ok parent mag 2011_12.pdf - Kelowna Child Care Society

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Kelowna Child Care Society • 2011/12 _14th ANNUAL EDITION Change the way you Shop Using Coupons Wisely! by Traci Savel People of all ages and income levels are looking for ways to save their money. A great way to save money on everyday purchases is through the use of coupons. The dollar saving potential is now much more than years past. Many coupon savvy shoppers spend up to five hours a week on coupon related activities, including checking flyers, finding and clipping coupons that coincide with individual store sales, planning meals and coupon swapping, all to get the best value for their dollar. Using coupons effectively means totally rethinking your approach to how and what you purchase. Change the way you shop. The idea is not to buy when you need it - typically paying full price for an item - but to purchase several of the same items, using coupons, in order to save the most amount of money. Supermarkets and Drugstores have sales cycles. Every six weeks items go on sale and “stockpiling” (having several of the same items on hand) is an important money saving aspect of coupon use. Purchasing more of a product than your immediate need, with items you already purchase for your family when prices are low, will be beneficial in the future, as prices fluctuate. Stockpiling products that are non-perishable is a practice most coupon savvy shoppers do. Each dollar spent buying something at half price, represents a dollar value you won’t spend on that same item down the road. Stockpiling is specific and personal for your family’s needs. A way to know how much your family needs of a specific item would be to mark the date you open a product and see how long it takes your family to use it up. This then determines how many of one item your family will need to stock up on. The idea is to save money by stockpiling, not to ‘hoard’ products. As an example, my family will go through two boxes of Parents Looking for a friendly, inviting place to bring your children? Somewhere that they can play, and you can have a coffee, meet other families and learn about resources available in your community? Parents/Caregivers & children ages 0 - 6 years Come and join our free creative playtimes 9:30 to 11:30am on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at our Martin Avenue Community Centre location (1435 Graham St.) and 9:30 to 12:30am on Tuesdays at our Parent Place location (630 Cadder Ave.) No registration required Program of the For further information: Check our website at www.kelownachildcare.com or call Kelowna Child Care Society • 250-762-3536 or email Michele (Michele.Hucul@thebridgeservices.ca) 24 Celebrating 34 years of Community Service in the Central Okanagan!
14th ANNUAL EDITION _2011/12 • Kelowna Child Care Society Granola Bars in a week. To keep enough Granola Bars on my shelf for the six-week sale cycle, I would need to purchase 12 boxes. To do this I would then need to obtain at least 12 (or more) granola bar coupons, in order to save the maximum amount of money possible. Another beneficial aspect to couponing that savvy shoppers often engage in is “stacking coupons”. This essentially means using two or more coupons, of various dollar amounts, to purchase one item. As an example, High Liner Pan Sear fish is regularly $13.99 and it is on sale for $9.99. You could, in effect, use a $2.00 off coupon from one source, a $1.00 off coupon from another source and a $1.00 tearpad coupon from the store to lower the fish cost to $6.00, total cost, as long as all the UPC codes (found on the bottom of the coupons) are different. Currently, British Columbia and Alberta are the only provinces that allow people to “stack coupons”. A few coupon musts would be to read the fine print on the coupon. Note the expiry dates, as coupons will typically not be accepted past a certain date. Ensure your coupon has a Canadian address, as most Canadian retailers will not accept US coupons. Know your supermarket and drugstore regular prices, to save your coupons and use as many coupons as you can against any one item. An important piece of information to keep with you when venturing into the store to shop with your coupons is a store’s coupon policy. Certain retailers allow stacking while others don’t. To find your favourite stores coupon policy, check their website and/or call their main office and ask to have one sent to you. Often a stores customer service desk is able to provide a coupon policy for their customers. Finding coupons is really quite simple. There are great sites such as www.save.ca, www.websaver.ca, www.brandsaver.ca and www.gocoupons.ca. You can also look for coupons in stores they have tear pads on shelves. There are also often coupons included in the packaging of products you already use, such as cereal boxes. Considering using coupons? Start with a basic three ring binder and trading card inserts (found in various stores) to keep your coupons visible and organized. The use of dividers is helpful, to keep coupons together that are related to food, personal supplies, laundry and cleaning needs, pet needs, etc. Remember, using coupons effectively makes sense and saves cents! TRACI SAVEL HAS BEEN MARRIED FOR 25 YEARS AND HAS A DAUGHTER WHO IS 24. SHE HAS BEEN COUPON CLIPPING FOR ABOUT 14 YEARS. GROWING UP IN A SINGLE PARENT HOME, WHERE THE BUDGET WAS TIGHT, AND HAVING A CHILD WHILE ATTENDING SCHOOL, CAUSED HER TO LEARN TO CLIP COUPONS. CURRENTLY SHE TEACHES COUPON WORKSHOPS FREE OF CHARGE. SHE CAN BE CONTACTED AT: TSAVEL@SHAW.CA. OVER 75 SHOPS, RESTAURANTS AND SERVICES INCLUDING ZELLERS SAVE-ON-FOODS AND THE FUTURE SHOP PLUS FAMOUS PLAYERS 5 SCREEN CINEMA CENTRE AT HARVEY & COOPER IN KELOWNA LOTS OF SHOPPING LOTS OF FUN! Call 250-762-3536 for child care information. 25
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