A Year of CVS
January 18th, 2008$1871.23 - The amount I saved in 2007 at CVS, per my receipt.
I won’t get around to a comprehensive retrospective of my whole year in bargains, so I figure my CVS numbers represent a good microcosm of the year that was. I started “CVSing” in October 2006, so by the beginning of 2007 I was getting the hang of it.
That total includes store sales, manufacturer’s coupons, CVS register coupons, $ off $$ CVS coupons, and ECB’s redeemed. The receipt only shows my fall quarterly spending total ($12.11), but my out-of-pocket expense for the year was less than $100, and mostly from last winter when I was still learning the ropes. By the end of the year, my out-of-pocket transaction totals were almost always less than $1 and I could do most of the calculations in my head. I also learned that, for me, $30 in ECB’s was the optimal amount to be holding at any one time, to do the deals I wanted but not run into expiration problems.
What did I get? In addition to lots of items we use (food, baby items, toilet paper, etc.), much of my spring yard sale inventory and another batch of items donated to the Food Bank last month (partially pictured below) came from CVS.
It sounds like a lot, and it is, but it pales in comparison to the CVS die-hards out there that juggle multiple cards, stack “$ off total” CVS coupons, take full advantage of internet coupons, and do every single deal that can be finagled to break even.
I’m actually in the process of spending down my Extra Care Bucks, at least temporarily. Keeping up with all the deals and monthly ECB expiration dates is more than I can currently handle. And with baby in tow, it’s not quite as simple to make a quick CVS dash.
But if you’re starting out ECBing, here are some resources that can help you along:
Hot Coupon World - Main CVS Discussion Board for scenarios, and even a CVS for Rookies message board.
Slickdeals also has weekly CVS deal discussion threads (Just search for “CVS”) and you can find current $ off $$ CVS coupons listed on the Coupon Board (Here’s the current thread).
Money Saving Mom has written a comprehensive CVS 101 primer, in addition to posting weekly deal scenarios.