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Cashing in on the savings
Vinita mother finds it pays to play coupon game
Brandi Morgan used coupons to save $15.60 on about $41 worth of goods during a recent shopping trip. Matt Gleason / Tulsa World
By MATT GLEASON World Scene Writer
Published: 11/22/2009 2:19 AM
Last Modified: 11/22/2009 10:21 AM
In a pink three-ring binder, Brandi Morgan stashes dozens of coupons in plastic baseball-card holders. All of those coupons aren't exactly Mickey Mantle rookie cards, but, still, they offer tremendous value.
Actually, if it weren't for coupons, Morgan couldn't afford to be a stay-at-home mother to 4-year-old Madison or 6-month-old Mallory.
"What I save from the grocery store goes to help pay the other bills," said the Vinita wife of an electric company worker, "so it's basically my part-time job."
When Morgan goes to work in grocery store aisles, her coupon stash, along with a keen eye for sales, often slashes her bill clean in half.
And if that weren't enough, give the 28-year-old a handful of Walgreens coupons, then marvel at how she'll spend, for instance, $3.61 for about $40 worth of goods, including five bottles of shampoo, baby wipes, a gallon of water, deodorant and fingernail polish.
You should see the look on her face when she gets something for free, even if it's just two frozen dinners.
"It's fun and awesome," Morgan said of getting something for nothing but coupon savvy. "It's kind of like a high."
For about a year now, Morgan has been a follower of Tulsan Sarah Roe, who is known as the 918 Coupon Queen on 918moms.com. Roe offers, among other things, in-person and online coupon-clipping workshops. Her new book is titled "The Power of Coupons: 13 Ways to Save."
Morgan, who is a Roe volunteer, said, "(Roe's Web site) gives you everything. I don't really have to go anywhere else to get my information."
Beyond snipping coupons out of the newspaper, Morgan's fond of going online to snag deals from Coupons.com and Rightathome.com. She also frequents manufacturer Web sites, such as General Mills and Colgate. Plus, Morgan nabs coupons from Facebook.com and Twitter.com manufacturer profiles.
"You can get some pretty sweet deals," she said of the two social-networking Web sites. "I just got free shampoo (Herbal Essences) from Facebook."
Recently, Morgan drove from Vinita to Claremore — a half-hour drive — to shop at Reasor's, just like she did every two weeks. Although Reasor's was her favorite grocery store, she lately makes the 30-minute drive to Joplin to shop at Dillons, which is owned by the Kroger grocery store chain.
"They double coupons up to, and including, a dollar every day," Morgan said of Dillons. "And, sometimes, they triple coupons."
Jackpot.
The pink book
During, perhaps, her last shopping expedition to the Claremore Reasor's, Morgan arrived without her 4-year-old, who had been sick for a week. Taking care of a sick child, including being up with her three times the night before, left Morgan off her coupon-collecting game.
Still, she came prepared enough to walk the aisles with her 6-month-old in a car seat affixed to the grocery cart. All along, her pink coupon binder balanced precariously on the side of that same cart, which carried groceries and Morgan's five large reusable bags. She gets 5 cents off her bill for each reusable bag used.
"Every little bit helps," she said.
Usually, 80 percent of Morgan's grocery list is dictated by the coupons in her binder. However, she said, "I'm not going to have a coupon for everything, but it makes up for when I don't have a coupon, as for when I do. It all evens out."
In the beginning of her coupon collecting, Morgan felt constrained by her coupons, but no more.
"Now I know where to go to get my coupons, and I'll save them until the product goes on sale. That's when I buy it," she said. "I love Ragù pasta sauce, so I will stock up when it's on sale and I have a coupon, so I get the best price."
Don't get Morgan wrong, though, she doesn't go overboard with her coupons.
"I'm not like a crazy stockpiler," she said. "I don't have 50 cans of pasta sauce."
Towards the end of her grocery shopping venture, Morgan pushed her cart toward the check-out line and lamented she'd left deals on the shelves.
Clip tips
How Brandi Morgan organizes coupons.
- Use a three-ring binder filled with baseball card holders.
- Organize coupons by the route you take through the grocery
store. For instance, the produce section first and frozen food
last.
- Once a month, go through the binder and remove expired
coupons. Morgan sends her expired coupons to a U.S. military
base in Japan, because military personnel can use expired
coupons there.
- When Morgan prepares to go grocery shopping, she will
match her coupons with the store’s advertised sale. She puts
those coupons in the front, along with other useful coupons.
Matt Gleason 581-8473
matt.gleason@tulsaworld.com
By MATT GLEASON World Scene Writer
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