IU junior shops for savings on ‘Extreme Couponing’

Armed with coupon ammunition, moms on a mission for half-price peanut butter and discount mac and cheese are the usual grocery store scavengers.

But IU junior Tyler Cox has a different motivation: bringing a whole new meaning to the title “Super Shopper.”

On Oct. 5, Cox was featured as one of two couponers on TLC’s series “Extreme Couponing.” The show profiles individuals who go to extremes to get the most bang for their buck in the grocery store.

In May 2011 Cox applied to appear on “Extreme Couponing” and in late June was notified that he would be a featured extreme couponer for the hit show’s second season.

“I called my mom and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, oh my gosh. They picked me, they picked me!’” Cox said.

But he admits actually getting used to the extreme couponing lifestyle was overwhelming and time-consuming at first.

Although his strategy came from watching his extreme couponing idols on the show, he tailored his shopping routine to the needs of an IU college student.

Cox said he would rather spend the $100 monthly grocery allowance his mom gives him on more important things. And Cox jokingly admits that party supplies ranks at the top of that list.

He is also a self-proclaimed shopaholic, and he said extreme couponing seemed to be a good option to acquire some extra spending money.

“I watched the show all the time and just thought to myself, ‘I could do that too.’” he said.

In Cox’s episode, he went to Kroger in Bloomington with the intent of purchasing $300 worth of groceries for less than half of his $100 monthly allowance. His former roommate and high school best friend Darrah Saaré, a senior at IU, accompanied him.
His total retail value was $293.23 but he only spent $53.11.

Cox said that while not every shopping adventure is that extreme, it is always a challenge that gives him an adrenaline rush.

“I think some of the people on the show have an addiction where they keep going out and they keep buying laundry detergent,” Cox said. “I’m not going to need laundry detergent for a while. I haven’t bought any more since the show, But it is an adrenaline rush, like when you’re at check-out and you see your total is up to like $200 and you’re sitting there thinking, ‘How low is it gonna go?’ So, it’s kinda fun.”

Cox has a very strict routine when it comes to coupon clipping. He collects inserts from family and friends, buys at least two Sunday papers and finds additional deals online through blogs or digital coupons on store websites.

He calculates to the penny how much he will spend before he steps foot in the store.

“I make an Excel spreadsheet of what the price of the item normally is, what it is on sale, then what my coupon is going to take off and the final price,” he said. “I total it up and get a total without coupons and a total with coupons. Generally, it goes pretty well.”

But he said there is always an element of fear as the cashier rings up the final bill.
“Sometimes you to sit there and think, ‘What if my coupons don’t scan?’” he said. “You have to rely on those coupons ... That’s my money when I go into the store.”

But he doesn’t want any of that to discourage his peers from entering the extreme couponing world themselves. He has tried to rope some of his friends into the fun but said many tell him they don’t have time.

For Cox, coupon clipping takes no more than an hour now that he has established a routine.

“I will ask my friends how much they spent at the grocery store the last time they went. They will say $75-$100,” Cox said. “I just say, ‘Do you realize you could be using that money on so much other stuff? Gosh, just coupon with me.’”

But the one person he wants to impress the most is his mom.

“My mom is thrilled,” he said. “She still gives me the money and she just loves that I am going out of my way to save money.”

According to Cox, in the end it all comes down to common sense.

“I could still get by on a hundred bucks a month for food,” he said. “I could do that going to the grocery store. But it’s just that — Why would I when I don’t have to?”