[nabs-l] coupon shopping and looking for sales

Tue Aug 7 22:53:44 UTC 2012

I will often ask a shopping assistant to tell me what is on sale in a
particular aisle, i.e. "What vegetables are on sale?" at the grocery
store. I also find that buying personal items and electronics from
Amazon.com is often cheaper and easier than buying them in person,
especially if the store isn't accessible by public transportation
and/or the item is too big for me to carry home without the help of a
taxi.
Arielle

On 8/7/12, Cynthia Bennett <clb5590 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Does Trader Joe's have coupons? To my knowledge, I have never seen
> them. I also haven't seen things on sale although everything is very
> reasonably priced.
>
> Cindy
>
> On 8/7/12, Brandon Keith Biggs <brandonkeithbiggs at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Wow! This is a great idea!
>> I wonder if Trader Joes has a coupon list.
>> I do find it sad that the companies spend all this money on advertisement
>> and most people throw the advertisements away, but we have a whole thread
>> dedicated to trying to get the advertisements!
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Brandon Keith Biggs
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: Cynthia Bennett
>> Sent: Tuesday, August 07, 2012 2:11 PM
>> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] coupon shopping and looking for sales
>>
>> I have found that a reader can be helpful for coupon cutting. It is
>> hard though. Often you don't really save money unless you have a store
>> and a manufacturer's coupon. I know people who consider couponing a
>> fulltime job. There are websites dedicated to coupon finding, but I
>> have found that a lot of times you will have to like something on
>> Facebook, receive emails, etc. and that annoys me more than the
>> happiness I receive from saving a few cents. I have found that a lot
>> of the convenience stores like CVS and Rite Aid have great sales, but
>> if you don't get something on sale, then it is way more expensive. So
>> I try to stock up on personal items like toothpaste or laundry
>> detergent when they are on sale at the convenience stores. One way to
>> do this is to just ask a shopping assistant when you drop in. A lot of
>> times, these super sales are located on the fronts of aisles. You can
>> also look online for the weekly papers that are in each store. If you
>> are a dedicated customer to a super local place, and if their online
>> presence just isn't that strong, then you can ask management if they
>> can send you a spreadsheet of sales. This sounds crazy, but my
>> boyfriend and I actually tried it for a local store downtown, and they
>> were completely accommidating. This store is usually more expensive,
>> but it is more walkable, and again, when things are on sale, they are
>> cheaper than many chain stores. So, whenever we ask for the sales,
>> they send us an Excel sheet. Sometimes we have to ask them again, but
>> chances are that the information is documented somewhere and all they
>> have to do is send it which doesn't take much time. I know that asking
>> shopping assistants can be tedious and often annoying, but I am picky.
>> When I ask for what is on sale, then I expect them to tell me. I get
>> to know stores and their patterns and their typical prices for things
>> that I buy frequently. And, when you get to know these things, you can
>> better determine if the shopping assistant is really informing you
>> correctly, or even if the items you determinedly coupon for really are
>> that much discounted when you do find coupons. I like to shop at
>> stores that have rewards cards, because then I can get all of the
>> store sales without coupons. But for those local store's ads in the
>> local paper, I think that a reader is the best way. You can have your
>> slate ready and you can write shorthand as the reader clips coupons.
>> You can write a list of things you frequently buy to give to the
>> reader beforehand, so they don't waste time reading coupons for items
>> you don't buy. Or, they can read them all and you can try some new
>> things discounted. I might be a cynic, but I feel like dedicating a
>> couple of hours a week to coupon clipping was an average amount of
>> time, and it really only saved me a few dollars per shopping trip. But
>> if you are determined, you can save a lot of money. They even have TV
>> shows dedicated to couponning.
>>
>> One specific store that comes to mind is Bed, Bath, and Beyond. Before
>> I shopped there a lot, I assumed that it would always be more
>> expensive than a store such as Target, but they mail out 20% off
>> coupons every month. You can even take a receipt for an item you
>> previously bought with a 20% off coupon, and they will refund 20% of
>> the item's value to you. They also accept expired coupons. So, what I
>> am saying is that sometimes stores are more expensive on the outside,
>> but if you can get on their email alert or coupon mailing list, then
>> you can make a rule for yourself that you will only buy things when
>> you have a coupon, and you actually save money. Also, sometimes if you
>> just ask, you can learn information. I bet that tons of people never
>> use their Bed, Bath, and Beyond coupons because they are expired, but
>> it just took me simply asking once, and I learned something new. I
>> know we all think of the obnoxious customer rudely demanding that a
>> casheer take an expired coupon, but if you ask nicely, they usually
>> give a nice answer.
>>
>> You can also take your reader to the recycling bin in your apartment
>> building. My friend does this, and when she gets a Bed, Bath, and
>> Beyond coupon, she usually finds at least 3 more in the recycling bin
>> that people just didn't want.
>>
>> Cindy
>>
>> On 8/7/12, zerone1683 at gmail.com <zerone1683 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> What are the newspapers in your area?
>>> visit the websites of the newspapers in your area and you will be able
>>> to
>>> access all their ads.
>>>
>>> C.C. Alan
>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> Cynthia Bennett
>> B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington
>>
>> clb5590 at gmail.com
>> 828.989.5383
>>
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>>
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>
>
> --
> Cynthia Bennett
> B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington
>
> clb5590 at gmail.com
> 828.989.5383
>
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