I am watching Extreme Couponing on TV. For those who have never seen it, it is a show about people who use coupons to get a lot of household goods and food for very little money. At the end of the last show someone got nearly $900 worth of groceries for just around $25 cash plus a HUGE bundle of coupons.
Going with the coupons are the stashes of food. I have watched round eyed as the tv camera pans over rack after rack of groceries and cleaning products. I have wondered about sell by dates. I have wondered about the cost of the savings compared to the cost of building/purchasing the racking. I have wondered about keeping it all dusted.
It isn't really as easy to do in the UK, there is a different culture of supermarket offers. I was initially thinking - new resolution, do not stockpile beyond reason. However I think it may be a nice mental challenge to see what I can do with discounts and vouchers.
Perhaps it is just as well I can't get into couponing over here, my tendency to hoard would run away with me, but I wonder if I can work something out here. Surely there must be ways to work the deals?
If I come to any conclusions, I shall share!
1 comment:
I used to do quite well with this sort of thing, I would get very strange looks from other shoppers when I took a trolley load of stuff through the checkout and 'paid' for it with coupons ! i remember once I had over £70 worth and it cost me 10p !! This stopped however, when the 'practice' was made too public on TV - i.e. 'ladies' boasting as to how they did it, some even bought coupons on ebay and used those - which goes to prove, if you're on to a good thing - keep your mouths shut ! because these people wanted their 15 minutes of fame, it's been spoiled for the rest of us. I believe now in UK, you can have 10% of your total bill deducted with coupons, or some shops only accept 1-2 at a time.
Shame - but there you are, I did well whilst it lasted.
I never looked on it as 'cheating' the shops because they just claimed the face value of the coupon from the manufacturers anyway, and I'm sure they can spare a copper or two with all the profit they make, and sometime, I actually bought the product !
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