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Palm Beach Post

Brigette Harley of west Lake Worth has a No. 1 rule: Know your prices. Also, use coupons for sale items; it's double-savings that way. Beware, she says, of the buy-one-get-one-free deals; a coupon can save more for you if you know the shelf prices. Another big savings tip: "Write down the shelf prices as you shop. If a product rings up at a price that the shelf says is different, you get the item for free. You have to prompt the cashier, though. It's their policy but they don't do it unless you say it." She also told us that members of AAA get extra savings. (Go to AAA.com to find out about it.)

Judy Panariello of Wellington has been known to save up to 85 percent on her groceries, and many times, gotten free items - over- the-counter drugs, especially. "Florida has been a challenge," the former New Yorker said. "We are known in coupon circles as 'living in the land of no doubles.' " She participates in an online message board that lists Florida deals. Her biggest tip is to know your prices, so you know when something is really a savings. "I've gotten free aspirin, cereal, deodorant, soda, chips, etc. You have to watch for them."

Jim Hart of Royal Palm Beach is 73, and he figures he's saved a few thousand dollars from couponing over the years. "I even remember when I used to save S&H Green Stamps and receive gifts upon redeeming them," he wrote. "Today I chuckle when finding coupons in my Palm Beach Post Sunday paper. I say to my wife, 'Look at this, these coupons will more than pay for this Sunday paper.' She has to admit: I'M RIGHT!"

Peggie Peltcs of Boynton Beach has been couponing since 1982. "Every time I use a coupon, I set that money aside in a coffee can and when I have accumulated a nice amount, I use it for something special," she said. She's bought dolls, a VCR, a cordless phone, a garage door opener, a ring, lottery tickets, window tinting . . ."the list goes on" she said. "This has been a lot of fun for me and I really do find some grocery items that are appealing. The first thing I look for in the Sunday paper is the coupon section and start clipping."

Joan Grody and her husband, from Jensen Beach, have traveled around the country with the money she's saved in coupons. "Many years ago," she wrote, "my husband suggested that I save the money actually saved by using coupons and he would match it. It's been fun seeing how our coupon money 'grows.' We have taken several trips." Next trip: San Francisco.

Julius Lampert of Boynton Beach takes the time to write or call the grocery manufacturers to tell them he likes their products. "That way, I get coupons for items I really use and like." He plays the "age" card: "Tell them you're a senior citizen on a fixed income; rarely am I turned down. Once I got a whole carton of cookies; I thought they would just send samples - some of them do, and they send coupons, too. But this time, they sent a whole carton of cookies."

Chuck Bishop of Stuart is another guy who calls companies. "I'm an expert clipper. I even call the manufacturers and compliment them - or complain - to get free goodies. In other words, I'm a mooch and a suck-up." He said it's what the companies want. "They want feedback," he said. "They like to know who's using their product and who likes it or doesn't." A $125 toaster oven recently came to him free of charge, after he called and complained about another product in a company's line. "I called up Procter and Gamble to complain about their Bounty paper towels. I use Brawny. You can't fold the Bounty after you use it once; it turns to mush. So I complained. They're sending me coupons for a bunch of their other products, like Tide." He's on a fixed Social Security income, and frequently calls to tell companies that he can't afford their expensive products. They send him coupons - or even free samples. Calls to 800 numbers are quicker than letters, he said, "I don't have anything better to do, and it's fun to save money."

Allan Sigman of Delray Beach has a secret. "I have a simple plan - I save the money from coupons for my personal kitty (shhh . . . wife doesn't know!) to buy a book or an airplane model or whatever. Works like a charm and doesn't come out of the household money. I have several shelves of diecast models and dozens of books that I figure didn't cost me anything." Sigman finds coupons everywhere. "Newspapers, mailers, telephone books, magazines - especially at doctors offices - inserts, shelf side, etc. I average $8 to $9 a week in savings. I enjoy the chase, so to speak. If the manufacturers are dopey enough to issue them, I'm smart enough to use them!"

Eileen Bagatell of Lake Worth, brought up three kids using coupons. "I still do it, even though they're not living at home anymore." She's so good at finding the bargains and using coupons, she said, "The stores almost pay me to shop." Her strategy? Save coupons to use on items you really need or use. "Just cutting out coupons and buying something doesn't save - you're buying extra stuff." Her tip: Shop with others. "I take everyone with me when I shop, and we all use coupons. Sometimes, I go several times a week to the same store, to stock up, if something's on sale and I have a coupon." And with her savings? "I have three grandchildren, so I buy things for them. And, we sometimes go to the casino, so the extras I save, we spend a day away, see a show, go to the casino, go out to dinner. I told my husband even if I hit the lottery, I'm still going to be cutting out coupons."

Linda LaMarca wrote the sweetest story. She wrote about her mom, Thea Thrumm. Both are from Boynton Beach. LaMarca wrote that her mom "had been clipping coupons forever. She's been doing something special all these years, by saving so much money so that she could help her children and grandchildren, so kindly giving them the many extras all through the years. She helped agencies where she volunteered to save money, too." Thrumm, 75, was thrilled to talk to us and tell us of her "giant, overstuffed shoebox" full of coupons - some, she says, for products they don't even make anymore. "These are all coupons that don't have an expiration date. I figure they might come back someday," she said. With all the savings, she helps out her kids and newly married grandchildren who live on Florida's west coast. "They come over and grandma loads up their car with paper goods, toothpaste, laundry soap . . . " Her pantry, garage and a second refrigerator is stuffed with her coupon purchases. She also gives coupons to others at the store if she sees them shopping without them. "You've got to help people out today, especially the young people. They have it hard."

Hariette Dorfeld, Delray Beach: "I'm compulsive about it; it's like an illness. You can't resist buying things with coupons." She admits she had to build an extra closet in her home to accommodate all her purchases - and her husband's chili fixings. "I can't stand the tatse of it, but it smells so good." Her pantry is stocked with tons of paper products, toothpaste, and "things we use everyday. I'd be in real trouble if I had a garage." She never shops without her coupon folder. "If the product is on sale and I have a coupon, my day is made! This is nirvana. I love staying ahead of the game - I feel like I'm beating them. I'm considering getting an animal for all the coupons I'm getting for pet food. You think I'm kidding ? I'm not! I love a bargain!"

Don Pontbriant of Boynton Beach: "I'm a clip-to-maniac!" he exclaims. He especially loves the double and triple coupons he gets up North. The pantry of the home in Connecticut looks like a fallout shelter, according to his wife. They're snowbirds, he says, so he's able to stock his winter home here with his coupon-purchased goods. Pontbriant's savings are at least 35 percent, and as much as 55 percent or more on the groceries. Simple strategy: Cut the Sunday coupons, and then, "I usually only buy items on sale and with a coupon." Why doesn't his wife clip, too? "Oh please!" she said. "If there were two of us like this, can you imagine?"

Sharon Gelley of Palm Beach Gardens has been clipping coupons for more than 40 years. Now, however, she's doing it for charity. 'I have been scouring the ads for BOGOs (buy-one, get-one-free deals) and the 10-for-$10 items. Just this week, I bought 10 boxes of Raisin Bran for $10; I had a Kellogg's coupon for $1 off two boxes, so my final cost was $9. Now here's the best part - I take all that cereal to my church, Gardens Presbyterian, and they deliver our donation weekly to the R.E.A.C.H. Shelter in West Palm Beach.' It's a shelter that feeds and houses needy families until they can get back on their feet. 'Not only is that a fabulous buy, but it feeds a lot of people a nutritious breakfast.' Besides, she said, 'It keeps me out of Macy's!'

Cheryl Stevens of West Palm Beach is an 83-year-old grandmother. She built a "coupon-refund" room at her house in Myrtle Beach, S.C., when her family was young. "I really worked at it," she wrote. "I had two four-drawer legal-size file cabinets to hold the proofs of purchase, index cards for mailing them on and the refund slips filed. I had my church group, friends, working companions and anyone I could get to save UPC codes." She shopped for triple coupons, and once bought over $200 worth of groceries for only $10. "My grocery store tape would be a yard or two long." She still coupons, but "not in such a grand manner." She looks for sale items and the buy-one- get-one-free deals to make it a "triple-dipping" day.

Gerri Kucharik of Stuart came to Florida two years ago from Pennsylvania. "I was disappointed to find that most supermarkets don't offer double coupons. However I have continued to clip and use my coupons. I brought with me a contraption called a Coupodex, which hooks right on to the grocery cart. It is similar to a Rolodex. The coupons are held in place and you simply rotate the Coupodex to the category you are looking for - dairy, condiments etc." She got it from QVC - though not with a coupon, she said.

Krista Bigbeeand and Cheryl Brooks work together in the West Palm Beach office of HearX. They call themselves the "coupon mamas." They have a friendly rivalry going to see who can save the most each week. Bigbee writes: "We check out the Sunday Post, call around to have friends and family save their coupons, collect them all, and start clipping. We file them in their special pouch and get ready. We look over the CVS flier and Walgreens, all the grocery store ads and then organize the deals at each store." They swap coupons on Monday, then go shopping. "The first thing in the morning after we shop, we say, 'Guess what I did last night and guess how much I saved? We love it and at this point we are addicted."

Carlotta Lipes of Lake Worth was another nominee for top couponer - her husband Bob said that his "charming wife of 62 years has clipped coupons throughout their marriage. I attribute a good size of our savings to her expertise," he said. Carlotta, 80, said, she immediately gets busy on Sundays with the paper. "If you let it lay, you might lose out on something." She stores her coupons in a "cute little box" her artist-husband made for her. "It's an addiction, but a pleasant one. It's not like it's an expensive thing, but a fun thing for me, and I do make a few pennies." She goes for the sales, and double coupons, whenever available. They shop together, Bob said, but he leaves the coupons to her. "She's the maven - a pro - at taking advantage of them."

- Compiled by Jan Norris

Coupon factoids

77% of all shoppers say they use coupons.

$3.6 billion in coupons were redeemed in 2003 (the last year for which manufacturers have data)

The average value of coupons redeemed is 82 cents.

The income of the group who redeems most coupons: $50,000- $75,000 a year.

60 million consumers clip coupons from Sunday newspapers. The newspaper is the most popular way to get coupons.

Cleaning products account for more coupons issued and redeemed than other types of products.

On Feb. 13, there were $121 in coupons, not counting two-for-one deals, published in The Palm Beach Post. It was a 'slow coupon week,' clippers said, but the newspaper cost $1.25. You could have saved at least three times the cost of the paper by clipping only a few coupons.

Source: NCH Marketing Services, the largest coupon clearinghouse in the U.S.

Here's how to organize coupons

Keeping coupons in order is paramount to saving money, the clip- champs say.

Highlight the expiration date, if there is one.

File coupons under categories that match the aisles of a supermarket. Canned foods, pet foods, cleaning products, paper products and so on.

Go through the circulars for each week, make a list, and pull coupons to match the items on the list. Attach them to the list so you don't forget them.

Ways to file coupons

Three-ring binder: Michelle Longhini, our coupon queen, uses one of these, filled with see-through baseball card sleeves to hold the coupons. Index pages are tabbed to sort by category. School and office supply stores, from $2.99. Baseball card holders are available at hobby shops and craft stores.

Expanding file: Easiest and most common holder: Label the pockets by category and file as you clip. At office supply stores, about $8.

Couponizer: A ring-bound book with pockets, list pads and numerous items to keep you organized; containable for taking into the store with you. Developed by a woman who provides a newsletter of savings tips. $19.95, www.thecouponizer.com

Plastic tote box: Coupon king Stephen Rosenfeld likes this for portability. With a carrying handle. At discount and craft stores, from $4.95.

Tips from the experts

Organize: Group coupons by product categories. Clean out expired coupons monthly.

Take them along: Never go anywhere without your coupons. A quick pick-up at the store is an opportunity to save - if you have a coupon.

If you forget . . . : If you do forget your coupons, buy the products anyway, then return to the store's service counter with your receipt and the coupons. They will refund for the coupons in cash. It's also a way to visibly see how much you're saving.

Compare: Take time to compare the weekly store fliers. A coupon deal at one may not be a savings compared with a store's deal at another.

Buy only what you use: Don't buy a product just because you have a coupon. Wait until you need it, or it's on sale, then use the coupon on top of the sale price. If you have a 'valued customer card,' you get three times the savings.

Make a list: Make a list before shopping and attach the coupons to the list. Make yourself shop only from the list; impulse buying cancels any savings.

Ask for a substitute: If a store is out of an advertised item, often they'll substitute another product - but you have to ask.

Get the rain check: If offered, get a rain check for unavailable items. Rain checks don't expire; you can wait for the product to go sale and then apply the coupon for a double savings.

Where to find coupons: First stop, your 'Palm Beach Post'

The Sunday newspaper is the No. 1 venue for coupons, followed by mail fliers and magazines. Billions of dollars in coupons are printed every year for consumers.

Product containers often have coupons printed on them. Check inside the box or label or lid before tossing them out.

Toll-free numbers and Web sites are on food labels. If you like a certain food, drop an e-mail or note about the item, and you likely will get coupons or even product samples in return.

Check the entrances of stores for coupon fliers or in-store promotions. Look for coupons on shelves where machines that spit out coupons are available next to the products. (Be aware, however, that often the products with coupons aren't on sale. Hold the coupon till they go on sale for the extra savings.)

Coupon Web sites are gaining in popularity. On the Web, shoppers can print coupons for only products they really use or join a forum to talk about deals in specific areas. It's a two-way street: Manufacturers are watching to see which consumers bite their lines.

Be forewarned: Many sites require you to fill out surveys about the products you use, your lifestyle or household preferences before you can receive the coupons; these can result in a flood of spam e- mails, but the trade-off might be worth it. (A $250 gas or grocery card is available at www.yes-its-free.com for completing such a survey.)

Manufacturers' Web sites frequently offer coupons exclusive to online visitors. Read back-of-box labels to find the Web sites.

Here are some popular coupon and special deals sites:

www.myclipper.com (local and national coupons)

www.eversave.com (freebies, groceries, travel, exclusive web deals)

www.coolsavings.com (printable coupons)

www.pennysaver.com (local area coupons)

www.secret-coupons.com (name-brand stores)

www.dealsdujour.com (upscale foods, goods)

www.couponcabin.com (emailed coupons)

www.valpak.com (area-specific coupons)

www.coupondispatch.com (coupons printed to email)

www.hotcoupons.com (area-specific coupons)

www.smartsource.com (coupons, recipes, tips)

www.valupage.com (local supermarket coupons)

www.rather-be-shopping.com (all types coupons)

www.keepcash.com (rebates, deals and coupons)

www.fatwallet.com (coupons, and forum to swap deals)

www.yes-its-free.com (free goods, survey-linked deals)

www.EdealsEtc.com (namebrand stores)

www.thecouponspot.com (free samples, products, etc. for survey information)

www.surveymania.com (offers in trade for surveys)