I have always been skeptical of things that seem too good to be true. I mastered Walgreens long ago, but never got up the courage to conquer CVS, until today.
What a rush! Why did I not go sooner? It was fantastic! I will certainly be a loyal CVS customer for life (or as long they have ECBs).
I spent a lot of time at home planning out my strategy ahead of time. Armed with my coupon file, my flier, and my print-outs from my favorite Blogs for ideas, I entered CVS in awe.
The first thing I noticed was that it was not crowded, even late in the afternoon. I liked the way everything was laid out, and for the most part, things were very easy to find (unlike Walgreens).
Then the funniest thing happened. I was browsing the Dove shampoos and noticed a man picking up 1 bottle of Loreal Vive Pro Shampoo for $4.99. He walked away! I glanced down at my flier and saw that they were on sale, B1G1 Free, just as I had suspected (although the price tag mentioned nothing of this deal). Without hesitating, I grabbed another bottle and chased him down.
“Sir? You are going to think I am crazy, but these are buy one get one free with your CVS card. You can get 2, I promise!” He looked utterly shocked, and I waited for some rude response. But, we are in Texas, and he smiled broadly and said, “Oh! Thanks!” I was practically giddy with excitement. It feels great to share bargains with others! Men have so much to learn.
On to my shopping: many things on my list were gone, but I had anticipated this since I waited until Saturday. I still managed to do quite well for my first time.
Here is my loot:
What I bought:
2 Glade sprays
2 Lady Speed Stick Deodorant
1 Johnson’s Buddies Soap
1 Tube Lumene Body Moisturizer
2 Crest Pro-Health Rinse
1 8-roll pack of Viva Paper Towels
2 medium bags of Dark Chocolate M&M’s (my favorite)
2 Dove Shampoos
2 Dove Conditioners
1 Dove Cream Oil Body Wash
1 Dove Ultimate Clear Deodorant
I did 3 transactions, which the friendly cashier was more than happy to do, much to my surprise.
Cost: $66.52 (shelf)
My Cost after coupons & ECBs: $13.74
ECBs earned for next time: $9.49
Actual Cost: $4.25!!
I know I still have a lot to learn. Crystal at Money Saving Mom is the CVS guru- see what she recently bought for $0.11!!
Thank you, Crystal, for inspiring me and so many others to save money at CVS and beyond!
You rock wife!!! Most men I know complain about how much money their wives spend. I get to tell my friends about how much my wife saves. I love you!!!
Way to go helping that man get a deal…isn’t that what it’s all about? Your first trip was amazing! Great job!!
Way to go. CVS can certainly be a rush. I have a freind and she and try to go together sometimes. It is so much fun. I have just gotten my blog up (yesterday) and posted a picture with the savings listed for my 6 trips this past week. It is so much fun.
BTW…love your site and today’s post. We serve a wonderful (and risen) Savior.
God bless!!!
Great Job!! That is actually very impressive for a new CVS shopper! I’ll be excited to see how you improve on it!
And, today has been such a blessed day and I love your post! It’s so true!!
You did a great job for your first time CVSing! Lots of good deals. Isn’t it fun?! I love hearing from people just starting out. Thanks for checking my CVS post out. I spent 3 hours planning that crazy trip… but it’s SO worth it!! And isn’t it rewarding when our husbands are impressed by our shopping savvy? 🙂
Great job! It’s really fun to save your family money and get the thrill of shopping at the same time 🙂
I can’t believe that you were able to purchase ALL of that for under $5 when all is said and done! You are such an inspiration and I can’t wait to start clipping coupons. Thank you for sharing this with everyone; it is a real eye opener when one starts to think of how much money has been tossed to the wind on previous shopping excursions.