Should midnight shoppers be allowed to rummage for coupons inside all the unsold newspapers?

Question

There's this man who comes in every Sunday around 10:45pm and goes through all the newspapers and picks out all the coupons. Sure no one buys them anyway, and my manager says he's really doing nothing illegal, but I think there should be some loophole that makes it wrong. Can anyone side with me on this belief? Do you want people dismantling your unsold merchadise regardless of what time of day it is? Should I take out the coupons next time, hide them, and give him a scavenger hunt list next time?

Answer 1

He's not hurting the newspaper or your company. Those papers obviously won't be sold anyway.

He's not hurting the advertisers. They WANT people to use those coupons, otherwise they wouldn't be printing them.

Sure, I think what he's doing is rather tacky, but there's nothing fundamentally wrong with it. Nobody's being harmed. Let him do his thing in peace. If anything, it's probably bad for your business if you try stopping him - I presume he shops for other things in your store too, and he may well stop if you get nasty with him.

Answer 2

If the papers will wind up going in a trash bin or recycling bin, let the man do this. He must really need them or he would not leave his home this late to go in and do this. Why don't you take the coupons out and save them for him. Rather then simmering, make friends with him. You might find he is helping other people as well by sharing the coupons.

Nabdulla, save your tirade! Why are you such a bigot? Why would you assume the guy is not American. Come on now...quit trolling.

Answer 3

I have read of "coupon queens" and/or "coupon kings" who make it their mission to shop only with coupons and who save big bucks by doing this. (Two or three carts of groceries, and only paying actual cash of $2.00 or $3.00.) Now THAT'S using coupons. These people are masters of frugality.

Nowadays, dumpsters are becoming overcrowded with dumster-divers who are picking through them for anything from aluminum cans to edible foodstuffs, trying to survive in this economically challenged society.

As to your midnght shopper picking out the coupons:
01) Is he interfering with any shoppers?
02) Would the leftover papers be destroyed anyway?
03) Is he sorting out the coupons while in the store, or walking out with the entire package of coupons?
04) Is he using some of the coupons to purchase items in the store from which he got the coupons?
05) Does your store policy allow for redemption of coupons?
06) Is there a store limit to the number of coupons a customer can redeem at the register check-out?
07) Are other customers complaining that they are not receiving their coupons when they get a paper?

It would seem to me that the man is taking advantage of "loopholes" in his favor and saving a (possibly embarrassing) trip to a dumpster that has probably already been picked through.

I used to see stores that provided special places for coupons to be dropped off and/or picked up so that customers could take what they wanted and drop off what they didn't need from their own coupon collections. I saw no problem with that and even took advantage of it myself at times. It reminded me of looking through a rummage sale, only it was coupons instead of clothing or groceries.

And, as the coupons are not valuable for anything other than cents off on the item portrayed (cannot be redeemed for cash), I see no fault that the man is doing, especially if he is not bothering any customers. (And he's certainly in a safer place by getting the coupons from the store's newspapers instead of dumpster diving.)

Why don't you be the first person to suggest to your manager that the store where you work bring back the coupon table? I bet other shoppers would take advantage of it, and that way you would be justified in pulling the coupons from the papers before they were destroyed. Might even bring in more customers. I know that I would like to shop at stores that had coupons offered free to shoppers (meaning that they wouldn't have to buy a paper just to get coupons; although the Chronicle would probably not be too cool on the idea...)

Answer 4

Does he make a mess? If the papers are ready to be discarded there is no problem, but if they are still on display, your manager needs to tell him that he can not longer do that. if you want to pull the coupons out and save them for him that would be a nice jester on your part. Skip hiding them or the scavenger hunt

Answer 5

That was a problem until the newspaper actually started plastic wrapping the coupons and the sections of the paper people sideswipe so it forces them to purchase the entire paper not just taking sections of it. No if the store manager isnt doing something about the problem go above to the corporate office because you as the customer have the right to buy items that are not taken apart,opened and then reboxed.packaged by customers and you can ask them to place a sign asking people to purchase the whole paper. I actually experienced seeing two what looked to me like Russian women looking at some moon chairs at Target and they OPENED the packaging and opened up the chairs in the middle of the floor and sat their tails in them and there was a picture on the package to show them what it looks like open. Foreigners have no manners when they shop because in America we buy the item before we open it we don't open it sit on it and then put it back in the packaging and put it back on the shelf and then grab two new ones and expect people to want to buy a chair that's been sat in already and wasnt displayed as a model some stores even resort to that to discourage people from opening the new ones. The manager of this store you went to obviously doesnt realize it's inconsiderate to you and other customers to allow that.

Answer 6

In my opinion, if there is no possibity of these papers being sold for any sort of profit, he should be allowed to do whatever he wants. In fact you should just pull the coupons for him and discard the papers or if it bothers you, discard the papers before he even gets there. Just like a city dump or landfill, you can go and pick out whatever you want as it comes in and take it home with you for free.

Answer 7

U R insensitive!
That man is doing everything he can 2 feed his poor family!
Not everyone has a decent job like U do!
Those coupons are his life-blood! They are necessary for his survival and the future of his lineage!
If U deprive him of his vital coupons, that man would not live!

Answer 8

I don't get why you care?

Even if he was misusing coupons I don't get how it effects you any? Unless it just bothers you? But I don't really see anything wrong there... companies make coupons for a reason. I garentee you they're still making a profit when he buys their crap.