image as well]
May 16th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Anyone know where she is getting $3 coupons off of cereal?
May 16th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Is she trading “complete deals” to get these savings?
I don’t think that’s legit.
May 16th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
We’re trying to get our grocery bill down too.
Our local grocery stores were/are doing a deal to try to get everyone’s stimulus check:
Buy $300, $600 or $1200 in store giftcards, and get a 10% bonus. We bought $1200 in gift cards and now have $1320 to spend on groceries.
I’ll have to work harder with grocery coupons and make that stretch further.
May 16th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
I had the same exact question as Luke. I just can’t find those really good coupons for my local stores. Am I not looking hard enough or am I not looking in the right places?
Jim
May 16th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Coupons are good, however when it comes to food, I noticed that most coupons are for processed foods that aren’t very good for you. I tend to cook from scratch. Coupons for fresh fruit/vegetables/meat are rare if not nonexistent altogether.
So yeah, great story if you eat a lot of processed food. Otherwise, meh.
May 16th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
I wish I were that organized. I do a lot of shopping at Trader Joes. Their regular prices are much lower than chain grocery stores. The exception would be produce. For that I look for the sales from sprouts.
May 16th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
You can print coupons online! The $3 cereal coupon might be the one here: http://www.kraftfoods.com/liveactivefoods/whatsNew/index.aspx
Velvet Jones, I don’t often use coupons on food either. Coupons for good, healthy food are hard to find, but they ARE out there. I use coupons for everything else - and I haven’t paid for toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant, shampoo, etc in 6 months! In fact, I sometimes get “paid” to take this stuff home.
May 16th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
Great story!
I’ve found the printable coupons online to be the best coupons. The ones that come in the paper aren’t that good.
I agree that a lot of coupons are for processed food, which we don’t eat much in our family. But I still benefit from coupons and have drastically cut down on my spending in the grocery store.
Someone mentioned the $3 off coupons. Here are a couple links that I have found and used.
The LiveActive cereal was $2.92 at Wal-Mart and with the $3 off coupon it was free. http://www.kraftfoods.com/liveactivefoods/whatsNew/index.aspx
The Honey Bunches of Oats Cereal is typically on sale here locally for $2 a box, or $2.28 normal price. Either way the $2 off coupons are a great deal.
http://www.kraftfoods.com/honeybunchesofoats/offers.html
http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rccubho45711692&bt=wi&o=51753&c=KF&p=uSTZF1xY
http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=rappcsr85099723&bt=wi&o=51752&c=KF&p=4TkwXr2V
http://bricks.coupons.com/Start.asp?tqnm=raxmbsu8035209&bt=wi&o=51658&c=HN&p=5zU69xrM
One great blog that I use to help scope out the deals is http://www.moneysavingmom.com Crystal posts a ton of great deals there.
May 16th, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Rich, there are some $3 off coupons that I saw at http://www.moneysavingmom.com/ this week (Thursday post, for Post’s Live Active cereal — something like that).
I normally “can’t be bothered” (said in a snobby way) with coupons, but have recently started reading this blog as well as others, trying to figure out how to pinch the pennies. We are REALLY feeling the low economy here, as well as soaring home insurance rates (up 100% this year). Maybe I’ll start clipping those coupons after all.
I found some coupons this week at http://www.coupons.com and http://www.smartsource.com . Like I said, I’m new to couponing, but think I won’t need to subscribe to the paper to get coupons, if I can continue to get good ones online at those sites. Someone else may have more sites for us.
May 16th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
“…a trip that takes three to four hours and involves three to seven stores.”
At $4/gallon, I wonder how much she spends on gas.
May 16th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Great story and I am sure a lot of blogs are going to pick it up and run with it. I did a recent post on a similar topic - http://www.savingtoinvest.com/2008/04/save-29-in-minutes.html - but don’t think that would match how much Crissy saves!
Amazing. Companies will probably change the coupons wording now.
May 16th, 2008 at 5:07 pm
I agree with Velvet Jones, I’ve never found coupons for the fresh produce that I buy. As for savings on toothpastes and soaps etc, we just don’t go through those items in the quantities that would be required to make several hours planning and shopping worth it.
May 16th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
My mother always looks for coupons. Never saw one for fruits and vegetables, though.
Personally, I don’t have time to look for them. If I happen to see a coupon for what I plan to buy or if my mother gives me one I use it, but usually I find my time more expensive. I’d probably look at websites above, though, no reason to pass up free money if it doesn’t take much time.
The only time I actively looked for coupons was during the internet bubble: the coupons were too good to pass. Those were the days! I could get $20 worth of premium cat food for $5 delivery cost using pets.com’s “$20 off - no minimum purchase” coupons; and their prices were low to begin with, they would’ve been attractive even without the coupons or at least with some minimum purchase. For two years I was feeding my cat for almost nothing. Occasionally, I’d feel guilty and spend $5 more than the coupon value. There were no shortages of coupons - you could always find them as needed. amazon.com also had coupons, but they usually set minimum purchase. I guess this is why they are still around.
May 16th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
the drugstore game is pretty good. That CVS extra bucks card and the delas they have with that are great to use for non food items. you can do really well with those.
If you are really interested in saving money this way go to the forums at slickdeals.net, not the front page, the forums.
May 16th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
There are occasionally coupons for fresh fruits and vegetables in regular Sunday circulars — I’ve seen coupons for Sunkist lemons, bagged lettuce and spinach, and cut-up, unadulterated pineapple and the like. You also see other wholesome things like brown rice and tofu sometimes. I’m not a processed food eater and I’m a celiac with some other food issues to boot and I do find my Sunday paper subscription worth its price for the coupon savings.
Mambo Sprouts is another good source for “healthy” food coupons. You can get their circulars free at Whole Foods (I would assume also at similar stores, though we’ve only got WF in my area) and they’ll mail to some places. Organic Valley always has tons of coupons in there, among others. I believe their website is http://www.mambosprouts.com/
May 16th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
Nice story. Unfortunately, I can see the loopholes closing pretty quickly once word of this gets out. Poor woman probably doesn’t even realize that she’s shot herself and other coupon clippers who may be aware of these *secrets* in the foot. The media is in on the exploitation of the consumers, and now that Jay Watson has learned all her secrets, and has announced them to the world and, more importantly, to the merchants, they are no longer secrets and will soon no longer work. Loose lips sink ships…and this baby’s just taken two torpedoes amidships.
May 16th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
I use coupons, but buy less and less processed foods, so I don’t use as many as I used to. I also get a weekly email from my local grocery store with some very good coupons, which I print out.
Food for thought–If you see good coupons for products you personally don’t use, you can also use those to buy products that you donate to the local food bank. This is a relatively low cost way to donate to a charity, especially if you time the coupon use with the product sale (which also works well for your own purchases).
Another tip: I use expired coupons often. While some cashiers are picky and notice, the fact is that the manufacturers accept them way after the expiration date from the grocery stores, so use them if you can. Of course, I do try to use them well in advance of the expiration date, but sometimes the timing is just off.
I use a fanny pack for my coupons with the coupons facing me once the pack is zipped open. I made my own dividers out of construction paper. This hands-free method makes finding coupons easier.
I also belong to the frequent shopper’s programs and for a regular shopping trip always save at least $20 that way and usually more like $50 (plus my coupons). I don’t care if they track my buying preferences for those types of savings.
Because I live in a rural area, I only shop at one store (the only grocer we have) most of the time, so multi-stops are not an option for me for savings. I have other frequent shopper cards for different locations (like where my son goes to college) to make sure all my bases are covered.
May 16th, 2008 at 8:49 pm
Coupons can be helpful, even if you don’t like to buy processed food. Last week, Publix had 5 pound bags of Mahatma rice on sale for $2.99. They double coupons up to 50 cents here, so I got them for $2.29 each - more than a dollar cheaper than anyplace else I could get rice.
Also, Publix will accept comptetitor’s coupons. Target will occassionally have coupons up for broccoli, cauliflower and bananas - which I can use at Publix. Dole and Fresh Express put out coupons for their bagged salad mixes, which Publix has on sale buy one get one free fairly often.
We buy soy milk, and in the last six months have usually paid half price - if not less - for Silk and 8th Continent brands. Since soy milk has a very long shelf life compared to regular milk, this has helped a lot.
Kraft puts out coupons for their block and shredded cheeses; again, Publix often runs buy one get one free sales on these items.
I’ve found http://www.couponmom.com to be incredibly helpful - but I like the challenge of finding deals. http://www.moneysavingmom.com has helped me learn how to get all my household products incredibly cheap.
There are only two of us in my house, but a year ago I was spending $100 a week on all food, personal and household items. Now I’m down to $40 a week. Yes, it takes planning. But I can do it while I watch the news in the evening.
In addition - and this has become a big point of pride for me - I’ve been able to contribute toothpaste,deodorant, razors, laundry detergent, etc., to a local women’s shelter - all items that I’ve gotten free, while spending considerably less on things I use.
To me, it’s money and time well spent.
May 16th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
Some grocery stores also have student discount programs.
At least the Smith’s stores in Utah give a bonus 5% discount to anyone who uses a student frequent shopper card.
May 16th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
As someone who has worked a register at a grocery store, I can tell you there are people that take advantage of coupons- there are scammers that use coupons and rebates to get an item free, and then return it. We have some tricks to figure that out, and we aren’t stupid, but that is irritating as all hell.
Also, Shirley, I wouldn’t brag about using expired coupons. Often, those end up costing the store money because expired coupons don’t necessarily get reimbursed. A week? Not a big deal. A year? A huge deal, because they are not reimbursed by most companies.
Just remember: people who work in grocery stores have to eat too.
May 16th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
I shop at trader joes so I just have to settle for inexpesive, natural, organic, and fantastic food……..I dont mind spending 60 bucks a week on food.
May 16th, 2008 at 11:37 pm
Thanks for the article. I’m always very self-conscious and embarassed when using coupons. Which is, of course, silly.
My problem is that finding coupons for natural and organic products and other healthy products is difficult. And if you tend to stick with certain brands, saving money becomes even harder to do.
May 17th, 2008 at 12:37 am
I don’t think this gal has “shot herself in the foot” at all. If these stores are market savvy they will thank their lucky stars that the “secret” is out. It is giving them a HUGE amount of free publicity. Maybe they know that most people are too lazy or disorganized or simply not skillful enought to get the savings that this lady gets on a continual basis. We all know that making your lunch daily saves hundreds of dollars but many people still do not do it. This will just bring many new people into the stores and most will become average customers who spend money there with an occasional savings from a few coupons.
May 17th, 2008 at 4:25 am
I use a combination of tactics (including coupons) to save money on my grocery bill. I buy generics, shop at BJ’s Warehouse, shop at Wal-Mart, match coupons with sales etc. It really doesn’t take long to do all this stuff and I save a lot of money. Not as much as Chrissy but I also buy grass fed beef and avoid a lot of processed foods.
For all those people arguing that they can’t use coupons because they don’t buy processed foods…have you ever really looked at the coupon section on a regular basis? You need to define processed foods. Technically, canned tomatoes are processed foods but I buy those all the time and there are constantly coupons for them. Same with canned beans. What about yogurt? I don’t buy the stuff with HFCS in it but I still find coupons for the better stuff. It is true that I don’t use all the coupons in the paper or even most of them. But by combining sales and the coupons I do use I can get some amazing deals and stock up on stuff like canned tomatoes, brown rice, cheese, whole wheat pasta etc. when they are on sale. That way I have money to spend on things like grass fed beef and hormone free milk.
May 17th, 2008 at 6:46 am
I agree with Leslie. I save about 20% a week with coupons. Then, I can spend more for fresh produce and organics. Why pay for toothpaste, etc when you can get it for free without much effort?
May 17th, 2008 at 7:12 am
Two thoughts:
1)Coupons seems very American thing. Here in the UK, they are not so prevelent. Stores do a lot of ‘buy one get one free’ deals though which can save you a lot of money as long as you actually use everything you buy. There was an article here recently about how much food we throw away every year - much of it from over-buying due to the prevelence of these kind of deals. People buy stuff in bulk using BOGOF, thinking its cheaper, then the extra food rots or goes out of date before they can eat it - this is NOT frugal, just ridicukously wasteful.
2)The coupons that I do see here - and I suspect this is the same in the USA - are pretty much all for heavily packaged, branded, processed food - often just junk like boxed pizzas, fizzy drinks, oven chips etc. Eating this stuff is cheap short term but perhaps not long-term if your health, weight and wellbeing suffers due to a diet based upon it.
I find I can eat cheaply - not for nothing and not as cheap as living off the super-discounted junk - but then I don’t EXPECT to eat for nothing - food to me is a necessary expense - by cooking from scratch using fresh seasonal ingredients and substituting grains and pulses for expensive meat. I’m not a vegetarian but I feel a damn sight healthier eating this way with the added bonus that I’m aware of what goes into my food, which I wouldn’t be if I lived off the endless boxed rubbish I got trying to save even more money.
May 17th, 2008 at 8:36 am
Further clarification: A friend who works for a food manufacturer told me several years ago that their coupons never really expire even if they show an expiration date. Perhaps things have gotten stricter. However, that said, I am talking about a week at most for using a coupon that’s past its expiration date (hence, my scheduling comment). I would never leave someone else holding the bag so I could reap benefits.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:00 am
I got the free cereal this week too and blogged about it. It was free at ACME markets it PA.
The CVS thing is for real too, I blog about the best deals and coupon match ups each week on my blog. I also list the free after rebate items for Rite Aids. The drugstores do really give stuff away with coupons, rebates, etc.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:13 am
I really like the idea of using the coupons for good deals on toiletries and then donating those to a local womens shelter, abuse haven, or a group that gathers clothes and products to help some women enter a better work arena. Okay, I’m being sexist but you know what I mean–fill in children, disaster victims, men-groups, military, college kids’ care packages, food pantries…
Lending a hand is an important facet of my life but I am feeling the pinch of the economy in a pretty serious way. While I donate “time” in other ways, sometimes things just take money. This is kind of a barter system of time for “purchasable” things.
I can spend an hour a week to obtain things to help others gain a better grip on life, that I may not otherwise afford. Huh. Plain simple but never thought about it that way.
Thanks much #18 Deborah and #17 Shirley!
May 17th, 2008 at 9:33 am
@ Leslie, I honestly have never seen coupons for the unprocessed foods that I buy, maybe it’s a Canadian thing? I buy my beans in the bulk section and fresh tomatoes because I have more use for them. I’ve never found a coupon for my yoghurts but I do buy them on sale. Oh and living in Canada means my milk is hormone free already.
If I found coupons that I could use, I would, but honestly this system does not work for me, but I am glad so many others have been able to reduce their bills.
May 17th, 2008 at 9:36 am
I thought it was common knowledge that you can use one coupon per item! Guess I was mistaken about that!
This couponer’s experience can’t be described as the norm, though. Many stores will not allow overage on coupons, so you can’t “make” money on purchases. Also, I’m willing to bet a lot of her coupons are online printables, which many stores will not accept!
Power to her, though! I’m also a big couponer, and have used the “binder method” (baseball card sheets) to organize my coupons for years! You should see some of the looks I get!!
May 17th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Sorry, but I have to agree with Single Ma here, my first thought was “3 to 7 stores in the area?! How much is she spending on gas?” Having lived in Georgia in the past as well, I can tell you that those stores aren’t sitting right next to each other either. Third, I have to agree with L, I’ve never seen coupons for unprocessed things, either, though I’ve seen SALES for unprocessed items. I’m glad she is finding ways to save money, but I have to wonder how much she’s actually saving in the long run, what with gas, HEALTHY food, and time with her family.
May 17th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
There’s not much here that would surprise the retailers. They understand that a certain percentage of shoppers (maybe 1-2%) will be extremely aggressive with couponing. Most people aren’t that interested in it, don’t have the detail orientation and patience needed to make it work or feel couponing is beneath them.
The real secret is shared information. From a site like hotcouponworld.com, you get multiple people trying the deals in the chains and you can find out how to work the deal for your advantage. With shared information and enough people working the scenarios, you end up with much better deals (and faster) than before the Internet.
I shop like this and am at a point where I’m end up making a profit by shopping (selling excess to friends, rebates and gift cards for Rx transfers and other special offers). I’m a bachelor, so I’ll eat almost anything, but even if you end up with all your toothpaste, shampoo, soap and laundry detergent for the year at no cost — you’ve saved a bunch of money.
May 17th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
Kraft sent me a “free” coupon for salad dressing this week, but considering the ingredients (many multisylabic chemicals) and packaging (plastic) we just bought our regular brand of bottled refrigerated dressing and left the coupon for someone else to use.
When you really change over to a whole food/mostly organic diet,you end up with very few coupons that are much use…
On the other hand, I wrote to thank a detergent company for the new triple concentrated formula they are using (much less packaging) — and got two coupons for free detergent — at 30+ loads each thats months and months of less expensive clothes washing…
May 17th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I, too, at one time was a hardcore coupon person and I still use them to some extent to save money. Just as a bit of additional information, there is a magazine that specializes in couponing. It’s called Refunding Makes Cents. They even have a website. The website address is RefundCents and it’s run by the woman who is known as the “first” queen of couponing. It covers everything from using couponing to save on groceries to other items such as appliances. It also has other interesting articles on readers who use couponing to give back to the community by donating items that they’ve gotten for free to food banks, etc. I haven’t subscribed to the magazine/website in a while, but I can say that the online website and the magazine were very helpful in helping me save money. The only reason why I’m not as hardcore as I used to be is that it takes time or strong organizational skills for couponing to pay off like the reader that was featured on Get Rich Slowly.
May 17th, 2008 at 6:04 pm
One other note … don’t assume that your store’s Buy One, Get One Free deals actually require you to buy two of the item. After rarely using the BOGO offers, I finally asked one of the experienced cashiers if you did really need to buy two and she told me no, you get the first item half price whether you buy the second item or not. Apparently, their computer system is set up that way. That knowledge has been a big savings for me. My local store is Food Lion. I don’t know if it’s true of all Food Lions or just mine. So it’s worth asking what their policy is.
May 17th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
As far as the gas that she spends going from store to store, according to something Crissy posted on another site, all of the stores she frequents are in very close vicinity to one another. I don’t think she’s wasting anything on gas.
As to expired coupons, Buy One Get One Free items, etc. The key is to KNOW your store! Talk to the manager and get the low down on what is acceptable. Like the grocery store I shop does not double coupons and will not “give me money” when I have a coupon that’s worth more than the item and they do not accept expired coupons. They do, however, accept competitor’s coupons. Many times I will get Winn Dixie or Albertson’s coupons in the “junk mail” fliers for $5 off $40 purchase, which my store will honor. But know your store’s policy and you won’t be doing anything wrong. You can still save a lot even without some of the other “perks.”
As far as coupons for produce, etc. They do exist. They are not as prevalent as other coupons, but they are in existence. I even have coupons for some organic products, and I think as organic products become more and more popular, so will the coupons.
Couponing is definitely a commitment IMO, but it does pay off when you see the $$ stay in the bank.
May 17th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
I posted about this over on my blog as well. Coupons are great and can save a LOT of money if you just spend a little time doing research in the beginning. The coupons are not all processed foods. But, every penny I save on the foods that I have coupons for is a penny I can put toward lean meats and vegetables and still come out ahead on the grocery shopping.
I haven’t paid for toothpaste, tooth brushes, shampoo, or deoderant in months. All because of coupons. If I can get it free but can’t use it, I’ll get it anyway and donate it. Dog and cat food, clucometers, children’s soaps and many other things go directly to a shelter for battered women and children.. AND I get a tax deduction for the full value of the donation. Can’t beat that.
May 18th, 2008 at 5:04 am
For those who want to hit multiple stores but are concerned about gas…
I rotate grocery stores on a weekly basis. If you have a coupon good for a month or so, you would be able to use the coupon on one of your trips.
Another thought is that maybe she hits the store while she’s in the area, rather than making a special trip. I keep a soft-sided cooler in my trunk all the time, so I am prepared if I happen to have a couple minutes free to shop while I’m in the vicinity of the grocery store.
May 18th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
I just wanted to comment on the 3-7 stores bit and how she’s most likely spending alot on gas. I go to 4 markets every week, but it all works out. 1 of them is right next to my work, the other is right next to my apt, and the 2 others are on the way back from the gas station, so I go to them when I’m nearby, rather than going out of my way just to get a deal. Granted I only get gas every 2 weeks so I don’t head up to those 2 stores quite every week, but still.
May 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
This is one of the advantages of living in a more populous area- I have a total of four choices for groceries in my county, and I seldom drive to the other towns which leaves me with one choice- on the other hand I learned yesterday that our local Safeway will let you split up a large purchase- this gives you a 20 cent per gallon discount on two tanks of gas rather than one. I’ll write an extra check for that
May 18th, 2008 at 7:21 pm
i’d be interested to know what the meat content was of the trip to the store. i have a gard time wrapping my head around it when i hear people say that they spend $250 per week on groceries for 4 people. i was at someone’s house once when the wife came home complaining about a $320 order - but what I saw was a bunch of snacks and drinks. well….yeah. my wife and i keep it simple….fresh meat, fruits, veggies, pasta…hardly any cookies or snacks. good article though. i will check some of those sites out.
May 19th, 2008 at 4:36 am
I am a regular CVS shopper but have never signed up for the Extra Care loyalty program because of the Extra Care security breach that happened a while back. http://www.adpulp.com/archives/2005/06/cvs_knows_you_l.php
I would be concerned, especially with a pharmacy, about having all my purchases recorded by a company and then the company not safeguarding that data (which is what happened at CVS).
What do those of you who use these loyalty programs think about the risk of the world finding out your purchasing history?
May 19th, 2008 at 9:53 am
Couponers have been getting free stuff and “working the system” legitimately for years - the retailers aren’t going to be surprised by Crissy.
@Sam
Personally, I’m not worried. If someone wants to know that I bought a bunch of free toothpaste and deoderant, so be it. Maybe they’ll send me more coupons! I don’t have any prescription medications, so I’m not really worried about the privacy matter. That’s just me, though
May 19th, 2008 at 10:41 am
@SAM
Why give them your real name?
May 19th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
“it takes time or strong organizational skills for couponing to pay off like the reader that was featured on Get Rich Slowly.”
I haven’t had the time to work on coupons yet. I just don’t see deals on things we buy. Like others here, we buy fresh produce mainly. And our non-food costs are really negligible. So I just can’t bring myself to build the habits and skills I’d need, with my precious spare time. Now, if DH would take on something else to free me up to work on couponing - that would be different.
“I just wanted to comment on the 3-7 stores bit and how she’s most likely spending alot on gas.”
If she’s doing all her chores in a single trip (and she says she is - smart girl!), probably not. In a five-mile radius, there are at least 20 different grocery stores near my house - including a Costco. Taking a single trip to visit these places is very efficient; I could easily visit 4 to 7 stores on less than $2.00 of gas. So if she is in a similar situation and saves $0.50 per store, she’s broken even. Even *I* could save $0.50 a store on coupons
May 19th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Hi –
After seeing the Chrissy article, I thought you might be interested in a recent video I made. Feel free to post the video on your blog. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoq7edibV_g
Check out my crazy coupon video on YouTube! Feel free to post a comment at YouTube!
Thanks!
Laura
May 19th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
I’m a coupon clipper myself. It takes hours of work and likely Chrissy is not taking any of her kids to the store/s. I’m not quite as diligent as Chrissy but have been able to shave off 40% off most of our grocery bills. You need to be ready to stock up and have room in your cupboards.
I strongly suggest starting a price list, there are formats already set in several websites, including http://www.couponmom.com, which was already mentioned. The pricelist will keep you from buying things that are currently “on sale” at that store but may be cheaper elsewhere. Be aware that others are just as thrifty and the store may run out of the item.
ALWAYS watch the register and study the flyers, get to know your local stores and how they work. The cashiers will make a mistake, I’ve returned items and/or received cash back for items I did not receive the appropriate credit for.
You’ll save tremendously if you try generic and us bulk bin items rather than packaged items. Besides, you’ll be doing something for the environment by avoiding packaging if you try the bulk bin items.
Be patient and do not let any store manager/cashier make you feel like coupons are not worth while. Happy clipping!
May 19th, 2008 at 6:36 pm
Kudos to Chrissy and what she’s doing to stretch the family budget. I too have been an avid couponer and refunder for years. I save and make hundreds of dollars a year by combining the two techniques. Contrary to what Walter #16 thinks, this is not a “secret” that has been leaked. Chrissy, and other like her, are taking the time and doing the work by combining manufacturers coupons with sales and store coupons to maximize corporate incentives - not exploiting a loop hole.
I first became interested in serious couponing in 1986 after seeing a similar article in a major women’s magazine. I purchased “The Super Coupon Shopping System” book in 1994 after reading another such article. In the 22 years that I have been doing this, very little has changed in the coupon world despite numerous stories over the years of other “super savers”. Manufacturers know that most people are not going to put in the effort that this type of coupon use requires. Personally, I think it’s fun and get excited about the deals that I get, but I will be the first to admit that it’s not for everyone. People have different lifestyles and buying needs. This is just one tool available in achieving your goal of “Getting Rich Slowly”. It’s up to you to decide whether or not it works for your situation.
May 28th, 2008 at 9:32 am
While I am an avid fan of coupons, I am probably never going to be as good at it as Chrissy. I am, however, totally intrigued with her ability to spend so little.
If you too find it interesnting, you may enjoy this lady:
http://jane4girls800dollarannualbudget.blogspot.com/
She set an annual budget of $800 (not a typo) for her grocery purchases. She has MADE money and is in the $845 range at the moment.
Me, I just do the research and post the info on coupons, rebates & refunds. For those that are short on time, have a Kroger or one of the Kroger family of stores in your area, you are in luck. You can now save by electronically loading your coupons onto your Kroger loyalty card by visiting Shortcuts.com, P&G.com, Unilever and Kroger.com
I have them all listed in the middle column of my blog http://alccoupons.blogspot.com/ - If you need help getting started couponing, go here and you’ll find an extensive list posted.
June 3rd, 2008 at 7:58 am
I too have turned to couponing so that I can stay home with my baby. I disagree with all the folks that who say that clipping coupons means that you’re not eating healthy. I buy all my natural (no hormones, no icky stuff) meat from a local butcher shop for a discount since I buy a lot at a time and freeze it. I also subscribe to an organic veggie delivery service to get most of my produce. I use the coupons to buy my staples/drugstore stuff for free or close to free. I don’t feel like I’m eating any less healthy and like others, I’m able to donate often to the local food bank.
July 5th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Just shopped at Publix in Florida on the 4th of July…they are running an unbelievable special where if you buy $20 of fresh meat (and right now rib eye steaks I think were on sale for 5.99lb) and then you purchase a 12 pack of Miller Lite or Miller Genuine Draft you can fill out a rebate form (which I picked up at the meat counter) and mail it in to receive $20.00 back…However it is only available in Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, and I think Alabama…so if you live in those areas and are a beer drinker, you can basically get your meat for free!!! Wouldn’t have known to look for deals like this until I read the article. In addition, Publix was offering a special where if you buy $6 worth of fresh meat, you get a free 2 liter of 7up, Root Beer, etc. So basically I got 3 ribeyes for free, as well as a 2 liter of soda, for buying a 12 pack of beer….twist my arm.
July 14th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
A friend pointed me in the direction of this site and I found Crissy’s video.
I thought that she must be really lucky to be able to do that and good for her. I live in Canada and most manufacturer coupons are not vaild where I live if the item is already on a certain sale amount so I could never save as big as she does. I do get really good deals on personal products sometimes and I do avidly watch flyers for really good sales at all the local grocery stores. I live in a big city so I have a bunch of chains within walking distance and one or the other always has my favourites on sale so I rarely pay full price. Walking to all the different stores to and loading up is great exercise as well I must say.
I also noticed as many of you did that she seems to buy a lot of processed foods. It is true that you can get great deals on non-processed foods and there are coupons out there for those foods. However, I noticed that she was mainly buying processed and another thing I picked up on is that, and please don’t take this as being rude, but she, her husband and three children all seemed more than moderately overweight. That is a concern and I highly doubt that if she was shown buying produce and other natural foods that her bills would have been that low.
I’m not a huge health nut, but I do exercise regularly and eat a well balanced diet. Seeing as how she lives in the US where health care is expensive, I have to wonder down the road if she’ll end up paying all the money she’s saved on groceries out in medical bills.