Extreme Couponing…

[bsfins]

I admit, I’m a pretty frugal shopper, and love a good deal…to a point…If I’m shopping for something online (if it’s a specific store Sports authority, Best buy ,etc, (not really like Amazon, or Newegg as much) I’ve probably compared prices an various website. After I’ve chosen, id do a coupon search for that store, to see if I can get it even cheaper…Even shopping online, I realize, sometimes I need it now, not a week from now, to save $15.So I buy locally.. Sorry for the little ramble there…


Last night, I’m flipping through the channels trying to find something to watch before bed and I stumbled upon a TLC had a show on called Extreme Couponing…I knew the premise, basically buy $300 worth of groceries and pay like $12...They showed they showed 3 couples (the one it was the husband mainly), and one single lady…

I know, I’m sorry if this comes of sounding dickish, judgmental, I’m more trying to understand…

Couple 1 -Was a rather robust couple…They claimed she has a full time job, plus spends 70 hours a week scouring the internet. She also used a clipping service, someplace that charges a fee to get bulk coupons cut them and send them to you ) Then they talked about their stash,300 rolls of Toilet paper,50 bottles of hand lotion, shaving cream, soup, etc, etc…Then they went to the store, and they were buying like 100 boxes of pasta,60 bottles of Gatorade, 120 candy bars, etc…It froze up the register, they had to do it all over…Then it showed them loading the cars, and when they got home, kind of just piling up the stuff…They admitted it was the thrill of the Hunt, and shopping…

But these people made me sick to my stomach, it was pure gluttony. More like hoarding, than shopping…….I kept thinking, how do you not have a rotting mess, with a horrid rodent problem?

The next three weren’t so bad….They all admitted it started out of necessity  ok, 2 of the three

Couple 2 -The next was a younger couple, she was a stay at home mom, couponing was  her job. She would go through  the newspaper recycler, and pick the coupons people were throwing out, then take them home and Clip them, save them, etc, etc…They explained that her husband lost his job, their kid was in the hospital, and they lived on their stash. (So they had been doing before this crisis, but it seemed as though it was being explained away as the started because of job loss).They  went to the store, and basically did the same thing.. The difference to me, is it wasn’t to the extreme, She talked about meticulously arranging rotating her stock, so things weren’t going bad. They portrayed her more as getting bunches of things she’s going to use for the next 6 months…

3rd  person lady was from Philly, retired nurse, and started doing this just to get buy (Single young mom, on government assistance, struggling to raise her kids). She told the story of buying diapers, they didn’t look right, the company sent her coupons for free diapers.It started from there, she thought, it was free money, that wasn‘t coming from her pocket…. She walks around and collects coupons from neighbors every day…This lady they seemed to explain what she was doing much more. She took other people with her to teach them, and would talk to every other shopper there. Do you have a coupon for that? Buy that one, it will save you more money type thing…They also mentioned in her part, about sale cycles, that a particular item would go on sale roughly every 3 months. So you really only needed to buy enough to last you till it goes back on sale. She also says she’s debt free, she doesn’t owe anyone money, because of doing this…

4th couple  (mainly the husband)  He was the combo of them all…He talked about getting married, and the debt they had when they combined expenses, Credit card, Student loans, car loans, etc, etc…Doing this paid off most of those thing…He used the analogy of playing  chess, against the store, and beating the store…His garage was where he had his stash, again 50 sticks of deodorant, hand lotion, soup ,soap, he had bags of frozen chicken, etc,etc.. He said he had about 75 thousand dollars worth of food, and products.. that he paid about $1000 for…On his trip he bought  like 100 toothbrushes, 60 sticks of deodorant, other food things. Then 1000 boxes of Total cereal, that weren’t going to cost him anything because of the coupons, and he was going to donate that to a homeless shelter…He also used a clipping service, to get some of his coupons…

I don’t think this should be illegal, or it’s immoral…To me it’s very wasteful, and I have hard time really seeing the benefit…The first couple, it mentioned the clipping service cost was about $70,plus 70 hours a week? Plus, you have to have someplace to store all this stuff…Paying $4 for a bag of cereal, is fine to me, for the continence of only needing to 1 bag, only having to store one bag.

[badger6]

I think I've seen that somewhere too. Hell I don't need that much shit. Instead of $300 for $12, how about $100 for $4. But on the other hand now that I think about it. It's not like you get to pick the stuff you want. Would probably be mostly shit that I don't or wouldn't use and wind up being a waste after all.

[Dave Gray]

I've purchased some things on the internet, just because they were so incredibly cheap.  I bought an Ipod case for 25 cents (including shipping).  It's probably sold at one point for 9.99 or something like that.  Maybe that's the kind of stuff they're getting.

[badger6]

I've purchased some things on the internet, just because they were so incredibly cheap.  I bought an Ipod case for 25 cents (including shipping).  It's probably sold at one point for 9.99 or something like that.  Maybe that's the kind of stuff they're getting.

But, do you own an Ipod ? That's the question, ha, ha, ha.

[Phishfan]

You don't save money buying things you don't need. That is all.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

To me it’s very wasteful, and I have hard time really seeing the benefit…

At some point it stops being about the economics and just becomes an obsession/hobby.  While my mom is not nearly as bad as these folks, frugal shopping is a hobby of my moms.  

My parents have more than enough money not to need do this kinda stuff...but my mom does it as a thing to do.  She and her friends (most of whom don't need to do this type of stuff either) will compare bargains while playing bridge.  And their is a point of pride in being able to say how much the original price was and how much they saved.

As hobbies and compulsions go it by far less of a self-destructive than others such as being a degenerate gambler, drunk, or someone who wastes money.

I really can't say their hobbies are any less rational than being a fan of sports team.      

[Pappy13]

My wife will often come home and tell me she saved me money by buying something that we don't need.  I fail to see how. 

[Brian Fein]

I saw this show and I was so baffled I wanted to puke.

The last guy, who filled his garage with crap like a freakin' stockroom...  He spent all kinds of money on supplies, services, shelving, cutters, etc to enable his compulsive habit.  I found him to be a hypocritical a-hole who just likes to show off.  Not to mention that he has some kind of sponsorship or home-business he's running that was plastered on the side of his car (which they conveniently didn't show directly). 

They said he had enough hand soap for 150 years of hand washing or something.  He'd have saved so much more money if he only bought what he needed.

That show made me VERY angry.  Its odd the reactions I have to things.

[Dave Gray]

These people have a compulsion or sickness.  It's just another form of hoarding.

[Brian Fein]

The third lady, though, went to the store with her coupons, only had 1 cart, seemingly only bought stuff she needed.  She got $230 worth of groceries for 6 bucks and change.  To me, that's just smart. 

That lady is in a whole different category than Mr. Thousand-Boxes-Of-Total asshole.

[bsfins]

I was so sick,disgusted, by the first couple, I felt the rest weren't so bad...

P.S. This isn't what I meant about being better prepared for an emergency,in the what do I want out of 2001...I'm not gonna start hoarding food...

[BoSoxGrl]

I wouldn't call what we do "extreme", but we tried to save $1000 in a year just by clipping coupons on stuff we would normally buy anyways for our weekly shopping trip.
We saved about $850 over the course of the year...and because he's a geek, Fau kept a speadsheet.

What these people do sounds like a full time job though. 

[masterfins]

I missed this show, sounds like a couple of them are nuts.  They should donate this stuff to the local food bank/shelter.  I got a little more frugal about two years ago with the downturn in the economy.  So I cut a few coupons here and there, and tend to stock up on things I regularly use when they are on sale at a good price.  For example I'll buy a month's worth of my favorite brand of coffee when its on sale, which happens about every 3-5 weeks.  Also, I like healthy grain breads, which can be expensive, so when they are buy one get one free i'll stock up and freeze the extra loafs.  You really can save quite a bit if you have the ability to buy things ahead of when you need them.  However, buying a five year supply is just crazy!

[Dave Gray]

I wouldn't call what we do "extreme", but we tried to save $1000 in a year just by clipping coupons on stuff we would normally buy anyways for our weekly shopping trip.

As long as you're buying stuff that you would normally, coupons are great.  However, they often cause you to think you're getting a deal and you instead end up buying things that you wouldn't otherwise, so what feels like savings is actually an expense.

[Brian Fein]

I went shopping yesterday, made a few smarter choices, and ended up saving nearly $50 thanks to coupons.

I'm going to pick up the $1000 goal by the end of 2011 and see if I can get there.