Mount Pleasant resident teaches class on the art of couponing
Armed with her coupon binder and stack full of newspaper inserts, Mount Pleasant resident and extreme-couponer Chandra Randall shared her tips Tuesday night.
Randall began her class, Extreme Couponing 101 at 6:30 p.m. in the annex meeting room of the Veterans Memorial Library, 301 S. University Ave.
The room was filled with approximately 30 residents with varying experience levels in couponing.
“There was once a time that is was taboo to use coupons, like it meant you were poor, (but) that is no longer the case,” Randall said.
When Randall decided she wanted to be a stay-at-home mom, she said she knew she would need to find a way to keep the household running on just one income.
“Being a stay-at-home mom is made possible 100 percent by coupons,” she said.
Randall said she has couponing down to a science.
“I got $152 dollars of product and they paid me $1.72 at the end of the transaction,” Randall said.
She said this magnitude of savings was made possible by planning ahead, using the stores price match policy and putting together manufacturers and in-store coupons.
The first step in the process is gathering the coupons. Coupons can be found in the Sunday paper, online, from the company or from family members and friends, she said.
Step two in successful couponing is organization. Randall uses a binder, sectioned into categories of products, but urges the crowd to experiment and find their own method.
"Make sure it works best for you and is cost-effective," she said.
Knowing the rules is step three because every store has their own policy for coupons. Couponers need to be familiar with different policies, she said.
“There is a learning curve with couponing — it takes time,” Randall said.
Jennifer Hayes, a Central Michigan University junior from Rochester Hills, said she had never been one to look through coupons.
“I just bought what I needed, when I needed it, and it was a bonus if it was on sale," she said.
Randall advised against this kind of shopping.
She said shoppers should change their mindset from only buying one or two items, to stocking up when the price is low.
“Now that I am living on my own, I definitely love the savings from coupons," Hayes said. "What college student isn’t looking to save money"
