Gazette
With the help of coupons, Susan Samtur paid $3.92 for $92.95 worth of groceries on Thursday. "To tell you the truth, everyone always thought I was crazy to save all those coupons." said Samtur, the "Coupon Queen" who was at the HyVee store on Old Marion Road and 42nd Street NE Thursday sharing her tips on couponing and refunding. For Samtur, coupons and refund offers have become a way of life and she travels the count sharing her interest with others. Samtur says couponing is a consuming factor in many lives for a variety of reasons. She said couponing provides a feeling of achievement. "It's an accomplishment. For example, if you're at home knitting and crocheting, you have a final product. If you're couponing and refunding you also have a final product money saved and money earned." Couponing, especially trading coupons, "is something to look forward to, something break up people's days. I know of coupon traders who have become pen pals and even traveled to visit each other in a different part of the country," Samtur said. The hobby has become very popular for those not employed outside the home. Samtur said. To these people, couponing brings fulfillment. "It's something women who at home with children can do in their spare time," she said. Without any extra time but a need for money, the former elementary school teacher from Yonkers, N.Y, start couponing 10 years ago after she and her husband depleted their savings. They had just put a down payment on a house. "I never knew there were so many other costs involved. It was a scary feeling," said Samtur about her empty savings account. While still teaching and before having her children, Samtur started couponing during her lunch hour as a way to fight costs. After taking her maternity leave, she became a full-time couponer. She said one of the best things about couponing is that "it's something you can do with your family around, whether watching TV or doing the wash." To really do justice to couponing, according to Samtur, you need to dedicate about six to eight hours a week to the effort. Those well-spent hours usually reward Samtur with at least a 50 percent savings at the grocery store and over $100 a month in refunds. "The cashiers start rooting for you," said Samtur when describing what happens when she's having an exceptionally good day with her coupons. She pointed out that to have great days at the store, beginners must slowly build up to the point she is at now They must collect every coupon they can and also start sending away for refunds. The average couponer can save 20 to 25 percent or more. Samtur said, by using coupon on double-coupon days and by using coupons with sale items. Much of her work involves fit collecting every coupon she can, organizing and trading them and then matching the sales with the coupons she has saved. Unlike the average coupon collectors, Samtur and her husband have turned Susan's pastime into a full-time job. They handle their corresponded, their newsletter, Refundle Bundle, and their promotions out of their home. "We've outgrown the house," said Samtur, "We have a three-bedroom house. The coupons have one bedroom, my husband and I have the second and the three children have the other. In addition to a nine-times-a-year column for Family Circle magazine, Samtur has appeared on numerous television shows and has begun endorsing "couponing" products. "'I feel that by sharing my knowledge I'm helping people who need it more than I need it now. I also feel that people are frustrated over rising costs and I'm providing them with ways to help," Samtur said. "I would like to think that I'm helping people to become more conscientious shoppers and consumers." She's already convinced one consumer. Her 4-year-old son, Mark, dutifully saves package wrappers for his mother. Samtur will give Cedar Rapids residents a crash course in couponing and refunding techniques at 1 and 7 p.m. Friday and 1 p.m. Saturday at Lindale Mall.
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