My Grocery Deals & the All You Grocery Challenge
Posted on Wednesday, July 15th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
I did my grocery shopping yesterday and got some FANTASTIC deals. I am participating in the All You Grocery Challenge which means I could only spend $100 for food this week. The first way I planned for us to save money this week was for us to eat dinners from the freezer and pantry. This includes eating out, so the second way I saved money this week was no eating out! Since I didn’t need anything from the store for dinners, I used most of the grocery budget for deals. I got lots of them! I used so many coupons and bought all my items for the Kelloggs Fuel for School rebate (click on my link, then click on $80 in savings on the right). Remember, I did not even find these deal myself, I visit many deal blogs like Money Saving Mom, Couponing 101, Southern Savers, and Stretching a Buck. Those ladies list the deals and I make out like a bandit! I got two items completely FREE! They were 2 of the new Velveeta Shells N Cheese cups (received the coupon from Kraft First Taste) and 1 package of Oscar Meyer Beef Hot Dogs (signed up for the coupon on their site a month or so ago–got the idea from a “deal” blog). I will incorporate these into our meal plan next week. I got a treat for my dog (Dentastix) for $.09 using a clipped coupon and a shortcuts coupon. I got Sunny D smoothies for $.29 using the Kroger promotion and coupons clipped from All You magazine. I have over 10 boxes of cereal (Kellogg’s bought at Kroger, General Mills bought at Publix) all for $1.75 or less per box. I could go on and on, but let me move on….
So, would you please tell me if you have ever experienced anyone being rude to you for using coupons? Here is my story from yesterday:
We were at Kroger. I loaded up my cart with items from the “buy 10, earn $5″ promotion (which I love!). I had coupons for almost all the items in the promotion, so I was so excited to get some great deals. I got up to the register and got in a line with no one behind me. While I was putting all the items on the conveyor belt, the cashier was talking to the kids and was real smiley and helpful. When I got everything on the belt, I pulled the cart up to the register area and began getting out my coupons. I had the coupons I wanted to use already in a pile together, but I needed to pull out a few for items I decided not to purchase. The cashier said my total was somewhere around $98 and then I handed her the coupons. It was a huge stack…I couldn’t wait to see the total go down! When the cashier saw the coupons, she clammed up and stopped smiling. She did a “huffy breath” as Junie B. Jones would say and she started scanning the coupons. The one for the Velveeta Shells n Cheese did not take off the price at all. I was watching the screen so I told her and she acted like it was a huge inconvenience to try it again, get a receipt out to find the price, and enter the amount in the computer. She told the people who were getting in line, “Sorry for your wait.” Then, she only gave me the price of one of them free, so I had to tell her that the coupon said “2 free” so she would enter it again. She was not happy. She did it again and then gave me my total…it still hadn’t taken off the Velveeta cups so I had to remind her AGAIN! She finally got it to work and gave me my total….around $68! I was so thrilled at the total! Not so thrilled at the cashier. I said, “Thanks for your patience” to her (in a nice way) and left.
So my question is, should I feel bad? I had my coupons ready, I wasn’t sorting through them. I hate using this word in a world where everyone feels “entitled”, but wasn’t I entitled to my few mintues to save THIRTY DOLLARS!? The cashier made me feel like a pain in her rear and I am still a little angry at that. What do you think? Ever had a cashier like that? Please leave me a comment!
No don’t feel bad, coupons are there to be used!! This happens to be sometimes as well. I get it a lot if my coupon goes over the amount that the product is, all I really want is the product free, not the money back. There is one cashier, at Kroger, that I try not to go to if I have coupons for this reason!!
Reply
I can’t remember a time when I have had a rude cashier just because I was using coupons, but I have had to get the manager over because the cashier did not want to let me use a coupon for some reason. Sometimes I think it is because they just do not know, and sometimes I think they are just being haughty. I was a cashier at a grocery store when I was in high school and sometimes you just don’t know things. But, you can always be nice about it as you find out. Great savings by the way!
Reply
Hi Joy- I haven’t really had cashiers be rude (most are amazed at how much the total goes down) but have had people behind me annoyed. I think they get annoyed because they don’t use them & don’t realize how much money they can save! You did everything right- it is very different if you decided to sort through them all once you were up to the register. But you being all organized I would just think this cashier hates coupons & maybe let management know (and avoid her line next time!)
Reply
It’s too bad you weren’t on a mystery shop. I usually have good experiences when I mystery shop but bad ones when I am on my own. Oh well. We are proud of you for sticking with it and keeping your patience.
Reply
The only “bad” coupon experience I’ve had has come from Kroger. One woman wouldn’t accept a coupon. She said they don’t accept internet coupons for $1.50. What?? I use them all the time and have never had a problem. I just avoid her line when I’m at Kroger’s.
Reply