Frugal Frustrations - My Rite Aid and Publix Woes
It happens to me all the time. I clip a store coupon for something I want to buy, take it to the store and find out that the type I want is not available. Sure, in most cases I could get a rain check but that’s an entirely different hassle.
Most recently I made mention to my mother-in-law that I was looking for a sale on Cherry 7UP. Because she loves a challenge, she found a sale - an excellent sale - at Rite Aid. She got several of the store coupons and went to three separate Rite Aid stores where her search did not yield a single purchase. That’s right, none of them even had Cherry 7UP at all, most claiming that they were out and the delivery driver hadn’t been there yet. None of them even seemed to know when the delivery would be made.
In this particular case, dear ol’ Mom was informed that because it is a national ad, not all stores carry the product and as such no rain checks would be issued. She refuses to set foot in a Rite Aid again.
I contacted the Rite Aid company through their web site this morning to tell them about my problem. We’ll see if they can do anything to earn our business back again but since this isn’t the first time we have had similar problems I can’t say that I am terribly hopeful about it.
Just yesterday she found a coupon in a weekly sale ad for Publix, who was advertising a sale on the same product. The coupon turned a 3 for $9 sale into a "buy three, get one free" offer.
She went to Publix.
They had no Cherry 7UP.
To say that she is frugally frustrated would be like saying that Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt like adopting foreign children.
Just before writing this article, I contacted the 7UP company through their web site to tell them about my problems. I have received a confirmation that my email made it into their system and will report back here when I hear back from them.
August 15th, 2008 at 2:30 pm
Here is my email reply from the 7UP company:
August 15, 2008
Dear Mr. Yongue:
Thank you for contacting us about 7UP Cherry. Your comments and inquiries are appreciated because they provide valuable feedback about our brands.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you. We will be forwarding your comments to the appropriate department about the availability of our Cherry 7UP products in your area.
Our Company has been making great brands that make a splash for more than 100 years. We are proud of our family of products and are committed to providing a wide range of choices for all individuals.
Thank you for taking the time to contact us. We hope that you will continue to purchase and enjoy our products.
Sincerely,
Consumer Relations
February 2nd, 2010 at 5:56 pm
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March 10th, 2010 at 8:31 pm
I have a video from the Paris Hilton movie on my website. To bad it got leeched onto the net for everyone to look at. She did not want it to be released as it was her ex Rick Salomon that lost it.