To clear or not to clear– that has been the question of the day for the past few months.
The media has made many of us skeptical of couponing by promoting shelf clearing, but any die hard veteran couponer knows it is not necessary. The deals come and go and they just about always repeat themselves.It seems the new batch of coupon rookies are much braver than couponers of the past. In the past a newbie would be skeptical about getting 2-3 free items. They would question whether this was “ok” or if the coupon police were going to get them. A newbie would need to play the coupon game for months to a year before feeling brave enough to get 10 of the same item that worked out free. But times have changed and these coupon young’uns are crazy! They weren’t like this back in my day!
This new breed of couponers has no fear. They have grown up in a coupon land that TV and media encourages shelf clearing and makes them believe it’s ok to be greedy. But is it greed? Most veteran couponers that I know are far from greedy. Most veteran coupon websites owners are generous and pay it forward to people in need. So where did this new breed come from that feels they need to run out day one of a sale and take it all and leave nothing behind for the next couponer holding one lonely coupon? Sad isn’t it? Who is responsible for this new breed? Some blame me for writing my book and teaching everyone how to shop for free. But I can’t possibly be responsible for all these wild newbies, can I? I teach etiquette and paying it forward. Did my message of paying it forward go to far? Are people hoarding things thinking that on coupon judgment day they will pay it forward really quick and be redeemed? Or is it something else?
I think a lot of it has to do with the recession. People are afraid. They see friends and family loosing their jobs and even their homes and they are scared they will be a statistic as well so they are being proactive. Newbies are getting everything they can and hoarding it away just in case. Notice I used the word hoard. Do you really want to be a hoarder?
Do you really believe coupons will be a thing of the past? Coupons aren’t going anywhere. The policies change some for the better some for the worse but there are and always will be deals to be had. Ask any coupon veteran, we are not afraid. Plus if you loose your home where will you store your stash?? Just saying! So how much is too much? Where do you draw the line? And who is the judge and jury in this? Who decides what is right and what is wrong? The answer lies within you.
Ask yourself the following questions. A good couponer will answer yes to the following questions.
1. Are you getting what your family needs, and by NEED I mean for 1 year or less not for infinity.
2. Are you letting store personnel know you are planning on taking a lot of an item prior to taking it? Stores respect couponers that give them a heads up; it allows them time to preorder merchandise that you are going to take in excess.
3. Are you sharing? Are you getting a lot of an item to share with others at a pantry etc. If so, go back to question 2 above. Even if you are getting for others it does not excuse you from not respecting the store.
4. Can you count how many of the same items you are loading in your cart and usually stop at 10?
If you didn’t answer “yes” to all of the questions above, maybe this next set sounds more like you…
1 .Are you taking just to take?
2. Do you enjoy the thrill of clearing the shelf because it gives you a sense of power,yet you have no idea what you are going to do with all the stuff?
3. Do you find a lot of your stash expiring before you can use it because you took too much?
4.Do you care less if the store is informed and runs out ?
5. Do you lose count of the identical items you have piled into your carriage?
If you’ve answered yes to any of these 5 questions then you may actually be a DCH. If so, you may need some coupon intervention.
If you discover that you may be a bit of a naughty couponer and want to cross over to the good side of couponing here’s what you do:
Go look take a good long hard look at your stockpiles. What do you see. Are you chuckling thinking “what did I do”? Do you now realize you don’t need 600 packages of Band-Aids? Do you lose count when you try and count all your shampoo bottles?
If you want to consider yourself to be a real coupon pro then you need to play the game. Stockpiling for life isn’t a sign of a confident couponer– it’s the sign of an amateur who is afraid. They are afraid that they have to get an entire life’s stock of an item as soon as someone else tells them how to get the deal. A pro knows they can get the deal on their own at another time and they aren’t afraid that toothpaste will skyrocket to $10.00 a bottle and they will never get it for free again.
I challenge you if you are a newbie couponer that has gone a bit too wild. Go see where you have gone a bit too extreme and then load up a box or a U-Haul and then go donate it. Help a senior , a pantry or the family next door that is struggling. That is the best feeling you will ever encounter. Paying it Forward outweighs any coupon high you have ever experienced.
Let’s work together to give couponers the good name they deserve– kind, generous, smart and frugal people who want to help others one coupon at a time.
I love this post! I am a newbie couponer. I started about 2 months ago and have been in the wake of some of these naughty couponers and not been able to get what is on sale because they clear the shelves. The manager at the store said some Sundays he feels like its “Black Friday” because they are waiting for the doors to open and come rushing in to grab it all up.
I have been lucky enough to get some really good deals and when the store has enough of the product I will get multiples (never leaving the shelf bare or even close) and then when I know a friend or relative could benefit from my freebies I pass some along. It feels good to give freebies to others and share the wealth.
Hopefully these wild shelf clearing newbies will change their ways and start thinking of others as well as themselves.
Thanks for all that you do to share your couponing skills. It is very much appreciated.
Well said Kathy. Every word written is the essence of responsible couponing. Sure, I like to get great savings, but I get my real HIGH from knowing that 10 boxes of pasta and 10 bottles of sauce will provide 10 meals to residents in my community.
If someone reads this then I ask you to do this::: For every three items you obtain, donate one item.
Alot of folks don’t realize that by donating they not only help others, but also receive a tax donation as well. Just present a list and your shopping receipts to the Human Services Director, or person in charge and they should be able to give you a donation receipt for your tax returns. Be sure to ask if the contribution amount is the retail/sale price or what you actually paid.
What a great post! I have only been couponing since March and I’ve seen a marked increase in others clearing shelves. I have also noticed that pretty much every week some store or another has the same item on sale, so if I don’t get it one week all I have to do is wait. I think a lot of it is that extreme coupon show. Those people (most of them) are NUTS! There are ladies stockpiling diapers and they don’t have kids and don’t seem to want them either! Crazy! Why? I just shake my head. I’ve also noticed that stores are limiting more and more because of those types of people. I guess in a way that’s a good thing because at least when I go to the store they have stock. Again, great post Kathy!
This is a great and much needed post. What I have noticed recently is that the Kroger sales flyer in our area limits you to three coupons per item that may be doubled. So if a product is 10 for $10, you could only double 3 coupons for those items.
Iv’e seen both ends of the spectrum and i don’t think shelf clearing is completely bad. its nice to wipe an endcap of product weather or not your profiting from it or donating it at some point in time during your couponing career lol. on the flip side of the coin i think that extreme couponing show is complete and utter bs and needs to be taken off the air. because of that show i got this hard ass manager at CVS hassling me everytime i go in there about how “you people” take all the deals and “you people” dont leave anything for the other customers. throwing my name in with bottom feeders like its my fault everyone watches that show and tries to mimic it.
Edited
I love this post! I always try to live by the motto of “sharing the wealth”, and not clearing the shelves so that others can also reap the benefits of a great buy. Thank you so much for upholding these values! What I’m seeing from more and more retailers in reaction to the “shelf cleaners” (I saw it again at Rite Aid yesterday), is that they are starting to ration how much they will actually stock on the shelves if they know a particular sale item is hot. Also, I’m seeing more limits on the deals, like only 1 or 2 per household.
I see them selling their free items.. on Facebook yardsale pages
To each his own
I am not that new to coupons. when I do get more than a couple things it is because I plan on helping people with it.Even when I get a rebate I don’t go crazy.I love to save on household items in fact most items.When I do save a lot I think of it as good I will have more money for meats and house bills I send to a house where the mother has cancer or my kid brother who’s rent is 3/4 of his take home pay. I never clear the shelves even if I am helping someone else.You never know how many people are helping others and can use the savings too..