The whole shop for free gained steam during the Great Recession. I took part in it. Every week at CVS there were things like Colgate toothpaste and deodorant that you could get for FREE. There is still a website called:
www.iheartcvs.com that shows you all the items coming up in the sale flyers you can get for Free or almost free with a coupon.
You had to have a CVS card to get the FREE coupons that print out of the machine in the store. Plus there were coupons in the inserts in the Sunday newspapers. Some people had hundreds of the same coupon. I think they got them from working at a newspaper or dumpster diving behind the newspaper printing building.
They would then SELL these coupons on EBAY. There was this one company called Marcal that made toilet paper and paper towels. They had a $1.00 coupon they kept putting out. It allowed you to get one roll of paper towels or four rolls of toilet paper for free.
I started buying these coupons for $.08/piece. Eventually they got up to $.25/pc on EBAY.
I used to call the local grocery store and tell the manager I was coming in to buy 5 boxes. one box of TP. Four boxes(24 rolls of paper towels. At one point I had a couple years worth of TP and Paper towels in my garage.
I learned most of the tricks from a website run buy a lady out of MA called www.howtoshopforfree.com
There were a lot of people doing this. Some were selling the items at flea markets. Others were making gift boxes and sending them to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.
CVS had GREAT coupons about 15 years ago.
Always printed out. I bought tons of stuff there and gave away a lot of things.
I went in one day with previous coupons and discounts.
Bought 2 24-pack toilet paper, 2 bags Mexican style tortilla chips, and 2 12 packs of Pepsi.
Anyways at least $37 plus tax.
I paid 8 cents. 🤣🤣🤣
I just kept buying and buying.
There may have been 2 jars salsa too.
You spent the whole amount of money except discount coupons BUT you always got merchandise they wanted to move.
I had like 30 tubes of toothpaste.
My friends refused to take anymore for free. 🤣🤣
It was crazy good.
Then they changed it all. Too bad.
Now have hardly been back the last 12 years.