Friday, September 26, 2008

How I used the Walgreens $5/$20 coupon

I had intended to do two transactions (detailed over at Chief Family Officer), but my favorite coupon-friendly cashier wasn't working, and I didn't want to risk asking the woman who did ring me up if I could split the transaction up. I also ran into an unexpected wrinkle, a consequence of not double-checking my local ad against the information that was online: the Reach deal wasn't advertised here. Grrr!

But overall, I had a pretty successful transaction, so I really can't complain:

3 Garnier Fructis family size shampoo + bonus conditioner @ $7.29 each - $21.87
Pert 2 in 1 - $3.49
3 Dimetapp DM Elixir @ $5 each - $15
Crest ProHealth toothpaste - $3.79
Visine - $4.79
L'Oreal Revitalist Anti-Wrinkle Concentrate - $16.49
5 Halls cough drops @ 99-cents each with weekly ad coupon - $4.95
2 Nabisco Nutter Butters - $5
Total before coupons: $75.38

Coupons used: $4.50 RR, 3 $2 off Garnier family size, 3 $3 off Garnier from Oct. EasySaver catalog, $2 off Pert, $2.50 off Pert from Oct. EasySaver catalog, 3 $2 off Dimetapp, 75-cents off Crest, $2 off Visine, $2 off Visine from Sept. EasySaver catalog, $3 off L'Oreal, $5 off $20 purchase

Total after coupons, including tax: $38.02

I received a $10 Register Rewards for the Dimetapp and $3 RR for the Nabisco cookies. I should also get the following rebates: $10 for Garnier, $3.49 for Pert, $3.79 for Crest, $16.49 for L'Oreal, plus an extra 10% or $3.38 for having the rebate credited to my gift card. That works out to a profit of $14.13 $12.13 - a little bit less than my original calculations, but not bad considering I couldn't even do the Reach deal.

I was also bummed to realize that my local ad didn't include the 2 for $4 Snuggle dryer sheet deal that's apparently available in other regions. I'm not sure why we're getting shorted on deals here, but I don't like it!

On the bright side, the woman who checked me out turned out to be extremely coupon-friendly and totally supportive. She did something new to me, which was scan the coupons for each item after she scanned the item. For example, she started with the Garnier and scanned all three bonus packs, then scanned the manufacturer coupons and then the EasySaver coupon. She even said that she's good about doing the rebates but not coupons, but that I inspired her to clip coupons because I did so well. (She was impressed by my sale price and coupon savings, which came to $55.97 - I wanted to tell her the number was meaningless without context, but that's a discussion that can take all day!)

One last note: Since the max rebate amount for the Pert is $4.29, I assumed that it would ring up at that price. But it actually rang up at $3.49. I've submitted my my receipt for the rebates in this purchase, so we'll see if they all go through without a hitch.

See more non-CVS drugstore deals at The "Cent"sible Sawyer.

3 comments:

  1. Nice deals! I was lucky enough to get in on the Snuggle deal, but of course took me two stores to find some (and got the last two boxes!) I couldn't do the reach deal either :(

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  2. Wow, great job! I have so much to learn.

    I would do better, if I didn't need to buy things outside of the deals. I probably should not count them in my calculations. :-)

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  3. @Justine - Lucky! On the Snuggle, at least, if not the Reach. I wish you luck finding the Oral B toothbrushes this week!

    @Dedicated - I understand what you're saying, and what works for me is to buy a minimal amount of the stuff that's not free/super sale when I need it. For example, as I've mentioned before, I have trouble finding great deals on HE laundry detergent. So I did go to Pavilions today and pick up a bottle of All HE @ $3.99. I had a $1 off coupon, so I paid $2.99, a little bit less that it would be when not on sale at Target. I am hoping, meanwhile, that before I need to buy another bottle, I'll be able to find it really cheap via The Drugstore Game. That's when I'll stock up, of course :)

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