Stack, stack, stack

Right now on coupons.com there is a coupon for $3/1 for Similac and $5/1 for Enfamil, since these are manufacturer's coupons they can be stacked with store coupons, like the $2 in the Rite Aid ad....

BUT

did you know you can also "stack" these with the formula check you get in the mail from the companies. These are considered a form of payment, a check, not a "coupon", so you should be able to use all three. That means you can get some pretty cheap and possibly free formula!

Sign up for formula checks and samples at

Similac
Enfamil
Nestle Good Start/Gerber

Coupon 101: Stacking

Sorry for no post yesterday, it was one of those stranger than fiction days and blogging just did not happen. :(

Deal Diva Secret #2: Most people know you can use one coupon per item or as many items as the coupon states ($1/2...etc), however few know you can use manufacturer's coupons with store coupons to get some great deal! This term is called stacking and fairly simple and straight forward. Some things to remember:

• Manufacturer's coupons are put out by the manufacturer and will say "manufacturer" on the top. The manufacturer is taking the loss on the product.


• Store coupons are put out by the store, they are usually a special "sale price" rather than cents or dollars off. The store is taking the loss here. Store coupons will usually say "store coupon" at the top. They might also have the store logo on them. They are usually found in the store ad for the week, by the product, or occasionally come in the mail.


• If the store mails you a coupon or gives you a coupon that says "manufacturer" on it, but still has the store logo it is still considered a manufacturer's coupon. It is just kosher to use this coupon at the store that gave it to you, as that was the store/manufacturer's intention.


• The one exception I can think of it Rite Aid. Rite Aid store coupons say manufacturer on the top, but has a RC in front of the bar code. Any Rite Aid coupons (video values, ads, wellness, etc) will have this RC and are store coupons that can be stacked.

*Example from this weeks Albertsons ad:

• Bar S meat Franks 88 cents with in ad coupon, use $1/2=76 cents for 2! That means buy 2 packages, at check-out give the cashier the store coupon (usually the coupon will have a limit on it, like 4 or something, but even if you buy 4, you only need one store coupon) and the manufacturer's coupon and you will get both packages for 76 cents!

Q & A

A couple of good questions answered for your Thursday.


1) Can I use store coupons with manufacturers coupons?
YES, this is a very smart thing to do. It is called STACKING and can score you some free or very cheap things. Store coupons are usually found in the weekly ads for the store. They have the store logo on them and do not say "manufacturers". If is says manufacturers coupon, even if it came in the "store" ad, it is still a manufacturers coupon and cannot be stacked with another coupon. Some stores such as Walgreens and Fred Meyer have their own coupon books, just check at customer service. On thing that took me awhile to figure out, catalinas are manufacturers coupons and not store coupons, which leads to question number two...



2) How do I get a catalina machine to trigger a certain coupon?
Catalinas took a long time for me to figure out. First off any piece of paper that comes out of that machine is referred to as a catalina or cat, even if it is just telling you of a new product. Sometimes you can get it to trigger a certain coupon based on what you buy, but it is not always reliable. For instance, I have gotten baby formula coupons buy buying one brand and got one for another brand. However, when I tried to repeat this transaction, the catalina did not print, so there is no way to trigger catalinas to print a certain coupon....BUT


If you are going for a promotion, like spend $25 get $10 on your next purchase (like the ones that are frequently run at Albertsons), you should trigger your $10 coupon. If you don't, you need to tell the cashier or go to customer service to get it. These catalinas (or register rewards at Walgreens) are WONDERFUL, because they can be used the same as cash on (almost) anything in the store! Sometimes they even roll, meaning you use the $10 you just earned, to pay for another promotion transaction and earn the $10 catalina again. Still confused about catalina, try reading this again. Once you do some shopping and really start paying attention to these catalinas, you will understand how they work better.