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Too logical for my own good - Extreme Couponing.

So a couple needed to save another $500 for an e-ring.

They say she needs to save over $500 at the next shopping trip.    So they go shopping and buy 50 lotions, 25 toothpastes and who knows how much other shit.  This is on top of all the stuff they already have at home.   Of course, she did save over $500.

Now no one needs 50 lotions.   So if she just didn't go shopping she would have saved the same $500?  No?   Too logical?







What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
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Re: Too logical for my own good - Extreme Couponing.

  • Yeah, I'd much rather pay interest on a credit card than store all that crap!

    Some couponers sell the stuff though - I see stashes now and then on my local yard sale facebook and maybe they have friends who regularly buy off them.

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  • The story has a woman who donates the stuff to a women's shelter and an animal shelter.  That's awesome.   

    The couple above were all about her stock pile and how they "have to save $500" in order to pay cash for the ring.  Which paying cash is a good thing.   However, there was no need to save $500 on a grocery bill for items you didn't even need anyway.

    Oh, and the BF already bought the ring on his credit card.  Blah.








    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • Yeah, it's not a savings if you're buying shit you don't need just b/c it's 2-for-1 or on sale. 
    What did you think would happen if you walked up to a group of internet strangers and told them to get shoehorned by their lady doc?~StageManager14
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  • I would be so stressed having to store all that stuff.   Seriously.


    This week DH and I are doing clean out the pantry and fridge food nights.   We are pretty stocked so we want to use up what we have.   Our grocery bill this week will be pretty light.  Only picking up some fresh fruits and milk.

    Finding a place for 50 lotions would put me over the edge.   I really don't use a lot of lotion, so 50 would last me 20 years.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • Yea, I never got that Extreme Couponing thing. The amount of time that it takes to coupon is basically a full time job. Just get a job and buy what you need when you need it. You'd be saving/earning more money that way, no?
  • This new chick needs her own shed for her stock pile.   She has 1000's of pads and she had a hysterectomy.  

    Grocery shopping takes 6-8 hours.

    I just can't.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • JennyColadaJennyColada member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    edited May 2015
    lyndausvi said:

    Grocery shopping takes 6-8 hours.

    WHY?! JUST GET A JOB.
  • jacques27jacques27 member
    First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited May 2015
    1. Just the amount of time and organization needed is enough to wear me out (of course, I also work).
    2. None of the stores near me double coupons.  And the one that did (recently went bankrupt and closed) only let you double the first five coupons one day a week with a maximum cap on the dollar amount.  Just where the heck are these stores that double everything in unlimited amounts to basically wipe their shelves clean for free?  Cause they sure as heck aren't near me.
     
    I keep watching this show hoping for little tips and tricks, but usually end up disgusted by the end.  Also, coupons are rarely for healthy items (at least healthy items that can be stockpiled without going bad).  A stockpile of kool-aid, candy bars, and Kraft macaroni and cheese isn't exactly bragworthy, in my book.

    But mostly, this show makes me sad.  I'm convinced that the majority of it is just undiagnosed anxiety disorders manifested as hoarding.  Like the mom who goes to the beach and then spends it organizing her binders?  I'm sure her kids will look back fondly at their beach trips, remembering how mommy ignored them.
  • I can't remember in my adult life any store around me with double coupons.


    Has far as unhealthy items.  The show now is focusing on healthier products.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • A store here (King Soopers owned by Kroger) will double coupons, but only up to a dollar.  So if the coupon is for 75 cents off, you only get an extra 25 cents off.

    I love me some coupons but yeah... I don't get the Extreme Couponers.  I've heard stay at home moms say "this is how I help support my family!" but yet they spend 30 hours a week doing this... wouldn't getting a part time job be more helpful than stockpiling 500 toothpastes in your basement?
    Married 9.12.15
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  • Our A&P does double coupons, for coupons less than $1. So if you have a coupon for $.99, you get $1.98 off. Of course, the coupons don't help me much since there aren't really a lot of coupons for produce or meat.
    ~*~*~*~*~

  • We have a city market which also part of Kroger. We don't have double coupon here. The closer competitior is Whole Foods. The next closest stores are 10+ miles away also city market. Then 26 miles away there is a Safeway. I figure lack of real competition keeps them from having double coupons

    I don't see many coupons in our Sunday paper either. Here at least.

    I do use the digital coupons through my Kroger card.






    What differentiates an average host and a great host is anticipating unexpressed needs and wants of their guests.  Just because the want/need is not expressed, doesn't mean it wouldn't be appreciated. 
  • Ugh I hate that. WHY do you need 300 bottles of shampoo? WHY
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  • kvrunskvruns member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its First Answer
    I used to watch that show until it drove me too crazy. Unless they are donating or sharing with friends I feel like half the stuff people get will go bad, not to mention storing it. Or when it's all look we can pick out 300 candy bars. Umm really
  • KahlylaKahlyla member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment Name Dropper

    I didn't buy a new car today. Saved $40k. Think of all the things I can buy!!!

    And a penny saved is a penny earned! You just earned $40k!!!
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  • kvruns said:

    I used to watch that show until it drove me too crazy. Unless they are donating or sharing with friends I feel like half the stuff people get will go bad, not to mention storing it. Or when it's all look we can pick out 300 candy bars. Umm really

    I would be so fucking annoyed to be shopping in the same store. YOU JUST TOOK EVERY THING OF BUTTER FUUUUUUUUUUCK
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  • Kahlyla said:

    I didn't buy a new car today. Saved $40k. Think of all the things I can buy!!!

    And a penny saved is a penny earned! You just earned $40k!!!

    So she's really $80,000 up.
  • I also feel like I'd loathe shopping near people who did that because I generally only buy some items when I need them.   So if you bought ALL the deodorant and left the shelves bare so I couldn't buy ONE STICK I wouldn't care that you saved money.   I"d think you were a crazy asshole.   KWIM?

    And ditto hating on the coupons.   I know all of us lead busy lives but I just can't imagine working nearly 50 hours a week, taking care of my family AND couponing while still having time to do things that I like.   And if a shopping trip takes HOURS then WTF am I doing with my kids during that time?  Spending that amount of time in a store is a recipe for bad parenting. 
  • banana468 said:

    I also feel like I'd loathe shopping near people who did that because I generally only buy some items when I need them.   So if you bought ALL the deodorant and left the shelves bare so I couldn't buy ONE STICK I wouldn't care that you saved money.   I"d think you were a crazy asshole.   KWIM?


    And ditto hating on the coupons.   I know all of us lead busy lives but I just can't imagine working nearly 50 hours a week, taking care of my family AND couponing while still having time to do things that I like.   And if a shopping trip takes HOURS then WTF am I doing with my kids during that time?  Spending that amount of time in a store is a recipe for bad parenting. 






    BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOXXXXXXXX

    Exactly. I 'stock up' on dry shampoo and face powder because I use so goddamn much. By stock up I mean I buy two at a time, not 80.
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  • justsiejustsie member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    Wasn't there one episode where the woman was applying for a job to help out some type of center? I want to say it was a boys home and they only had a certain amount of money in the budget for items and she was able to really help them. That I like. Most of the other people, not so much. 

    In other related news, I once ran into a "extreme couponing class" taking place in a target. One lady was teaching others how to look for deals and what not, they all had shopping cards and their little acordian folders at the ready. 
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  • My cousin does stuff like this and brags about it on FB. She once bought 15 things of mustard because of how much she "saved". It would take me a lifetime to go through that. Now, if it ends up at a food pantry or you donate it to someone in need, I am cool with that. But what household needs that much crap?!

    I don't have time for the couponing nonsense. 
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  • sarahufl said:

    My cousin does stuff like this and brags about it on FB. She once bought 15 things of mustard because of how much she "saved". It would take me a lifetime to go through that. Now, if it ends up at a food pantry or you donate it to someone in need, I am cool with that. But what household needs that much crap?!


    I don't have time for the couponing nonsense. 
    What?!? I think I've bought mustard twice in my adult life. That shit lasts forever!

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  • I coupon. We don't eat a lot of packaged foods so I use it primarily for personal care and cleaning products.

    I spend no more than an hour/week at the absolute max. I also don't buy large quantities of anything unless we use a lot or I can distribute it. We have family on very fixed incomes so this is a way for us to help without passing out cash. On the occasion that I get too much or products people don't want, they get delivered to a local domestic violence shelter. (They also get the random bath/body products that I sometimes get gifted.)

    I'm not super brand-loyal but don't compromise when it's important to me. I don't gather products that are cheap/free if I don't want us to be eating it. So yes, I could get tons of cheap candy, sugary cereal or chips but none of us show good judgment around junk so I leave it in the store.

    I can't find places near me that have doubling on coupons. However, I have Target. They make it easy- you can stack manufacturers coupons, Target coupons (mobile or printable) and Cartwheel. Together, lots of great deals.

    Today, I used coupons to pick up
    2 packs each of Glucerna shakes for MIL and Ensure for my gramma, 10 tubes of toothpaste, fancy lotions for our moms, and a bunch of those Baby Lips glosses for my SILs. I spent ~$12. It's more than we need but it makes life a little nicer for everyone.

    All of that said, I don't clear shelves or take more than we can store in our tiny house.
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  • monkeysipmonkeysip member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its First Answer
    edited May 2015
    I don't have a problem with using sales/coupons in moderation (you know, how they're INTENDED to be used), but I can't help but thinking there's something economically, and sort of ethically, wrong with extreme couponing.

    I mean, your grocery store (and the brands they stock) needs to make a profit.  Yes, some of these companies may be giant corporations that aren't affected by one lady and her extreme couponing, but if a lot of people did this, it could actually make a sizable dent in their profits.  Which isn't just bad for business... it's bad for the local economy and everyone the company employs.  So while you've just saved $300 on a lifetime supply of shampoo and cheetos, your neighbor working at the store isn't going to get a raise, or worse, might get fired.  Why don't you spend all that time you spend couponing actually contributing to the economy if you want to make money (or just spend it with your kids, or with a charity, or SOMETHING productive).

    Sorry, maybe it's just the economics teacher in me.

    SaveSave
  • monkeysip said:

    I don't have a problem with using sales/coupons in moderation (you know, how they're INTENDED to be used), but I can't help but thinking there's something economically, and sort of ethically, wrong with extreme couponing.


    I mean, your grocery store (and the brands they stock) needs to make a profit.  Yes, some of these companies may be giant corporations that aren't affected by one lady and her extreme couponing, but if a lot of people did this, it could actually make a sizable dent in their profits.  Which isn't just bad for business... it's bad for the local economy and everyone the company employs.  So while you've just saved $300 on a lifetime supply of shampoo and cheetos, your neighbor working at the store isn't going to get a raise, or worse, might get fired.  Why don't you spend all that time you spend couponing actually contributing to the economy if you want to make money (or just spend it with your kids, or with a charity, or SOMETHING productive).

    Sorry, maybe it's just the economics teacher in me.
    Coupon values are reimbursed by the manufacturer, not eaten by the grocer. Only sales/doubling impacts the store, and those are at the store's discretion. Most stores don't allow doubling/place limits on sales for this reason.

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  • monkeysip said:

    I don't have a problem with using sales/coupons in moderation (you know, how they're INTENDED to be used), but I can't help but thinking there's something economically, and sort of ethically, wrong with extreme couponing.


    I mean, your grocery store (and the brands they stock) needs to make a profit.  Yes, some of these companies may be giant corporations that aren't affected by one lady and her extreme couponing, but if a lot of people did this, it could actually make a sizable dent in their profits.  Which isn't just bad for business... it's bad for the local economy and everyone the company employs.  So while you've just saved $300 on a lifetime supply of shampoo and cheetos, your neighbor working at the store isn't going to get a raise, or worse, might get fired.  Why don't you spend all that time you spend couponing actually contributing to the economy if you want to make money (or just spend it with your kids, or with a charity, or SOMETHING productive).

    Sorry, maybe it's just the economics teacher in me.
    Coupon values are reimbursed by the manufacturer, not eaten by the grocer. Only sales/doubling impacts the store, and those are at the store's discretion. Most stores don't allow doubling/place limits on sales for this reason.
    That's why I also said the brands they stock.  Again, if its just a few ladies doing this, it's not a big deal.  But in theory, if a lot of shoppers did this, it would be economically detrimental.  I don't think it's ok for a few people to do what would be wrong for everyone to do.  Coupons are intended to help entice new customers, not give away virtually free product all the time.  

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