Oct 4, 2008

Kmart double coupon days: A reader's experience

I've known about Kmart's double coupon promotion through the coupon forums, but I didn't think much of it because there isn't one near me, and it's hard for me to share useful information beyond what you can get at any of a dozen other blogs without personal knowledge. So I'm grateful to reader Kayla, who generously shared her shopping scenario. I'll post it after the basic run down on Kmart's promotion. I can't seem to find a list of all of the rules and restrictions, so I'm going off memory - it may not be entirely accurate, so hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

The basic gist is that Kmart will double coupons with a face value of up to $2. There is a limit of 75 coupons per customer per day, and only up to 4 of the same coupon per transaction. They will not give overage, i.e., if the doubled coupon is worth more than the price of the item, the coupon value will be adjusted to match the price. I've read some conflicting forum posts about whether all stores are participating, so it's best to call your store before you head out. Additionally, you should keep a close eye on the register because there have been some reports of the computer not processing doubles correctly, although we all know that isn't easy if you're shopping with a child (or two or three).

With all that said, here's Kayla's scenario:

I used a $5 email coupon (good on $50 purchase after discounts and coupons) and then gathered up my coupons that were at least $2...to double them up to $4.

I purchased:

$19.16 4 Clearasil facial wash
$ 7.99 Gillette Fusion razor
$5.29 Bic Soliel razor
$5.29 Bic Comfort 3 razor
$5.99 Visine tears
$4.29 Dove heat shield protector
$7.98 2 Dove Shampoo
$7.98 2 Dove Conditioner
$6.00 2 Sunsilk Hairspray
$19.16 4 Tylenol pm (20 ct)
$4.49 Tylenol rapid release
$5.59 Advil pm (16 ct)
$5.99 Zyrtec (looking back, I think this rang up wrong...it should be higher)
$25.16 4 Bayer HeartAdvantage (30 ct)
$4.99 Pepcid Max
$21.96 4 Schick Quatro shavers
$9.98 2 Pert 2 in 1 shampoo plus conditioner
$9.00 2 Resolve spray carpet cleaners
$9.00 2 Resolve aerosol carpet cleaners
$3.29 Endust 10 oz
$10.99 Huggies Pull ups
$22.98 2 Pampers Easy Ups pull ups
$7.99 Febreeze pet eliminator starter kit
$25.96 4 Glade candles
$5.00 2 Hershey's Bliss

My total bill before coupons was $266. After coupons, my total (with the $5 email coupon) came to $78.87. I saved $187.13 on 48 items.

Razors were on sale (25% off) and so were the Hershey Bliss (2 for $5). The "smell-good products" are on sale, too. I was hoping that the Pampers/Huggies would be on sale, but was still satisfied with regular price plus $4 off with coupons.

Although not many items were on sale, by using only coupons with a $2 face value and higher, I was able to get at least $4 off of every item...which made many items (like shampoo and facial wash) free or almost free. I stocked up on razors and felt that the 25% discount combined with $4 off was the best value that I've seen in a while.

This sale allowed me to stock up for the winter on many products. I believe that even though most items were not on sale, saving $4 on every item allowed me the convenience of being able to purchase without ECBs and Register Rewards. I don't shop at K Mart often and appreciated that I will not be tempted to go back to redeem rewards. However, I did receive a coupon on my receipt tape for $5 off my next $20 purchase....tempting, but I have everything I need.


Not only did Kayla have an awesome transaction, I love what she said at the end: that she's not going to spend more money just to use a good coupon.

Today Tomorrow (thanks, Mercedes!) is the last day for the current round of double coupons at Kmart, but they've been doing it regionally for the last few weeks, so I wouldn't be surprised if they did it again soon.

It also looks like you can get two $5 coupons by signing up for email updates at Kmart.com (click here for the sign up page).

Happy shopping!

7 comments:

Mercedes said...

The promotion ends tomorrow 10/5 not today.
I just finished putting away all of the stuff I have bought so far and have three big bags of things to take to the Women's shelter.

Chief Family Officer said...

Thanks, Mercedes! I updated the post. I hope you'll post about your deals - it sounds like you got a ton of stuff!

Mercedes said...

Hi Cathy,
Today was my last day at Kmart. After these I will need at least two weeks to decompress from shopping that store.

Mathilda said...

does anyone have the flyer regarding double coupon days? apparently my local store is not participating however if I take in the flyer, they will honor it. thanks for the help

Chief Family Officer said...

@Mathilda - I don't get the Kmart flyer in my paper so I can't help you, but I would recommend posting at A Full Cup or Hot Coupon World or even Slick Deals and seeing if someone might be able to send one to you as a "Random Act of Kindness" (RAOK) or coupon trade.

Anonymous said...

My Kmart finally had double coupons today (and supposedly for the rest of this week). In 2 trips my total was $89, I had $58 in coupons so I paid $31! That was good for me! Got a lot of free stuff - pet food and treats, emery boards, conditioner, some cleaners and food. I would have had lots more coupons but I've used a lot of the better ones in the past 2 weeks on good deals at WalMart and Walgreens. Double coupons are great!

Chief Family Officer said...

@CJ - Good job! That's fantastic :)