Couponing at Whole Foods Market in Fairfield

A special message to the openly irritated woman in back of me at the Fairfield Whole Foods Market checkout lane because I was using a few coupons….I’m glad you decided to pick another check out lane, honey! (Taken from one of my new favorite couponing books, Pick Another Checkout Lane, Honey!) 

Now, I’m the irritated one. I carefully chose a list of groceries to buy from Whole Foods using coupons and sales good through today, January 31st. I used Couponmom’s new Whole Foods sales and deals chart to create my list. So what should have cost me about $18.00, according to Couponmom’s list, really cost me $27.00. As I emailed to my co-frugal Fairfielder–today, I really hated couponing! Products on Couponmom’s list did not scan at the register as they should have, but the store won’t go by that list, they go by what sales tags they see or don’t see on the shelves. In my case, there were no tags for Garden of Eatin’ chips for $1.99 a package, there seemed to be no $1.99 Blue Diamond Almond Milk, they were out of Sambazon smoothies so I couldn’t use my printable coupon, there were no Method dishwashing soap bottles around, and there were no sales tags on Stonyfield Organic Yogurt 6 oz cups. What a mess! I was too annoyed to get rain checks, I was not up for an argument with the front customer service desk, and I just wanted to leave the store because I’m not sure what the heck happened. A Bad Couponing Day. And this, after Aimee and I praised Whole Foods and their coupon system to the coupon class at the library yesterday!

So, what am I going to do? I love Couponmom–I use the site often, and I like Whole Foods– but I’m not happy about today. (Oh, and thank you, dear Whole Foods’ check-out associate, for being so patient with me.) I’ll have to be extra careful when I go get those organic “deals” at an otherwise expensive store.

Enough grousing and grumbling, I’m going to break open an expensive bag of Garden of Eatin chips and munch away…

~Marilyn from TFF