We went shopping to our normal wonderful Kroger yesterday and did score some wonderful deals.
However, we were made aware of changes to their coupon policy, and it was a grim reminder of how quickly a store can decide to change and then on the fly you need to adjust your shopping strategy. Honestly, we ended up buying things we probably wouldn’t have if we had known about the policy changes beforehand. You know the kind of things that you pick up because they will be free or nearly free…but they are things you don’t “need”.
Remember, using coupons to save money isn’t really saving if you are spending money on things you do not need or would otherwise not buy.
See, we had a sweet deal going at our local Kroger stores because not only did they double $1 coupons (making them worth $2), but they also kicked up the value of any coupon between $1.01 and $1.99 to a value of $2. So, a $1.25 coupon became worth $2. Happily, they did not do away with the coupon doubling for the $1 coupons–that is still in place. But now coupons valued over $1 are taken at face value. (So the 6 pizzas we bought yesterday thinking they would be $2 off only ended up being $1.25 off. Did we need 6? No.)
All in all, we are not complaining at all because we still enjoy our shopping at Kroger. We love their fuel rewards program, which allowed us to save 0.30 a gallon on gas too. It’s a great place to shop, but the sudden changes kind of took the wind out of our sails for a bit. However we do know we are blessed that they double up to $1-many of you do not have a store that offers such value.
We just wanted to share our story with you; remember that as coupon users we need to always be aware of changes to a store’s policy and learn to adapt. Couponing is still, in our opinion, one of the most fun hobbies around.
Happy savings!
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THANKS for the up date on the change.