Tag: Target

Target Wedding and Baby Registry Know-How

FAQs & Basics
17 Comments


If you are having a baby or getting married, or even know someone who is, then be sure and check out Target’s Wedding & Baby Registries. You can register online or at one of the kiosks in your store. When you register, Target usually gives out a welcome kit with information, ideas and sometimes even coupons so you may want to check with Guest Services. I recently got an email from Kim who registered at Target for a Baby Registry.

She received a welcome gift bag from Guest Services with a booklet inside filled with coupons. All 16 coupons had an expiration date of 12/31 and I’ve listed them below to give you an idea of what to expect if you’re expecting ;-). Target Registries are active within a few minutes of registering until 90 days after the event date you give in the registry. And remember, all registry items are 5% off when bought with a REDCard and there’s FREE shipping too. Here’s a list of the coupons from the baby booklet (-Thanks Kim!)….

– $20/1 Lansinoh Affinity Double Electric Breast Pump
– $2/2 Pampers 13 ct+ Diapers or Training Pants AND Pampers Baby Wipes 180 ct+
– $1/1 Johnson’s Baby or Johnson’s Natural Toiletry item ETS, Johnson Buddies and On-The-Go items
– $2/1 Johnson’s Baby Gift Set excl Johnson’s Take Along Pack
– 20% off Eddie Bauer Baby Travel system, Highchair, Play yard or Car Seat
– $10/1 Chicco Fun Travel Activity Nest or  i-Gym Activity Center
– FREE 6-pk Enfamil Premium Newborn formula ready-to-use bottles
– $5/1 Gerber Good Start Powder Formula 12 oz+
– $2/1 Gerber Onesies 3 pack+
– 20% off Liz Lange for Target Apparel Item
– 10% off Gilligan & O’Malley Nursing Bra or Cami
– 10% off Basics by Bravado Designs! Nursing Bra or Cami

When it comes to managing your registry, Target’s digital catalog makes it fast and easy to manage either from your home computer or you can download the app to your smartphone or tablet. Just mark your favorites as you browse the catalog and when you’re done, you’ll be able to print, share or add them to your registry. For more information on downloading the Target app to your phone, you can go HERE and click on your device in the left-hand column or text “APP” to 827438 (TARGET) to receive a download link. Message and data rates may apply. Once you have the app, the registries are under “Lists”.

After your big day or shower, you can pick a day to shop online or visit your local Target and get 10% off everything left on your registry. Remember your manufacturer’s coupons as well – stacking coupons at Target means you can find some great deals not only for yourself but for a friend who’s registered. You may also want to check out the Target Coupon page for photo related coupons. Here are some previous coupon examples…. –$5/1 Select Photo Gift Item or –$5/50 4×6 inch Digital Prints.

For more detailed information about Target’s Baby Registry, you can go HERE. This link will take you to a more detailed layout of how Target’s Baby Registry works including a link to a helpful FAQs page detailing Target’s Return & Exchange Policy. For more details about creating and managing a Wedding Registry, you can go HERE.

One final note: an important detail to consider in both registries is the Gift Purchase Log. This is a list of all the gifts your friends and family told Target about when they made their purchases. It can be printed anytime from Target.com or at a Target store kiosk and used like a receipt. Just be sure to have your password you created when you set up your registry. This log will help you when doing any returns and exchanges.

If any of you have had experience with creating a Target Wedding or Baby Registry, please feel free to share any tips or advice in the comments that may be helpful to other readers.

You Are Not a Jedi & I Can’t Accept Your Coupons…

FAQs & Basics
76 Comments

Reading the comments on my post yesterday about the changes in the Target Coupon Policy, I see that many of you feel it is fair and others not so much. Personally I can live with the changes and understand why they are happening.

While I think the majority of couponers are looking to save on their grocery bill and household expenses and build a modest stockpile while playing by the rules, there are those who completely stop at nothing and commit coupon fraud as a way of life. They are out there, and stores have to do what they see as fit to try and stop the losses they are experiencing.

It makes me think of a story a friend of mine told me. She was shocked when a cashier friend of hers had told her about a woman who put eggs, milk & bread up on the belt at checkout and proceeded to hand her coupons for toothpaste, shampoo and crackers. When the cashier told her she could not take her coupons, the woman waved her hand slowly and said “just take the coupons”. The cashier told her- “Ma’am I cannot take your coupons, you did not buy any of these items.” So the woman slowly waved her hand again and quietly told her to “just take the coupons”. Finally exasperated, the cashier said to her- “Look lady, you are not a Jedi and I cannot accept your coupons!”.

Now while I certainly got a chuckle at the Star Wars reference, the sad fact is that it is not funny because it’s true, and sadder still that things like this happen every day. I think the changes are necessary to try and dissuade the dishonest and protect Target from Fraud and also try and prevent customers from finding a cleared shelf. So anyway, I thought I would take  a minute to go over the new items in the policy and throw my two cents out there…

1. Limit of 4 identical coupons per household, per day (unless otherwise noted on coupon)

The limit stated is for a maximum amount of like coupons per day unless your coupon states otherwise. So, if your coupon says one per customer, then it’s just one. If the coupon has no limits on it, then you are allowed to use four. Is it tougher for a large family to stock up at Target? Yes, but they have to set the limit somewhere and personally I can live with this. I am thankful it is at 4 and not two and it seems reasonable to me. Unilever for example now limits their coupons to 2 per customer per day- so it could be worse and I believe more and more manufacturers will be setting limits on their coupons in the near future. So the way I look at it is Target is just jumping on the bandwagon along with P&G, Unilever and other manufacturers sooner than later.

2. Returns of items purchased using Manufacturer coupons may receive coupon value returned in the form of a Target GiftCard.

I think many of you feel like if you use a .50 cent coupon on an item you are returning you will absolutely be given the coupon value back on a Gift Card instead of cash or your original method of payment. While I cannot say for sure, I really don’t think this is an absolute. If you note the word “may” – I think this will be done at their discretion. I believe that this new point in the policy is to try and deter those who are deliberately buying something with a high $ coupon and returning it to pocket the value of the coupon.

Retailers are required to give you back the value of manufacturers’ coupons because they will be in turn submitting it for reimbursement regardless of whether you return an item. The value of Target coupons are not to be refunded, because the store is not collecting any money for them.

3. We reserve the right to accept, refuse or limit the use of any coupon.

I will admit that this point in the policy sounds a little frightening, but I again believe it is there to protect Target,  and for the majority of us, it will have no bearing. Counterfeit coupons are abound- and it absolutely boils my blood, but it’s a problem. If a counterfeit coupon can manage to be scanned, consider the losses for a store. The right to refuse a coupon has always been an unwritten rule for any store- but now if something looks funny to them but scans anyway- they have it in black and white and it may save them some arguments should they feel a coupon is not valid for some reason.

For those of you who feel it will be an excuse for your store to refuse to accept any of your coupons- my best advice is to try and have a pow-wow with the Team leader on duty. Try and get to the bottom of why you have such a hard time using coupons at your stores. If you are using coupons as per the wording, you have nothing to fear or hide and perhaps a calm, rational conversation may help. You can take it up with corporate if need be if you are unable to reach some clear set of reasonable rules you can follow. I cannot say you will make headway or improve the situation, but if you like shopping at Target- it is certainly worth a try and make an effort to stay as calm as possible despite how frustrated you may be.

A few last thoughts…

Coupons are meant to be used as per the wording on them. Taking advantage just because something scans or works or is accepted doesn’t make it right and will only lead to further scrutiny from stores and the manufacturers tightening their belts even more. Do your best to read your coupons, follow what they say and follow your gut. I think deep down we all know what is right and wrong  and don’t let the temptation of possibly getting another $1 Off cloud your judgement. Coupons aren’ t meant to just be tried for the heck of it to see if it works, they are meant to be used as stated in their terms.

While I certainly enjoy being able to find super-cheap & FREE stuff with coupons- the intention of TT has never been to only focus on that. You certainly can’t feed a family toothpaste for dinner or give them dental floss for dessert, and my aim has always been to help others realistically save as much money as they can on groceries & household needs. In my opinion if you can save as close to 50% or better on any of your needs- you’ve had a good day and it allows the surplus to be saved, put toward other family necessities and so on.

I am very grateful for coupons, as I know many of you are too, and I know that despite policy revisions and other changes to the couponing way of life- saving money using coupons and smart shopping will continue to help my family stay on a budget. Hopefully for a long time to come.

Changes to the Target Coupon Policy

FAQs & Basics, Target Coupons, Target News & Notes
112 Comments

Well if you have had a copy of Target’s Coupon Policy in your binders, it is time to print another one. Target has updated its Coupon Policy and the most notable difference is now addressing the quantity of coupons that can be used. You can view and print off a copy of Target’s Coupon Policy HERE. The following is what I see new in the policy…

1. Limit of 4 identical coupons per household, per day (unless otherwise noted on coupon)
so in other words if your coupon has wording on it that limits you to using less, you cannot use 4

2. Returns of items purchased using Manufacturer coupons may receive coupon value returned in the form of a Target GiftCard.  So for example, if you buy a Bottle of Pantene Shampoo for $3.49 and use a $1/1 Manufacturer’s Coupon on it and decide to return it. You may only get $2.49 refunded to you, and $1 will be put on a Target Gift Card. (Note- The value of a Target Coupon used is never refunded).

3. We reserve the right to accept, refuse or limit the use of any coupon.

4. We do not accept Canadian coupons in our US stores.

– Thanks for the heads up on the changes to Amy!

My 70% Off Target After-Easter Clearance Trip

Cheap Finds, Clearance
41 Comments

So I managed to sneak out early afternoon to try my luck at 70% Off Easter and I was so happy to find still a lot left at my store. I found quite a few super-cheap goodies- like Kraft Bunny Mallows marshmallows for .35 cents a bag, and I found a ton of Easter-themed bags of Pepperidge Farm Goldfish for just .59 cents each so I bought six ‘cuz I love ’em too. 🙂 I also found a Fisher Price Little People Wheelies car and used the 10% Off Select Fisher-Price Items (including Little People) Target Web Coupon x5/12.

There were also still lots of PAAS products at my store so I picked up a pack of the Doodle Pens for next year. I also bought spring themed stickers, a craft kit, an awesome mini Bundt Cake Pan, window clings, plastic eggs, and some easter grass. I found a tin pirate pail for $1.50 I will use as a catchall in Austin’s room, Hot Wheels Puzzle Erasers for .59 cents and I picked up a few other things for a friend. I spent a total of $16.51 and saved $55.02 and successfully resisted the urge to buy any chocolate! 😉

Don’t forget to take a good look around the store too- sometimes not everything will make it to the clearance area and it’s worth scoping out the store a bit. I found my Goldfish on an endcap up near the front register- and it’s probably why it was so well stocked since there was no clearance sign in sight! I hope you all find/found some great Easter clearance bargains today as well!