Couponing

[cari12]

Do you think that maybe all this extreme couponing is driving up prices? The manufacturer sends the coupons to you on facebook etc and the store doubles and triples them. Do you really think they are willing to lose the profit? They put the price up knowing people are going to coupon it down.

 

[Marionnette]

Do you think that maybe all this extreme couponing is driving up prices? The manufacturer sends the coupons to you on facebook etc and the store doubles and triples them. Do you really think they are willing to lose the profit? They put the price up knowing people are going to coupon it down.

No. Prices were on an upward trend long before the show became popular. In reality, very few people coupon, let alone do extreme couponing.

 

[3 MEN AND A BOAT]

I believe that it is to a small amount figured in, they might loose money on the item that the coupons are actually used on, but it is made up by those who don't, although only a fraction. For every 1 person that even uses "a" coupon their are hundreds that don't.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I think most "rack rates" on most items take into account that the item may go on sale.

"Loss leaders" has been around for quite a long time and are intended to bring you into the store. The goal for the store is that you do the rest of your shopping there. For the most part this works as most people do not like going from store to store.

That being said, prices have been rising long before the series on TLC.

So what you are seeing is a correlation, but not a causation. The rising prices were rising due to other factors.

What may change is that as more people learn how to use sales to stockpile, stores may adjust how they offer loss leaders and what limits they may set for purchase or coupon redemption. Some stores get around the "per order" deal by having a "per day" limit on an item. This too has been around before the series.

 

[MrsPete]

Echoing what others have said:

Coupons are a win-win for the companies. Few people actually use them, but the people who don't still tend to have a positive outlook on the companies who give them out: Well, I didn't save my .50 on green beans, but they offered it!

The few extreme couponers don't make a dent in the big companies profit.

 

[MrsPete]

"Loss leaders" has been around for quite a long time and are intended to bring you into the store. The goal for the store is that you do the rest of your shopping there. For the most part this works as most people do not like going from store to store.

Yeah, loss leaders have been around since I was a kid. The stores don't throw them out willy-nilly. They keep records on whether people buy the loss leaders, how much people tend to spend, etc. They know that people tend to pick up more stuff once they're in the store . . . yet what do people remember about their shopping trip? They remember that they got a GREAT price on sodas or chicken, and they forget what they paid for cereal, vegetables, and everything else on the list.