Talk about extreme couponing: Two newspapers in Idaho report that there are one or more Sunday newspaper coupon bandits on the loose, snagging all of the coupons from entire racks of papers.
It’s the curious case of the disappearing coupons.
Per the AP, coupon inserts from both the Idaho Statesman and the Idaho Press-Tribune have regularly been missing in copies on newsstands and even people’s front porches. One newspaper’s sales manager, conducting a stakeout at a restaurant, watched as a woman purchased one copy of the paper—and then helped herself to the ads in all of the other copies as well.
These coupons, which add up to discounts in excess of $1,000 in a single paper, are the lifeblood of shoppers hooked on extreme couponing. As with any addiction, the fallout from this one is ugly and sad:
“It is becoming a real problem on Sundays because of the value of the coupons and the local interest in couponing over the last few months,” [Statesman Circulation Director Frank] Peak said.
The police have been notified. So at some point, the illicit coupon clipper(s) may get clipped.
(Read about How the Coupon Lost Its Dorky Penny-Pinching Stigma)