Even Super Savers Goof

I went by Target this evening to pick up the Glade candle products that were on sale this week. (See my post on November 11th.) Target had several of the candle products on sale for $2.50 each (regularly $2.99) plus you received a $5 gift card with the purchase of five items. SC Johnson also has a rebate going on right now. I knew that by combining the deals and rebate with some coupons I could walk out with a great bargain!

When I got to the air fresheners aisle of Target, I selected three of the candle tins because I had three coupons for "Buy a Tin, Get a Free Refill". The three tins plus the three refills made six products which more than qualified me for the gift card. On a whim I checked inside the tins. Bingo, coupons! There was a coupon for what I thought said "$1.50 off Any Candle Tin" inside each of the three tins. Yeah, more savings!

While I was standing in the middle of the aisle trying to calculate what my end cost was going to be so that I could decide how many Glade products I was going to buy, I realized that I didn't know the terms of the SC Johnson rebate. Uh oh, I didn't know what I needed to buy in order to save the most money!

So now I'm standing in the middle of the aisle beating myself up for not checking on the rebate before I left home. I was also racking my brain trying to think of someone I could call who would be willing, and able, to look on the internet for me to find out the terms of the rebate. (At 8:00 PM on a Saturday evening I was coming up empty!) It was at this point that I discovered oversight number two...

The Target gift card deal was only on the Glade Holiday Scent products. And the shelf in front of me was looking pretty devoid of Holiday Scents! Fortunately, at that very moment, another customer walked up to the end cap and started picking through the merchandise on display. Ah ha, Holiday Scents! But the Holiday Scents didn't come in the candle tins...and as you recall I had coupons for "Buy a Tin, Get a Refill Free".

A quick glance a my coupons told me I was still in the game - what the coupon actually said was "Buy Any Glade Scented Oils Candle HOLDER...". Phew. But wait, there was only three Holiday Scents candle holders and I needed to buy FIVE to qualify for the Target gift card! Check the coupons... Okay, I had a coupon for $1.50 off two jar candles and those were also part of the gift card promotion.

So I put  two jar candles, three candle holders, and three candle refills in my basket. I carried the basket to the register. I waited patiently while the cashier rang up everything and tried to find a gift card for me. I handed said cashier my coupons and waited for her to reject them. (See my October 21st post.) She took all the coupons, told me my my new total (which I promptly paid lest she change her mind), handed me my receipt, and thanked me. Woo hoo!

Eight items at the regular price of $2.99 each equaled a total value $23.92. The sale price of $2.50 each lowered the total to $20 before coupons. I had $9 in coupons (3 free refills plus $1.50 off two jars), received a $5 gift card, and (as it turns out) qualified for the $5 SC Johnson rebate. My end cost for $23.92 in candles was $1. Not bad. I was feeling pretty full of myself....

Until I got home and looked at the coupons that I had pulled out of the three tins that I had originally picked up... (And, by the way, I had honestly forgotten I had them. I am not in the habit of just taking coupons out of merchandise that I am not buying.)

The coupons did not say "$1.50 off Any Glade Scented Candle Tin", the coupons said "$1.50 off Any Glade Scented Candle Holder", of which I had bought three of...(thud)

I realize that paying $1 for what I bought is a really great deal.  Knowing that I could have made a profit of $2.50 instead if I had only A) shopped earlier than two hours before the store closed on the last day of the sale, B) had been prepared by familiarizing myself with the terms of the rebate and special, and C) taken the time to carefully read the coupons, makes me feel a little stupid. But I'll get over it, and I'll be a little more observant for a little while.

So, the next time you forget to use a really good coupon before it expires, or forget to combine a manufacturer's coupon with a store coupon, don't beat yourself up. Just think of me and the candles, and remember that not getting the absolutely best deal every time doesn't mean that you are not still getting a good deal. And then think about all the suckers out there who are still paying full price for everything....and s-m-i-l-e.