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Extreme couponing for Canadians is possible, with a little ingenuity

Extreme couponing for Canadians is possible, with a little ingenuity

Imagine getting hundreds of dollars worth of groceries for 56 cents - and being upset about it. That’s exactly what happens when we meet Angelique, a pregnant mother profiled on TLC’s “Extreme Couponing.” Ten hours and 23 transactions later, Angelique’s abundance of coupons and store points don’t quite total her grocery bill out to zero, and it’s the worst thing that could possibly happen to her. While this example is not typical even for the extreme of the extreme, it can be exhilarating to save a few bucks of your hard-earned cash off the receipt.

It’s scenes like these that got Lindsay Nassler, 26, interested in the art of extreme coupon savings. A self-proclaimed “rookie” of the craze, Nassler has been living the uber-frugal lifestyle for about a year, when due to student debts and aspirations to buy a house she realized she didn’t have a lot of extra money to play with. That’s when she decided to do something about it.

“When I first started watching [Extreme Couponing] I thought to myself ‘chill out people, you're about to walk away with about $500 worth of free groceries, I think it's ok if the final total is 13 cents over what you were expecting,” Nassler says of the show. “But then I thought ‘wait a second, I'd love free groceries too.’”

Beginners to the world of couponing, like Nassler, can get their start with websites like GroceryAlerts.ca, RedFlagDeals.ca, or SmartCanucks.ca. These sites post Canadian-specific coupons and deals you can take advantage of at your grocery store. Websites like these are great introductions to the novice couponer and as Canadians, we want to take advantage of the same insane savings potential as our American neighbours. Unfortunately, we are faced with a thing called “fine print.”


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The coupon rules in Canada state things like: you can’t double up on coupons, you can’t use them on a weekend, you must purchase three items to get the savings, or you must sell your first born child to save a dollar on bacon. (That last one isn’t exactly true). So how does a polite Canadian beat the savings system and say sorry not sorry – I want to save too?

There are lots of ways Canadians can cash in on the savings without the hassle of spending hours prepping binders and stockpiling grocery carts with Ovaltine to save money the American way. These are just a couple of tried-and-true techniques to consider when getting in line at the grocery store:

Price matching

(Photo via Thinkstock)
(Photo via Thinkstock)

Several grocery stores have initiated price or ad-match policies when ringing up at the cash. No Frills, Wal-mart Superstores and other supermarkets are happy to gain your business by matching the price of items found on sale in other stores. This means the average person can save a bundle while continuing to shop in the comfort of their favourite local store – if they take the time to do so.

Steven Zussino, who runs GroceryAlerts.ca with his wife Lina, says price matching is one of the best ways to save big bucks on food, and says with a little work, your grocery bill can be cut by up to 75%.

“I carry my iPad mini with all my notes on price matching when I shop,” Zussino says. “I simply pull out my notepad when I get to the checkout. I show the cashier the flyers I bookmarked online along with the advertised price and the cashier will price match the lower advertised price. It takes only a few minutes when you are putting your grocery list together and saves you so much money.” 

Price-matching is Nassler’s number one secret to extreme savings.

It's crazy how things add up and how much cheaper you can get certain items for, especially when Canada isn't a huge ‘coupon’ country,” Nassler says of the policy. “I'm obsessed with this app called ‘Flipp.’ The first time I used it I think I price-matched tomato sauce and maybe saved 40 cents, but boy did I walk out of that Wal-mart with a rush!”

Apps like Flipp make price-matching an incredibly easy process. On the downloaded app, a large collection of local flyers are displayed for your perusing pleasure, giving the user an opportunity to organize their own set of favourites for ease of access. All it takes is a tap to add an item to your flyer clippings, no scissors necessary. The average Canadian can easily pull out their smartphone, locate the flyer, and voila, you’ve saved a few bucks in under a minute.

“When you get to the register, it (Flipp) has all of your saved items in one place and you just show the cashier. It's super easy and fast,” Nassler says. “I always feel like I'm being judged by the people behind me in line for being cheap and taking so long, so being quick is huge for me. Even though last time I checked, getting $3 off my frozen pizza wasn't a crime.”

In order to maximize your savings potential, Nassler also suggests checking the price tags on items you are planning to price-match.

“On most tags there will be a ‘cost per quantity’ listed, for example ‘$.70 per 100ml,’ that type of thing,” she says. “When comparing different sizes and brands you'll be able to see which is the better bargain.”

Take advantage of money-back opportunities

(Photo via Thinkstock)
(Photo via Thinkstock)

Another program couponers swear by is Checkout 51, a rebate app that rewards you with cash back for simply purchasing certain products that are highlighted for the week.

“If I can get lucky and combine price matching with money back, then it's a good day,” Nassler says. “I also use a couple of other rebate apps and have points cards, so even if I don't save on the initial purchase, I have my ways of getting my money back.”

If the consumer chooses not to go the traditional coupon route, they can always make money back after the sale. Several stores provide loyalty points cards which provide points for items you buy on a regular basis and give the shopper money back towards their future purchases. Longo’s Thank You Rewards and PC Plus are both chain-specific programs that reward customers for their loyalty with free groceries.

Zussino says loyalty program grocery cards are the best thing to look out for when shopping around, however not to the same degree as our American counterparts.

“It can determine whether or not it’s worth shopping there,” says Zussino. “I am a points junkie. I figure out how to easily collect points and to best use them. It also gives me the convenience to shop at a popular grocery store that carries every item I need and I am guaranteed that my food is fresh. I recently had the opportunity to travel to New Zealand and Australia for 6 weeks all on points.”

Look for coupons everywhere

If you’re more old-fashioned, give your scissors a workout and take advantage of the saving on the back of a cereal box. Or taco kit, or frozen meal box, or just about any container of pre-packaged food you buy. While these cut-out coupons are typically a marketing ploy used to cross-sell other products of the same brand, if you’re saving money on a product you were already looking to buy, then it’s a win-win situation.

While in extreme cases our American neighbours can walk out paying nothing, Canadians are surrounded by stipulations minimizing our potential to save. With a little hard work, Canadians too can save hundreds on their monthly or yearly grocery bills too just by knowing the tools to use and utilizing them. Happy couponing, Canada!


Top 5 tips to help you save money at the grocery store (courtesy Steve Zussino):

1. Price match and stock up.

2. Learn how to take advantage of loyalty programs and know how to redeem them to get the most for your dollar. 

3. Use technology and websites that you can rely on to post all the grocery savings coupons and deals. Use mobile coupon apps that will allow you to double up on savings.

4. Buy at local markets and grocers that offer local foods and stock up.

5. Reduce grocery waste. Grocery shopping is expensive and it makes sense to only buy what you need and reduce food waste.