This is a topic Ive really never discussed before... and well, Id be very interested to get some input from all of you. Do you think you should be able to do more then one transaction in the same store?
My take is that as long as your not going in there with a plan to do an outrageous number of transactions and take all the "good deal" products, then I personally feel your doing nothing wrong. In my opinion you ARE giving the store business and they shouldn't frown upon that or turn you away. Just because you are paying little money out of pocket does NOT mean you are "stealing" from the store, as some NON coupon friendly employees like to says. They will most likely be getting a lot more money back from all the manufacturers coupons used on each transaction.
When I am planning on doing two separate transaction and someones behind me, I always go to the back of the line after my first transaction is finished. At Walgreen's, I like to checkout at the cosmetics counter. I find it to be a lot less crowded... and usually a bit easier to do multiple transactions
The reason I am bringing up this topic is because of an email I received last night from one of my readers. Below you can read what she wrote. She and I would both really appreciate hearing any feedback or advice you may have.
"I just read your post about the Colgate Total Whitening Toothpaste on clearance for $2.19. I just got back from my Walgreen's and they did have some on clearance. Well, I tried to make two separate transaction so I could get two toothpaste and two separate $2 RR (not using any coupons). I've never had this happen to me, but the cashier would not let me do two separate transactions. I asked him to call the manager because I've never had a problem with it. The manager arrived and said the same thing. I then proceeded to ask if I could just walk out the door and come back in and buy another tube of toothpaste. He said he would not let me do that because he knows that I just bought one. Basically he would refuse my business. Can they do this? I was so upset. I told him that I would not be in there again and he said Okay!"
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11 comments:
Wow - that makes me mad just reading it! I don't if it would help, but I would definitely write corporate a letter. That's ridiculous. Especially in this day of economic hardship, no businees should turn business away. Like you said, many times they're getting paid by manufacuturers coupons - they're not out any money. I guess Walgreen's doesn't care that you have family and friends that you can go to telling them not to shop there anymore.
I have found that some cashiers are fine with ringing you up more than once. But some seem to think you are stealing from them, Some cashiers don't seem to understand that the store DOES get paid for the coupons through the manufacturer. I have often worried about this same issue so I perssonaly go through the line once. GO put it back in my car and come back in the store for my next purchase. I have never had a problem doing it this way. I think your reader who had the issue last night, should find out who is above the manager and speak to them about it. They will be loosing a very good customer. Good luck!
Sarah
athriftymom.com
That is annoying! The store should let you do multiple transactions, especially if the store is quiet!
A way to get around this could be to bring another shopper along with you! When I was a kid, and my parents had multiple rainchecks at the supermarket, they would give me money and have me stand in another line, so they could redeem two! I used to think it was obnoxious, but now that I'm an adult, I think it was a great idea to get me into the habit of learning to save!
I just came back from Walgreens where I purchased 5 Total toothpastes each with a $1.50 coupon. The cashier questioned the coupon as it was printed from a PDF file and looked to her like a scanned copy from a computer. She did let me use the 5 coupons in 5 different transactions. How does one go about finding out what the coporate policy is on multiply transactions?
Wow, that is sad.
I always do the same thing as Sarah. I do get tired of that look on people's face when I walk back in the store again, like "Oh...It's you..."
A few times I have tried to do multiple transactions at a time & I have never had a problem with it. However, I don't do that when I am at the grocery store & there are deals that I want to take advantage of by doing more than one. That becomes a real trick...
Great question!
I would say call the customer service & ask about that.
I have not done multiple transactions to take advantage of bargains myself, but I don't really see the problem if someone does.
I think this is an overbroad policy that wrongly excludes other reasons for multiple transactions, too. I worked at a grocery store in college and people would regularly have two separate items because they were shopping for someone else in addition to themselves. Under the policy that the Wags store described here follows, those sorts of transactions are not ok either. I'm not really so sure what the difference is and how one would be able to distinguish the two.
It seems to me that you just ran into a cashier who was having a bad day and wanted to be disagreeable. Maybe the same for the manager... or maybe they didn't want to go against what the cashier said in front of a customer (which is applaudable in some situations, but super annoying in this one).
I would call Walgreens's corporate office at: 1-800-925-4733. I've spoken with them before regarding coupon policy, and they are very kind. In fact, they told me if I ever have a problem with a particular store, to go out to the parking lot and call them. They will be happy to speak to them and sort it all out.
I think you should call the corporate office. They need to hear how upset you are. You need to let them know that CVS runs excellent deals too, but that you chose to shop at their store. There are too many stores offering too many great deals right now for this one to be turning you away. I would also let the manager know that you contacted corporate. To turn away a customer is completely unacceptable.
I do what Sarah does and do one transaction, put it in the car and then go back and do the next transaction. I do this at both Walgreens and CVS. In Florida, the grocery stores don't double coupons, so I haven't had a reason to do it at Publix, but I would if it saved me money. I think that she should definitely call corporate about it. I spoke with a manager at the new Walgreens near me and she told me that Walgreens is starting layoffs, so they should be careful how they treat their customers. (I was asking about employment - none there)
I think to cashier/manager was right. I'm sure this is not the popular answer, but there is a reason why the company limits the amount of rr. If they wanted people to be able to get a second rr they would have let the limit be two deals or three deals, or whatever. It is not Walgreen that loses out it is the company that is providing the product. They are losing money. I would hope that people would do the right thing and follow the rules, we get enough deals without scamming the system.
I often feel guilty when trying to double up like this in one visit. The solution I've come up with is I usually go for that one register reward item first and check it out at the cosmetic counter and then continue my shopping and check out again to receive the second reward at the main counter. It really depends on the store and who you deal with. I frequent 4 different Walgreens for that reason. The one closest to my house seems to not be as friendly as the others. Another that is a little more out of the way isn't as busy of a store and they are always more than willing to do deals with me.
I agree with the previous comment that these deals are limited for a reason. I don't think corporate would be thrilled knowing that people are taking advantage of these deals. I'd caution against contacting them on this subject.
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