After speaking last week to the Manager of the new Publix location I wanted to start shopping at, I returned to the store today to shop, under the impression that he had solved the problem of his cashiers wanting to reduce the amounts of coupon values.
I was doing Charcoal deals to get some ground meat free, and I didn't need alot of the BOGO stuff this week.
The first transaction I didn't have too much trouble. Richard read the coupons, and entered/scanned them, because I had what I supposed to have, and wasn't trying to pull anything or steal or whatever.
He did have a question about using the Charcoal coupon and the Beef coupon, and I explained they were for two different items - not that he took my word for it, they never do, but I can't really blame them for that - but Kristy came over and he asked her and she asked did I get beef and I had so she said he could use both coupons.
My balance got down to .32 plus tax, and he and the bagger gentleman were impressed and actually congratulated me and said I did good.
Transaction two was pretty much a repeat of the first one as far as what I bought.
I didn't return to Richard's line because I've learned from the past that they seem happy for you once, but not so much twice.
Deborah seemed friendly and chatty at first, until I gave her my coupons.
First thing she says "The A-1 is on sale, I can't give you the $2.00..." and whoops out her pen to start marking through my coupon barcodes.
I told her she should not, and asked at least three times for Mr. Jewell to be called out there. She said he was in the store, and she would call him, but she didn't, and the last time I asked she just ignored me.
Kristy came over and Deborah tried to ask her about not reducing the A-1 coupons, but Kristy ignored her and pointed to my Rite Aid coupon and my $6.00 off pork coupon and said I couldn't use both of those, I'd have to pick which one I wanted to use. Huh??
Deborah asked her again about the A-1 and she said she could give the $2.00, and then she picks up my Rite Aid, $3.00 off Beef, $6.00 off Pork, and $4.00 off charcoal coupons and says she's taking them to Brian.
I assumed she meant Bryan Jewell, the Store Manager, and said that I wanted to see him. Maybe she didn't hear me. She came back and said that Brian said I could only use one of the coupons, but not all of them. Because they could only take one manufacturer coupon for charcoal.
I was flabbergasted. I pointed out and explained that the coupons were for all different items. They were not all for charcoal.
So she goes to go back to talk to Brian again, and I said "Tell him I want him out here!".
So Brian comes out there, but it's Brian Stephen, a Customer Service Manager, not Bryan Jewell. Conveniently, Mr. Jewell had left the store just 10 or 15 minutes ago for a lunch break.
The way Brian understood the coupons was that to be able to use my $3.00 off Beef wyb charcoal and Reynolds wrap or my $6.00 off pork wyb charcoal and one other item, AND my $4.00 off charcoal coupons was that I had to buy a bag of charcoal for each coupon.
And really I shouldn't have been able to use the Free KC Masterpiece but I guess they "let" that go because it was already entered. Nothing was said about also using the Reynolds wrap coupon, and they did see it.
Brian said Mr. Jewell was currently out of the building on lunch, so I said I'd wait on him to get back, and they saved the order - the whole time Kristy was constantly apologizing to the man in line behind me - and we moved to the Customer Service desk.
It was as we were moving that Brian informs me that Mr. Jewell had only left 10-15 minutes ago.
I told Brian I've shopped 5-6 different Publix, having done this same charcoal deal for at least three months now, and out of all those stores and puchases, HE is the ONLY person to read those coupons that way. He shrugged and said well, that's how HE read them.
I couldn't wait 30 or 45 minutes or however long Mr. Jewell was going to be "out", so I said, Ring me up. I'm done. I'm out of here.
He said if his Manager said it was allright....I said Nope! It's too late. This is the 2nd time I've driven up here to be treated like this and I will NOT be coming back to this store.
Transaction #1
Fresh Express Salad $1.79 (-$1.00 Publix Q & $1.00 FLip)
Ground Pork $1.93 (-$6.00 Q)
Ground Chuck $5.13 (-$3.00 Q & $1/$5 FLip)
Bandaids $2.39 (-$1.00 Q)
J&J First Aid Kit $1.47 x 2 (-3.00/2 Q & $5.00 Publix Q)
L'oreal Froster $7.99 x 2 (-$3.00 Q & $5.00 Publix Q ea)
Reynolds Recycled Foil $2.50 (-$1.00 Q)
Parmesan Cheese $6.19 (no Q; got this with my overage)
Planters Pnuts $3.19 BOGO (-1.00 Q ea)
A-1 Marinade $2.89 BOGO x 2 (-2.00 Q ea)
Ragu Chunky .01 (no Q; Mystery Penny Item)
KC Masterpiece $1.69 (-$1.69 Free Q)
Kingsford Charcoal $9.49 (-$4.00 Q)
Rite Aid Q (-$5.00)
Value of items before Coupons: $62.35
Total Spent: $0.32 + 2.33 tax = $3.21
Transaction #1
Ground Pork $1.69 (-$6.00 Q)
Ground Beef $6.56 (-$3.00 Q & $1/$5 FLip)
Reynolds Recycled Foil $2.50 (-$1.00 Q)
Luck's Pinto Beans x 3 $2.00 (no Q; got this with my overage)
Planters Pnuts $3.19 BOGO (-1.00 Q ea)
A-1 Marinade $2.89 BOGO x 3 (-2.00 Q ea)
Ragu Chunky .01 (no Q; Mystery Penny Item)
KC Masterpiece $1.69 (-$1.69 Free Q)
Kingsford Charcoal $9.49 (-$4.00 Q)
Rite Aid Q (-$5.00)
Value of items before Coupons: $39.69
Total Spent: $9.66 + 1.19 tax = $10.85 (Should have been $1.85)
5 comments:
ugh. I am so sorry. This is exactly what happened to me at the store I don't shop at anymore. They really didn't understand the coupons and I calmly explained that each q was for a different item. I only had one qualifying charcoal coupon too. I can see how you'd have to buy more bags of charcoal to use each coupon (one qualifying for each item free/x/xx off) but I didn't. They said I could only use one period. I said forget it. And I haven't been back.
I would recommend contacting the district manager and telling them how pissed you are. Publix is supposed to have wonderful customer service and the district mgr's are known for "making it all better" and even sending people gift cards to make up for the trouble. Even if you won't shop there again...I'd still call/email.
Sorry!
Maybe I am interpreting it wrong, but I don't see where you'd have to buy a bag of charcoal for each coupon. But I don't know how to explain how I mean.
You know the Listerine that says "$3.00 wyb this AND this AND that"...that coupon is off three items.
But the Pork and Beef and Foil and all those other coupons don't say AND. So it's not a coupon for charcoal. I shouldn't have to choose between the coupons because they can only take one for charcoal, or I shouldn't have to buy 3 or 4 or 5 bags of charcoal to be able to use them all. The only qualification on each of them is that I bought charcoal, and the other item, and I did that.
Does that make sense? Or am I twisting it to my benefit?
No, you're making sense, and that's what I mean. It's one of those q's that is open to interpretation. MOST Publix stores will let you do it that way because it's a large $$ item. But there are some that will say, ok, well- here is an example
You buy:
1 tub Smart Balance butter
1 carton Smart Balance Milk
1 jar Smart Balance Peanut Butter
You have:
1 mq $1/1 Smart Balance butter
1 mq FREE Smart Balance Milk wyb butter
1 mq FREE Smart balance Peanut butter wyb butter
Can you use all three coupons since you bought one butter, having the butter qualify both the other items? Or does the one butter allow you to buy one free milk OR one free peanut butter. I think you can only choose one free item, since the butter is the qualifier.
So, with that reasoning, the same would be said for the charcoal. However, since the charcoal is such a high ticket item, and the "freebies" or the x/xx off the items are so small, they usually let it go.
But I can see how some stores wouldn't.
If that makes sense.
Hm, I see your point.
anyway- I could see it both ways. But I like that they let me do it! :)
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