Jess Smith is a proud military spouse, who counts shopping and saving money among her biggest passions.
She created thriftyshopaholic.com as a means of sharing with others the very best deals and coupons she can find. Her primary focus is on letting her readers know about amazing discounts, but she does mix in some DIY, recipe and lifestyle content as well.
Here is the complete Q&A:
A: I have been couponing for a little over 4 years now.
A: I started couponing shortly after my daughter was born when I realized how expensive raising a child could be. Between everything we needed to take care of our kiddo and the items that the rest of our family needed, we were always winding up broke before payday.
Not to mention I had also just left Active Duty Army shortly before I became pregnant, and going from two steady paychecks to only one was a BIG change for us. Couponing helped with these struggles tremendously!!
A: I just recently picked up blogging myself. Before I was just sharing my couponing tips and hauls via social media with friends and family.
A: I started blogging because I was getting asked ALL the time for help and tips on how to get started couponing. It seemed liked every day I was getting bombarded with questions on where I get my coupons, and how I find my deals. By blogging I am now able to answer these questions all at once, for everyone/anyone who needs it.
Blogging has been a way to do what I LOVE doing, and teach others how to do the same. It is truly rewarding to help another family save money on items that are necessary.
A: SAVING MONEY! The money I save helps my family do the other things we love to do like travel, go to amusement parks, play sports, etc.
I also love that couponing enables me to give back in ways I never used to be able too. I build care packages all the time for our Troops overseas, as well as for our local women’s shelters. Even during Christmas time I’m able to gather great toys with my kiddo for the Giving Tree. I never used to do these things because the items were always so expensive…now I’m able to do them for extremely cheap, if not free.
A: As an extreme couponer it is hard to pick just one…I LOVE THEM ALL!! Each store has their own great deals, and savings…but if I had to really boil it down I would have to say it is a strong toss up between the Commissary and CVS.
I love the Commissary because it is not only tax free but most items are already marked down 30% compared to off-post stores…and I love CVS because they have a killer store savings program, and I always get really great store coupons I can stack with my manufacturer coupons.
A: - Start small. Never leap into couponing and think you are a pro. Even today I’m not perfect. I make mistakes. So start couponing by doing 1-3 items, and grow as you grow.
- Learn store policies. Print them out if you have too. The world is not perfect, and not every cashier is going to know the policy, so having the policy can really help.
- Learn how to read a coupon. Many individuals get confused by coupon lingo and end up misusing a coupon which is now not taken very lightly.
- DO NOT buy an item just because you have a coupon. You are not really saving money if you are buying an item you really do not need because you have a coupon. It is also better to usually wait as all items have a sale cycle. Just because they aren’t on sale this week, doesn’t mean they wont be in the next couple weeks. Unless you truly need the item, do not run out and buy it.
A: - Learning how to do the breakdowns to get the best bang for their buck would have to be the biggest challenge I’ve seen with new couponers. I get told all the time that couponing is just too much work. My response … give it time. It is a lot of work at first, but once you get the hang of it, and learn how to do it, it is not as hard or time consuming as you might think.
- Another big challenge is like I said early with new couponers misusing coupons because they didn’t read them right, or they didn’t understand what it was actually saying.
A: Couponing is a HUGE thing today. A lot more people coupon today than they did 4 1/2 years ago when I first started. With the rise in prices I only see couponing expanding more and more.
A: Couponing is a blessing. It is truly worth it as long as you take the time to properly learn how to do it. It is just like any other task or skill. You can only get better with practice.
Do not be embarrassed to coupon … you are doing this to save your family money and no one should get mad or upset because of that. I mean even my husband used to hate my couponing, and would actually get embarrassed standing in line with me because of how long it would take at times…until he saw the dollar amount go from $200+ down to under $50. It was then that he got on board with me, and now supports what I do to contribute to our family.
Be patient, be kind, and be prepared.
