Saving in Advance

I hate when I have strategically planned my deals and have headed out to the store only to find bare shelves! Grrrrr! (OK, I am *sometimes* guilty of clearing shelves... but aren't we all?)

So I have learned to ask for a rain check for the out of stock items that I planned to purchase.

A rain check is a written guarantee stating that once the specified product is back on the shelves... that you can purchase the items for the sale price of when the 'shelf clearing fairy' had made his/her visit to YOUR store!

Well, since I live pretty close to all of the stores that I normally shop at, I have learned a pretty savvy saving tool for saving in advance of the next sale. Let me explain...

This week, Hefty One Zip bags are on sale 10/$10 or $1 per box. I had several $1 coupons for the Fresh Extend produce bags and so I picked up several boxes, but I still had 4 coupons left over. So before I left the store I stopped by the Customer Service desk and asked for a rain check for more Fresh Extend bags.

*NOTE: I only asked for a rain check for the Fresh Extend bags (a specific variety) since the shelves with the regular Hefty bags were still filled. (Remember to only ask for items with vacant shelves!!!)

I popped into two other stores that I was near this week t see if I could spend my remaining Hefty coupons, and these stores shelves were also barren... so I asked for rain checks at each of these stores as well.

Now that I have multiple rain checks I am secure in spending my remaining Hefty Fresh Extend coupons PLUS I now have a written guarantee for the 10/$10 price when new coupons flood my Sunday papers! Bring on the next round of Hefty coupons!!!

Here are the rain check policies for my neighborhood stores:

Kroger: Rain checks are available only at the customer service desk, and although they say that they expire 30 from the date written, my Kroger will still accept them 4 years from now!

Meijer: Rain checks are available from your cashier, the podium with the CSA located near the check out lines, or at the customer service desk. Meijer's rain checks are valid for 30 days and often have a limit printed at the bottom. The Livonia store allows up to 12 items to be purchased per rain check while the Southfield store only allows 6 items. This must vary from store to store so be sure to read your Meijer rain checks carefully.

Target: Rain checks are available at either the register or the customer service desk. Target rain checks expire 45 days from printing... but if you still haven't been able to purchase your items, you may ask to have new rain checks made before your old ones expire!

CVS: Never expiring rain checks can be written either by a manager or a cashier. It is wise to bring a sale paper with you so that you can have your rain check written to include any Extra Care Bucks that are part of that week's purchasing deal.

Walgreens: Rain checks without expiration dates may only be written by a manager. Walgreens only allows small limits for number of items allowed by each rain check. My favorite store only allows up to 4 items per rain check. Register Reward money is not included as part of the rain check.

Rite Aid: Rain checks may be written by either a manager or a cashier and will expire 30 days
from the date written.