When I discovered a Walgreen’s was moving into to our community, I was so excited! I had heard many good things about the company over the years and I looked forward to using their sales to find some great deals. I knew they offered monthly rebates, which is a big plus for someone like me who looks for such things. Over the years, I had heard some moans and groans about how they were often out of merchandise even when sales began, but I didn’t think much about that. We were getting a Walgreen’s and I could not wait!
I’m odd, I know. I am one of those “coupon queens” you read about sometimes. I am one of those people who get bags and bags of groceries for pennies. It used to be a hobby, but as the economy has tightened and work has been harder to come by, I think of it as a tool for survival. It helps us afford things we need to live and even sometimes buys some extras to make life sweeter. Now, I would admit to being obsessed. I could win the lottery tomorrow, and I would still use a coupon to get free produce tomorrow evening. I can’t imagine living my life any other way.
So I pay attention to online “savings” groups and when I heard about an upcoming Walgreen’s Olay of Olay soap deal, I gathered my coupons and was ready to shop as soon as the store opened on Sunday morning. In fact, I was the second person in the store. The first was an old man who I was relieved to see, headed to the vitamin aisle. No competition for me at all!
The deal sounded amazing. Oil of Olay 2 pack soaps were on sale for 2/$4 and when you bought 2, a coupon for $4 off your next purchase, register reward would print at the end of the transaction. It got even sweeter because I had a pile of $2 off any Olay soap coupons, so free soap would become pure profit, $4 at a time. I envisioned using the Catalina register rewards to buy diapers and several other things I knew we would need this month.
So, I find where the soap should be and there are exactly two packages in the entire store. Remember I was the first customer looking for them when the doors opened on the very first day of the sale. Somewhere in the back of my memory comes the moans and groans I remember hearing before my Walgreen’s first opened and I know exactly how those other customers felt.
Maybe another truck will come in this week, but as I perused the savings boards this morning, I noticed there are a lot of complaints about this promotion. Some stores were like mine and did not have any stock, others had stock, but the coupons are not printing like they are supposed to.
Walgreen’s ads created a buzz on the internet and got who knows how many thousands of people into their stores this morning, for a promotion they were not ready for. I’m sure many of those people still bought something “while they were there”. I can’t help but think that Walgreen’s really cleaned up with this one!
