Rite Aid Cover Girl Deal Today... Rewarding Yet Complicated.

Cover Girl Deal: +Up Rewards, Sale, Coupons, AND Rebate.... Whew..

Through today, Rite Aid has all Cover Girl cosmetics Buy One, Get One 50% off. PLUS, when you spend $30 in participating P&G brands, you get $10 +Up Rewards back (limit one per person). Cover Girl is a participating brand. The $30 is a pre-coupon amount too! :)    AND! Cover Girl is also one of the brands you can use to work the current P&G Rebate found HERE.  You have to hurry though... you have until 10/31 to work this rebate.

Ok.. so if you can stick with me.. it gets a little tricky here.. but I will try to explain how I worked the Cover Girl, Rebate, +UP Rewards Rite Aid deal today. (it ends today... but it will give you an idea how to work similar deals in the future if it is too late for you to catch this one!)

Transaction one:

CG Lip Perfection:  $7.19

CG TruBlend Minerals Powder: $9.89

CG TruBlend Minerals Blush: $9.69 (then Half OFF, so really $4.84!)

CG Lip Perfection: $7.19

CG Lip Perfection: $7.19 (Then Half OFF, so really $3.59!)

Then, I used coupons:  

$8 off 2 CG

$8 off 2 CG

$1 off 1 CG

My total was $17.99 after tax!!   

My TOTAL SAVINGS were $25.45

My Total towards the rebate:  $32.70  (so even though I spent $17.99 out of pocket, I got credit for spending $32.70 because of how the receipt printed the cost of the items, and because these rebates consider the PRE COUPON amount per item.) 

AND, I got a $10 +UP reward back.

SO, Transaction 2:

CG Outlast: $10.99

CG Outlast: $8.99 ($4.49 after half off!)

CG Eyeshadow kit: $8.49

CG Lip Perfection:  $7.19 ($3.59 after half off)

CG Eye Pencil:  $5.99

CG Bronzer: $4.39 ($2.19 after half off)

Then I used Coupons:

$10+Up Rewards from Transaction 1

$8 off 2 CG

$1 off 1 CG

$1 off 1 CG

$1 off 1 CG

Total after Tax:  $14.74

I saved  $31.30!  

Total Towards the Rebate:  $35.74

Goal of the rebate is MET! 

Total out of pocket to get to the $50:  $32.73

I will get $10 back!

I bought $89.48 worth of product for $22.73 after I get my rebate check in! That totally rocks! And I am set on make up for a while now! :)

Which is great. Because I hate to admit it, but I have not bought any make up in 3 years. Sigh. So today was totally fun.. well, once you take out the whole shopping with toddlers factor! :)

Turn +UP Rewards Into CASH!

I am Loving Rite Aid.

I Just Figured Out How to Turn My +UP Rewards Bucks Into CASH!

Before I posted this deal, I wanted to make sure it would work the way I was hoping it would be. And it did! I am so excited about the prospect of this scenario and the implications it holds for the future of my bank account....

Here's What Happened:

Last Saturday, I had $2.88 in +Up Rewards "bucks" for Rite Aid that were expiring. I had worked a deal a few weeks back where I paid less than $2 for $17 worth of items. Then, I received $2.88 BACK in +UP Rewards.  

As stated, this $2.88 was expiring. So, I took my bargain binder and the circular (and the rewards, of course) to Rite Aid.   I was SUPER ANNOYED, however, bc the items and deals I wanted to work were sold out. As I was walking around trying to think fast of a plan B to use my rewards dollars on, I spotted BLINK Tears drops. They were fully stocked. I grabbed my circular. Hadn't I seen where they were $7.99 on sale that day, with a full $7.99 rebate offer attached?? Yep. It was right there in the circular. Usually those "FREE AFTER REBATE" items are sold out. This one wasn't. Why was that? I think it was because the good folks at Rite Aid forgot to put the hang tag with the offer on the shelf.  AND, they were marked $10+ in price. Again, an oversight of the employees. They forgot the special ad price of the week on that item.

SO, WOO HOO! I could use my $2.88 in bucks to pay for the $7.99 drops, and then get a rebate on the purchase price of the drops going through Rite Aid's Rebate site.  

My question for the check out employee (also a manager) was this:  Would I get a rebate for the FULL $7.99, or would I just get the $7.99-$2.88 amount since I was using "bucks"?  He didn't know. I figured, heck, Free Drops either way and the +UP rewards were expiring that evening, so why not run an experiment for you.

So, I bought the drops, paid with $2.88 in +UP rewards, and submitted the rebate offer. Fast Forward to today. I just got notice that Rite Aid approved my rebate and is mailing me a check for $7.99!!! 

So, I essentially turned my $2.88 into depositable CASH for my bank account. NICE!!  

*Remember, I originally got the $2.88 by spending LESS out of pocket than the $2.88 I got back. This was a TRUE moneymaker!! 

Now you know.  I am really thrilled about the prospect of working rebates more often in the future and getting even more cash to deposit.  Need more info on this? Want to get signed up to start working your own Rebate deals? Go HERE. 

**This is the SECOND TIME where Rite Aid being sold out of the items I wanted originally turned into a moneymaking scenario for me.  The first time was when I went to work an Edy's deal. They were sold out of the icecream. I could have bought 6 of the quart and a half Edy's for $1 total. They gave me a raincheck. The week they stocked the ice cream back up, they had a different sale going on. I bought the 6 ice creams with my raincheck and THEN, it triggered the current week's deal to print +UP rewards out for me.  I ended up getting paid 30c or so to walk out with 6 Edys.  That was better than paying $1 for 6! Yeah. Digging my luck at Rite Aid.. even when it seems like crap luck, it turns out wonderfully. You just have to be patient sometimes.

Rite Aid: Free Edy's, Anyone?

My Trip to Rite Aid:

Free Edy's Ice Cream,

and $10.50 Out Of Pocket, with $6 +UP 

to Use Next Week!

Remember my recent post about how rain checks can be a really good thing? (Go HERE for a refresher, if you like.) This trip to Rite Aid was so awesome.  Cashing those rain checks I got for Edy's Ice Cream in really made the difference. More on the details of that later. 

First, here are the highlights of my trip:

• I spent $10.50 Out of Pocket 
• I received $6 in +UP rewards after my final transaction today. I can use them on the next trip to Rite Aid.
• I got 6 1.5 quarts of Edy's Ice Cream Free

How I did it:
I worked two separate transactions, doing my rain check transaction first. As a refresher, I had $7 worth of +UP rewards to cash in today from the Colgate deals I worked the other week.

Transaction 1:
6 Edy's Ice Cream,$2 +UP WYB 2,        99c ea*
1 Sucrets Wild Cherry Lozenges, $2+UP, 2.99

I used the $7 in +UP I came in with.
I used a Sucrets Manuf coupon for $1.50 (which made the Sucrets a 50c Moneymaker!)
My Subtotal was .43!!!, After tax it was $1.06.  AND, I got $8 in +UP BACK!


*I bought 6 1.5 qts of Edy's Ice Cream.  I had a rain check that made them "like paying 99 cents each after +UP Rewards."  To honor the rain check, the clerk overrode the price of each ice cream as she rang it, so that the price would reflect 99c ea.  THEN, today's circular states you get $2 +UP rewards WYB 2 Edy's.  So, I got $6 +UP rewards for buying this ice cream today.  I bought $6 in Edy's Ice Cream, I got $6 in +UP Rewards, per the current circular.

Transaction #2:

Huggies Jumbo Diapers, $2 +UP,  8.99
Huggies Jumbo Diapers, $2 + UP,  8.99
Johnson and Johnson Baby Powder 15 oz, $2 +UP,  2.99


I used:
$8+ UP I made in Transaction #1
$2 Manuf Huggies Coupon
$2 Manuf Huggies Coupon
$1 Manuf Johnson's Baby Item Coupon


My total was $9.44, I received $6 in +UP rewards to use next time!

All in all, I spent $10.40 out of pocket, got $6+Up  to use next time, and bought 6 1.5 quarts of Edy's Ice Cream, 2 Jumbo packs of Huggies, 1 Sucrets, and 1 Johnson's Baby Powder.  

A note:  The Sucrets was a moneymaker. The diapers came out to less than $5 a pack, the ice cream was free, and the baby powder was a 1 c moneymaker.  Be patient, do the math, and always stay pleasant. The bummer of not getting the ice cream on sale a couple weeks ago and having to wait ten minutes to get a rain check really turned into a sweet deal. Pun intended.

 
 

2 Drug Stores, 45 Minutes, And Getting Paid to Own Things I Need

This Week, I Broke Tradition 

and Went to 2 Drug Stores: 

Rite Aid and CVS 

Usually, I go to one drug store a week.  Usually, that store is CVS. This week, I went to both CVS and Rite Aid.  I am trying to work some good Rite Aid deals so I can use Register Rewards to pay for a really amazing deal I have in the works.  That will come later.. but for now, here is a summary of my trips:

RITE AID: 

As per the cicular, Rite Aid has 87 c Gain Dish Soap this week, and they have select Colgate Toothpastes on sale. These toothpastes are on sale for $3.50 this week (down from the regular $4.99). ALSO, you get a $3.50 +Up Reward to use on a future transaction with each participating Colgate you buy, limit 2.

This is my transaction:

Gain Dish Soap    .87

Gain Dish Soap    .87

Gain Dish Soap    .87

Colgate Sensitive  3.50

Colgate w/ Bonus Free Tooth Brush  3.50

• Then, I used 3 Gain coupons, valued at $1 each.  (From the P&G brands rebate coupon book I submitted for a few months ago). The computer TOOK OFF THE WHOLE AMOUNT! It didn't beep to let the clerk know to value the coupon down to 87c.  Therefore, I got PAID 13c each dish soap to take it out of the store.

• I also had  a coupon for $1 off the Colagate, and 50c off the other Colgate.  Since I received $7 in +Up Rewards for buying these items, it is like I got PAID $1.50 to take these out the store.  

Summary:  I spent $5.11 out of pocket, after coupons and tax. I got $7 in Rewards to use like "cash" on my next trip to Rite Aid.  
*Ok, so WHY did I not ROLL the transactions? Why did I not buy one toothpaste, then turn around and use that $3.50 to pay for the next toothpaste? I could have done that. The thing is, you have to have $3.50 in the transaction to get the full$3.50 value.  AND, I wanted to use all my coupons. IF I had bought one toothpaste, and gotten a $3.50 UP Reward back, I could have used it to buy the other toothpaste. However, the dish soaps took off more than they were priced with the coupons. So, that would have left just the toothpaste on the transaction. The toothpaste was $3.50, but I used at least a 50 c coupon. Which made the transaction, had I done it that way, go below the $3.50 pre tax amount. I still could have used the +Up Reward, but I would have lost the extra value on it. They don't give cash back or another Reward when you use one for less than face value amount. I chose to use my coupons and get paid to own the toothpaste, rather than not use the coupons, use the +Up Reward and come out even.

CVS:

I needed some Pull Ups and Diapers. As per the circular, CVS has Huggies Pull Ups or Diapers, Jumbo packs, on sale for 2/$17.98, with $4 EB back.  (Target usually has these on sale every week for $8.99, so the CVS deal is a good one!)  I decided, IF I had to spend the $17.98 anyway, I might as well spend the same amount of money and come home with a lot more product/value by browsing the circular and working some of the other EB deals. Then, I would roll 4 transactions to get the best values for the least out of pocket cash. I went to the store at 8:20PM on a Tuesday, when it isn't busy and the cashiers are chatty. They don't mind doing 4 transactions back to back for you when it is slow! :)

1. In Transaction 1, I bought some clearance heart lollies for the girls for 50c. AND, I bought the Listerine Total Care Mouthwash from the circular. You Pay $3.99, You get $2 EB back. Also, I had a $2 off Listerine coupon (printed from Coupons.com a while back).  So, it was like I got the Listerine FREE!  Spent$2.79 OOP, after tax and coupons, got $2 EB.
2. Colgate Total Advanced Toothpaste was Buy 1 at $3.79, get $3.79 in EB.  I used the $2 EB from Transaction 1.  Again, this was like FREE, or even getting paid to own as I spent $2.06 OOP, and got $3.79 EB back. 
3. Worked the Colgate Deal one more time, as the limit was 2.  I bought one at $3.79. I used the EB from the previous deal, $3.79 EB. My total was .27 c for tax.  I got $3.79 EB back. So, again, FREE toothpaste. 
4. The transaction I came to actually "do".  I bought one package of Jumbo Pull Ups, one package of Overnights diapers (both Huggies).  These were $8.99 each. Also, I had two $2 off coupons for these.  So, they were $6.99 each after coupon. THEN, I used the $3.79 EB from the last Colgate deal to pay for them.  My total came out to $11.45 for both "diapers", post tax and coupons, or  $5.72 each pack!  Pretty nice! AND, I got $4 in EB back!

Total Summary:  
I spent a total out of pocket amount of  $22.35 at both stores.  I have $11 worth of rewards to spend next week.  I saved $33.86 in in-store deals and coupons combined. It took me about 15 minutes to decide which deals to work at the drugstores and which coupons to pull out to work them.  IF you did not have any coupons and worked these deals you could have rolled the Rite Aid savings into each other. AND, once you work a deal or two like these "Rewards back" deals, you will always have some Rewards in your wallet to keep for the next week's deals. The goal is to always have some to work with so that your original money spent working the first deal keeps getting rolled forward into more savings and value with less out of pocket expense.  


**I want to note that I needed the Pull Ups and Diapers. To buy both at normal Target cost, sans coupons, it would have been about $18.   My CVS total was $16.57 for EVERYTHING! AND, I have $4 EB to use next week.

 

  

"Out of Stock" When an Item is on Sale Can Be Good News

If a Store Offers Rain Checks on Sale Items, 

You Could be in Luck, Big Time, When Items are Out of Stock

I was lamenting the "out of stock" classification of the Edy's Ice Cream at all the local Rite Aid Stores. They were on sale BIG TIME this past week. After you worked the deal by buying 6 of the normally pricey ice cream, you would get enough "UP/Register Rewards" (like Extra Bucks, or "dollars" to spend at Rite Aid on just about anything you want to buy. Think of the RR, or UPs as mini gift cards) to make buying 6 Edy's cost a total of 99cents. OR, 16.5 cents EACH!  

So, as soon as the stores opened last Sunday, Rite Aids everywhere SOLD OUT of the ice cream. My own personal coupon diva says "Yeah. But you got your rain check for the sale/deal, right?"  Oh. Yeah. Rain check. DUH! How did I forget to ask for one of those? SO, I went back and got my rain check. This means that I can get the same pricing, sales, deals, and rewards if I can find the ice cream in stock at any Rite Aid within the next 30 days.  Great!  I made sure to tell them I needed 6 of the Edy's included in the rain check. 

Why is it a good thing to get an item rain checked?

1. You now have 30 days to find the ice cream.. and any possible coupons to make the deal even better. 
2. You now have 30 days to work other Rite Aid deals as cheaply as possible to get UP/Register Rewards to pay for the ice cream.  (The ice cream deal works where you pay about $18 out of pocket and get $17 back in UP/Register Rewards. The goal is to roll the rewards into each other so you can have the least amount of out of pocket expense as possible.  If you are buying the ice cream without any ice cream coupons or RR to pay for it with, it is still a good deal to buy. Especially if you need shampoo, milk, any other items that the drug store may sell. You would buy your ice cream first, then take the coupons for the other items you need to buy anyway and the RR you just got from the icecream, and you would use all that to pay for the items you needed. The idea here is that you could spend $18 out of pocket getting things you need like diapers, milk, whatever. OR, you could spend $18 out of pocket, roll your transactions into each other and get the diapers, milk whatever AND all that lovely ice cream! 
3. You might be able to roll even more transactions depending on the deals of the week when you do find the ice cream in stock.

If you have the time and patience, or even good luck, catching a mega deal/sale like this in rain check form can work out much better for you than those folks that got up super early last Sunday when the deal started and ran out to buy out all that ice cream.  All you have to do is look at the situation and scenarios critically and creatively and you can really really get some major bang for your buck.

Just make sure you keep up with that rain check!!

*The deal I am alluding to is an ice cream deal from last week. The lesson applies to any really great deal. Some deals the stores will not issue a Rain Check for. Just ask. The worst they will do is say "Nope, sorry." 
**The deal was Pay $2.99 for Edy's Ice Cream, get $2 back in rewards.  THEN, it was on a page that had a headline of "Get $5 rewards back when you spend $15 in the participating brands below".  SO, you buy 6 ice creams. You spend $18. You get $2 x 6 back because of the ice cream deal. So, $12 back right there. BUT you spent $18 in participating products (that is more than the $15 required), so you get another $5 back. Your total back after spending $18 is $17 for 6 ice creams!