In Case You Were Wondering...

You'll notice that my posts the last couple of weeks have been somewhat flimsy. There's a good reason for this--I've started a side business that is taking up much of my time.

The bad news is that this "sabbatical" will continue through the summer.

The good news is that this means that you can now buy Mr. K's Cookies at the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings on the Marietta Square.

If you've ever had my chocolate chip cookies, you can attest that, yes, this is good news!

If I see anything grand, I will post it and send via e-mail. Otherwise, I recommend the following sites for scenarios and deals:

www.iheartcvs.com: Will post the flyers, match coupons and give you scenarios to maximize your savings at CVS

www.iheartwags.com: Will do the same for Walgreen's

www.iheartpubix.com: Will show you great deals you can get every week at Publix.

www.southernsavers.com: This site covers all the stores above and generally does a good job of posting additional online coupons you can use.

www.couponmom.com: Use the "Grocery Coupon Database" to search for coupons on items you intend on buying and use "Grocery Deals by State" to do matches to the weekly flyer at your favorite store.

That's all for right now--you can continue to email me at allen@thekingofcoupons.com and I will do my best to answer questions. Also, my Beginner's Coupon Guide, and other helpful documents can be accessed from the right hand side of the web page.

Dunkin Donuts Corporate Coupon Policy

I'm going to tell this story backwards. I'm not sure if I'm making them look bad or me--you be the judge.

Last night I called the Customer Service number to ask their policy on coupons. I went to a Dunkin' Donuts to buy coffee. I had 2 coupons for $1 and went to buy 2 bags, which are buy 1, get the second half off. They told me their policy is that coupons cannot be combined with any other promotion, so that's a 'heads up' if you go to Dunkin' Donuts.

FYI-even without the coupons, the coffee is still cheaper there than at the grocery store. The grocery store sells 12 oz bags for the same price the DD sells a 16 oz. bag.

Anyway, the story gets curious-er with the scene that occured just prior. Here's what happened.

-I put the coffee on the counter and handed the store manager two coupons and a gift card.

-the manager then informed me that I could either use the coupons or get the buy 1 get 1/2 off deal, but not both.

I said "really? that's a little surprising, most types of stores allow combining coupons with sales."

MGR: "Sorry, but the system won't ring it up that way."

ME: "really? could you try?"

He scans the coffee and the coupons. All discounts are taken without error. He then hits a few keys on the keypad and the discounts all disappear.

MGR: "see, sorry sir, the system won't let me do that."

ME: "really, because I'm looking at the screen and I see them being rung up. I then see you cancelling the transaction on the keypad, so it looks to me like it WILL do it, but you're just erasing it."

MGR: 'sorry sir, but I don't make any money if I do both."

ME: "Can't you send coupons in to get reimbursed? It says on there they'll give you the coupon value plus a processing fee, so it would seem to me you'd make more by taking them."

MGR: "sir, which deal do you want?"

ME: "okay, I'll just keep the coupons."

I WAS polite and there was no one else in line, so I figured I'd give it the old college try. And he was following corporate policy, however, it seemed slightly on the retarded side to demonstrate things the way he did without just saying it was corporate policy.

I did buy the coffee anyway, though--it's still the best around, in my opinion.

Lots of Good Deals at Publix beginning 5/21

As always, Publix is great at bringing in sales that match the holiday. Memorial Day is no exception. Check www.iheartpublix.com for a well-laid out plan for getting great deals. www.southernsavers.com will help as well.

Things you should be able to get for free or nearly so:

A1 Steak Sauce
Kraft Salad Dressing
6 lbs of pork
Dixie plates
Kraft BBQ sauce
Kraft Singles
KC Masterpiece BBQ sauce

No Coupon Inserts in Sunday Paper Memorial Day Weekend

FYI-so that you don't run out and buy a bunch of copies for the coupons, none are scheduled this weekend.

The Publix Mystery Coupon is publix brand glass cleaner

Kroger Deals Starting 5/17

Kroger has a 10/$10 sale starting and if you have the right coupons, there are a few items that should be either free or close to it. The items with a (*) indicate a coupon is available. Check www.couponmom.com for dates and pubs of the coupons to use. Those same items should be considered for charity as well.


Arm & Hammer UltraMax Deodorant, Selected Varieties, 2.6-2.8 oz
Chef Boyardee Canned Pasta, Selected Varieties, 14.5-15 oz
*Colgate Toothpaste, Selected Varieties, 4.6 oz
Cool Whip Topping, Selected Varieties, 8 oz
*Dial or Kroger Liquid Soap, Selected Varieties, 7.5 oz
Gatorade, SoBe or SoBe Lifewater, Selected Varieties, 20-32 oz
*Glaceau Vitaminwater or V10 20 oz, or Smartwater 1 Liter
*Green Giant Vegetables, Frozen, Selected Varieties, 7-10 oz or Kroger Vegetables 9-16 oz
Gwaltney Great Dogs, or Great Bologna, 16 oz
Hormel Little Sizzlers, Sold Frozen, 12 oz
Kool-Aid or Country Time Drink Mix, or 8 qt Tang, Assorted Varieties
Kroger 8 ct Hot Dog or Sandwich Buns, Selected Varieties
Kroger Cream Cheese, Selected Varieties, 8 oz
Kroger Deluxe Ice Cream, Selected Varieties, 16 oz or Kroger Frozen Treats 6-12 ct
Kroger Large Dozen Eggs
Kroger Tortilla Chips, Selected Varieties, 10 oz or Kroger Popcorn 3 Pack
Oscar Mayer Lunchables, Assorted Varieties, 4.2-4.5 oz
Quaker Quakes, Selected Varieties, 3-4 oz
Redi-Serve Chicken, Frozen, Selected Varieties, 8-10 oz
*Scotch-Brite Sponges, Selected Varieties, 1 ct
Tastee Choice Salad Shrimp., 4 oz, Sold Frozen
*Weber Grilling Spices, Selected Varieties, 2.5-2.75 oz

Don't Forget-Coupon Seminar this Weekend

One last reminder about the FREE FREE FREE Coupon Seminar.

Cutting Costs with Coupons

Sunday, May 17 @ 5:00 p.m.
Marietta First United Methodist Church
56 Whitlock Ave.
Marietta, GA

Call the church for more information at (770) 429-7800.

Hope to see you there!

Super Deals at Publix beginning 5/13 or 5/14

Here's a deal I worked today. You'll need to check out http://www.iheartpublix.com/ or http://www.southernsavers.com/ for more of what is available this week.

2 boxes Ritz Crackers-BOGO
2 Daisy Sour Cream-BOGO
2 Bic Lighters-BOGO

I used the following Coupons:

2 Ritz Cracker printables from coupons.com
2 Ritz Cracker printable Target (competitor coupons) from http://www.hotcouponworld.com/. Look for the coupon generator- "way cool" feature of the site. You can print as many as you want.
2 $0.50 Daisy coupons from Sunday paper (doubled)
2 $1.00 Bic Lighter coupons printable from the Bic web site. Check http://www.iheartpublix.com/ for the link.

Final price: $1.74

Whole Foods Deals this Week

Here's a link to the Whole Foods Specials at Harry's Farmer's Market.

This might be my only post this week--I've got some things going on that will be taking my time over the next few days. I'll do my best to post links so you can get the info you need.

The Publix Mystery Coupon is publix brand potato chips

Coupon Seminar Sunday, May 17

I'm having another big Coupon Seminar next week and you're all invited to attend. It's free and there will be prizes and giveaways, so it'll be a great time! And by the way--spouses are strongly encouraged to attend. I haven't had one yet disappointed they came!

Here's the info:

Cutting Costs with Coupons
Sunday, May 17 at 5:00 p.m.
Marietta First United Methodist Church
56 Whitlock Ave.
Marietta GA, 30076

Call the church for directions or more information at (770) 429-7800.

See you next week!

CVS Extra Care Deals, Walgreens Register Rewards beginning Mother's Day May 10

CVS

First, if you’re just getting started, click this link for Southern Savers getting started scenarios.


If you have these coupons, here’s a free $10 for you:

Bayer Breeze 2 or contour meter: up to $30 off from SmartSource on 3/22/09.

These are $14.00 get $5 ECBs, limit 2

Now, even if you don’t have diabetes (which I don’t) you can get two of them for free and get $10 ECBs total. I always have avoided this deal (it comes up about once a month), but this time, I’m doing it just for the ECBs.

The next free item this week:

Bayer Quick Release Crystals 4 ct $2 get $2 ECBs limit 1

I’m going to be using the $10 ECBs toward Crest White Strips this way:

Price: $18.99
Q from P&G on 5/3: -$5.00
ECBs from above: -$10.00

Final Price $3.99

I’ve also got $9 ECBs left over, so I will probably work those in to get them for free, probably with this deal:

Colgate toothbrushes: get $5 ECBs when you buy $10.

Buy 5 @$1.99, use 5 $1 Qs from 4/22 SmartSource, add them to the last deal and use my $9 ECBs.

So the WHOLE deal would look like this:

Price, White Strips: $18.99
Price, toothbrushes: $10.00
Q from P&G: -$5
Q from SS: -$5
ECBs from above: -$10
ECBs from last week: -$9

Final Price: $0 get $10 ECBs

Walgreen’s

There are a couple of interesting scenarios that you can see by clicking here.

As a basic freebie, Iceland Health Omega 3 Fish Oil is $8, get $8RRs, so if you’ve already got some RRs to use, this is a good deal.

That’s all I’ve got for now. More as I find it this week.

Publix Deals Beginning 5-6 or 5-7

I'm not going to post everything because http://www.iheartpublix.com/ and http://www.southernsavers.com/ not only match your BOGO deals with Sunday Paper Qs, but they also link to printable coupons and Target/Food Lion competitor coupons that you can use.

Here are a few deals you might want to jump on:

Electrasol Dishwashing Tablets: BOGO plus a Sunday paper Q from 4/19 makes these about $1.25 each or less. This is a great product, but it's too expensive at full price, so I'm jumping on these. I should have about a year's worth after tomorrow, since a box holds 30 and we run the dishwasher once a day.

Hebrew National Hot Dogs are 2/$5, but there's a printable coupon you can link to from the above sites. This is as cheap as these ever get and there is hardly ever any coupons. Since these are the only hot dogs my family eats (and the only one that doesn't make my oldest sick), I'm stocking up and freezing them.

Del Monte canned vegetables are BOGO plus the coupon will make them anywhere from $0.05 to $0.37 depending on which one you have. The deal posted on the above sites, however, reference a coupon that would be in a little red blinking dispenser on the shelf near the display. I haven't verified that it's there yet.

Jello snacks will be free with the Manufacturer's coupon and the Food Lion printable.

Those are the most notable deals I've found--there are a lot of other sales, but these are the ones that stand out. More this weekend with the Drug Stores and grocery store roundup.

Walgreens Easy Saver Program Discontinued

I was waiting until I verified it myself, but, in fact, the Walgreen's Easy Saver program is discontinued. The rumor is, however, that they are going to start a new program of some sort, so stay tuned...

Publix Advantage Buy Super Deals Through 5/8

Follow this link to some great deals at Publix that you can get this week. It's worth it even if you don't normally shop at Publix.

As you look through the deals, go ahead and try the competitor coupons from Food Lion. They scanned just fine at the Publix I shop.

Weekend Wrap Up--Competitor's Coupons-The Nuclear Weapon of Savings

Okay, I've finally reached coupon Nirvana, I think. I just learned the power of competitor coupons. Here's what your grocery store might take--mine just did.

KMart-$5 off $25 purchase
Walgreen's Register Rewards
Target Online Printable Coupons
Food Lion

Here's the strategy. Take all the "gee I wonder if they'll take this" to the customer service desk and ask. Today, the Asst. Manager stopped me and said--as long as it's not a photocopy, we'll take it. So, that one statement meant $12 off my bill right off the top!

If you need help finding these coupons, there are several sites to check:

On Facebook: Go to "Angela's Money Saving Tips"

On the 'net: www.iheartpublix.com, www.southernsavers.com, and to a lesser extent, www.couponmom.com

Also, it's a little messy and takes some getting used to, but www.hotcouponworld.com has an online coupon generator for Target coupons. You can print as many as you want!!!!

So, the moral is, just ask--the worst they can say is 'no,' and the fact that you've asked up front shows that all you're trying to do is take advantage of store policy and not trying to slip something by.

Today, my grocery bill was $96 with a savings of $98. Rock and Roll!!!!

The Publix Mystery Coupon is publix brand tea (sweet and unsweet)

Kroger Deals Beginning 5/3 Plus Whole Foods and Organic Coupons

Kroger Deals are a little thin this week in terms of promotions. I don't know how their normal prices stack up, so I'm just sticking with the few things I know are good.

Milk-$1.99 gal
Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast-$1.99 lb.
Coca-Cola Fridge Packs: 4/$12
Kraft Cheeses: 3/$5
Kelloggs Cereal: $1.88 ea plus coupon makes them $0.88 ea.
Campbell's Soups: 10/$10 plus coupon makes 10/$8.50
Yoplait Yogurt: 20/$10 plus coupon makes it 10/$7.60


Now, here's the Harry's Farmer's Market flyer for the week, which is the same as Whole Foods.

I'm just going to permanently put this link somewhere on my blog, since the URL doesn't change week to week. Look for it on the right beginning next week.

Here's a whole bunch of organic coupons from Mambo Sprouts. Register on the site to get coupons mailed to your home.

Organic Valley has a bunch of online coupons as well. Click here to print them.

Finally, I haven't explored it deeply, but it looks like www.organiccoupons.org has access to a plethora of coupons to choose as well.

If you check any of these out, please send me a review--I'd like to know if these are any good.

My e-mail address is allen@thekingofcoupons.com

The Trap of Coupons and Setting a Budget--or more appropriately--a limit

I decided to paste an excerpt from my Beginner's Coupon Guide so that those of you who are new understand how these things work.

I was looking at a site and it reminded me of something I don't particularly agree with--not because it's wrong, but because it can trap you if you're not careful.

The issue I have is that many--or most--of coupon sites always present their cost for the deal by taking the total cash they really paid and subtracting all the Register Rewards or Extra Care Bucks they received or even, the rebates they will get in the future. Then they report "made X.XX profit" or got the item "FREE."

While the net of it is true, there's a trap here, but to understand it, we need to back up and talk about budgeting.

Everyone knows you should have a budget for groceries. So what should your budget be? The answer might surprise you, but your budget should be whatever you currently spend. The reason? Once you look at your expenses, you'll be shocked at what groceries cost. If you start with this number, you'll fully understand how much you're saving.

Your first instinct might be to set some value that you'd like it to be, but remember, you can't improve what you don't measure first. It's good to have goals, but your budget is your PLAN, not your goal. Just start where you are--the savings will come. Doing otherwise will be self-defeating.

The second part of budgeting is a little harder to grasp and it's this: from now on, only pay for groceries and drug store items with CASH. Yes, that's right--C-A-S-H. Don't use the credit card that you pay off every month to get the reward points.

Why? For two reasons.

First: over 70% of us DO NOT pay our credit cards off every month. This is just a fact. I've rarely meet anyone that doesn't say they pay it off every month. It's a little like people I know that go to Las Vegas frequently. I've never met anyone that gambles that doesn't claim to be "ahead." Sure you are--the Bellagio has that multi-million dollar fountain out front because you're "ahead."

Second: it's very easy to get carried away. When I first started this program, I found myself being tempted by all sorts of deals because they were sooooo good. By using cash and setting a limit, once the cash is gone, I'm done. (FYI: My total budget for the week is $200 for groceries and drug store items. I spend about $100 on the items I need and I've been spending about another $40 for items I've chosen to stock up. The money left goes to savings.)

Using cash will help you avoid this trap. This is especially true when rebates are involved.

Back to what I started with: in most coupon sites, the blogger will claim that when they buy something for $20 but get a $20 rebate, they got the item for free. But that's not really true. You don't get a rebate on the spot--you have to wait to get it--sometimes a few weeks.

In the meantime, my $200 for the week is now $180. If I've just used $20 for a 'free' item, that's $20 I don't have for groceries. I can't wait until the rebate comes in to eat.

So, while rebates are a key component of this whole thing, I STRONGLY recommend sticking with cash so that you understand exactly what you're spending. You'll also notice on my blog that I NEVER document my final price based on rebates, Register Rewards or Extra Care Bucks. I always state BOTH the cash out of pocket and the rest separately.

Now you know why.

I hope that helps. Let me know if you have any comments or ideas. I'm always glad to help. And--if you have some particular successes, let me know--I'd like to start posting them.