Getting closer to my big shopping trip!!!! & Golden Overwaitea update..

Well in just about a week I will be heading to Calgary to do my big shop!! My list is growing ever so slightly, and my savings are getting better and better! Thinking we will be in Calgary for two nights now. Friday will be a prep day, Saturday we will shop (till we drop!), and then I don't think I will really feel like making the long drive home that late in the day, so another night will be in order :)

While I have been sorting, organizing and logging all the coupons that I will be using...I have stumbled across a few new and great ways to coupon stack! It was a little hard to wrap my head around it at first, a little confusing to say the least! but in the end it will still work! Here are all the ways that I know of that you can stack coupons:

1. if you have two (or more) manufacturer coupons for the same item with different bar codes. You can find these by using different sources ie: magazine, newspaper, internet printed, mailed, "in/on" the product packaging, tear pads etc.
2. use one manufacturer coupon and one in-store coupon
3. if you have TWO coupons for "Free Products" , and a "Buy 2, get ONE FREE"...the two coupons for free products will act as the "tender" for the "B2G1 Free" coupon!!
4. If you have two  BOGO coupons for the same item with different bar codes = 2 FREE products!..this one is the hard one, don't think too many cashiers will wrap their heads around this one, so don't be surprised if they turn it down :(

There are a few other different stacking combos that I can try to explain, but would be much easier to show you in a video....Warning! Video will be very amateur! lol


Also! I got the change to speak to our Overwaitea Foods Asst. Manager today. I brought in my coupon binder, and described what has been happening at other Overwaitea stores in BC. While showing the coupons that I will be using on my trip, I also explained the whole "stacking" process & its potential issues for our particular store. I would love it if they would start this right away, but from a business perspective, it is definitely best if they sit a discuss the potential positive and negative impacts this could have.

Positive:

• Would bring in MORE business from our community. Some who are serious about couponing will likely give Overwaitea more than 90% of their overall household grocery spending
• Those of us who make "special" shopping trips to bigger cities like Calgary or Cranbrook, would more than likely NOT go anymore
• those in our community who are on assistance, low income, use food banks, & who are generally struggling with income will be able to "afford" the things that they want to shop for by using stacked coupons. 
• making people more aware of "coupon stacking" and how it is done could potentially lessen the demand on our local food bank...and on the flip side of that.....the food bank could start seeing an increase in donations by those of us who stack & get items for free that we really don't need or use. 

Negative:

• We only have four tills ..... any "clogging" of the tills would mean a lot of stress for customers & staff
• 10% Tuesdays would be a NIGHTMARE!! 

 I have made a few suggestions to try to keep it fair to both the business & consumers:

• Restrict the hours in which a person may shop with stacked coupons to the slowest parts of the day
•  Restrict the days in which coupon stacking is allowed, IE: NOT on 10% Tuesdays, or any other potential high volume sales days.
• Make a document for coupon stacking rules, make them easy to understand, & make that document available to those who would like to stack.

Regardless, this is a huge decision to be made. Really really hoping that they accept it as a great idea for our community. Please be discreet when discussing this topic, and please do not hound any Overwaitea staff or management about this topic or decision. I do not want to scare them off. Things are in the works, so please be patient. I will let you know if/when I hear anything back.

Hope you all have a wonderful long weekend! Keep Clipping!!!

Oh! Almost forgot to post this!! My GREAT savings for today was:

• 5 Mulitbonita Vitamins (cleared the shelf, lol) Reg. $14.95 each, on sale for $7.50, less $8 coupon for each one = FREE! (saved $74.75)
• 1 tub Asana yogurt = FREE with free product coupon from facebook!!
• Overall, paid $4 in tax...thats it!!  Yay!!!!