..at least in the Texas region anyway. I saw a sign that was placed on the window of my local Abilene, TX store on 04/6/2014 indicating that effective 04/09/2014, they will no longer be doubling or tripling coupons.
They were the only remaining store in at least my area that continued to double manufacturer's coupons up to 50 cents and triple up to 39 cents. One of the last stores to show their customer they appreciated them still. Apparently their acquisition of Safeway back in early March of 2014 included acquiring Safeway's anti-double and triple coupon policy as well.
The "rumors" posted on the Facebook page are true. And despite the "claim" to lack of knowledge of this happening by the Facebook Albertson's social media response bot earlier this week, the sign I saw on my store this morning was pretty clear and to the point.
What does this mean? For me and my family personally, it means a dramatic reduction in my trips to Albertson's. And it probably will be for you as well. Please spare us the rationale of "we are doing this to lower prices throughout the store for everyone" line of nonsense. Didn't happen with Kroger or Safeway, and it sure will not happen with Albertson's either. Here is their Facebook Customer Service bot response:
Sure we believe you. We want to believe what you are saying. Hopefully it will not be like Kroger who promised to "lower prices throughout the store" when they killed their double and triple coupon programs. In an era of dying doubles, this will perhaps be, the final nail in the coffin since Albertson's now owns United Supermarkets , Safeway and everything under their wing. Who's left ? Depends on your region but the options are falling by the wayside.Hey Kmart still doubles right? Sort of, of course that is a losing proposition in and of itself, so why bother.
But hey, at least Wal Mart price matches still and in my area HEB generally has lower prices even after they eliminated stacking some time ago. I guess I will save my gas and make that extra trip to one of those stores instead of visiting my local Albertson's with the frequency I used to. Shame, I really did like the store in my area. I guess I will still shop there for their mega-deals. Maybe. Or maybe I will just make Target or Wal Mart price match it. Probably the latter. I went out tonight kind of like in mourning of the loss. So I went through my binder, took all of the coupons that made sense to use as a double or triple and headed off to Albertson's. Here is my last receipt ever of them showing the savings using their soon to be ending double and triple coupon policy:
And yes, this will be the last free toothbrush I receive from Albertson's using a .50/1 coupon on a regularly priced .99 Colgate manual toothbrush:
I said something to the cashier about it also. He simply stated "we can't afford to do it anymore." Of course that makes no sense as Albertson's just purchased both United and Safeway Supermarkets. But no matter. The reality is as follows: No more savings club cards, now no more doubles and triples at Albertson's - one of last safe havens in the industry. This policy saved my family hundreds if not thousands of dollars over the past 3+ years I have been aware and keen to it and shopped accordingly. Now well, just like every other good thing for consumers these days, this too, is coming to an end.
Welcome to Reality Retail & Couponing 2014. These are dark times indeed for consumers looking to save money without question. The good ol CIC has shut down coupon sales on eBay and webstore, eCrater ran for the hills at the end of last year regarding coupon sales, manufacturer's are going digital, tearpads are either non-existent or useless, store policies like the one above are changing and not for the better - the list goes on and on. All in a coordinated mass effort to rip savings out of your pockets and squeeze you for every last penny you can (or more than likely can't) afford. Of course all of this is going on while the corporations continue to just get bigger each day and we are powerless to stop it unless we wise up and shop with our feet.
That or maybe they just want us to eat bagged rice 3 meals a day in America, grow our own food and use wooden utensils to eat and bathe with homemade Lye. At this rate this is all we will be able to afford much sooner than later. They do it in China and they own us right? Go figure.
Thank you for reading.
