The Sunday Times
Coupons and refunds changed Susan Samtur's way of life. Ten years ago she was an elementary teacher and her husband was a high school instructor. They had no children and no pets. Then they decided to buy a home in Yonkers, N.Y. The down payment, the mortgage, the closing costs, left them little cash, so Susan decided to use savings coupons and refunds when she did her marketing. Today, after dramatic appearances on the Today Show and the Phil Donahue Show that demonstrated how she turned her saving instincts into a full time job. the mother of three young boys ranging in age from 5 to 2, has about 140,000 subscribers to her Refundle Bundle monthly newsletter. "The Coupon Queen", as she is known now, has been guest at The Scranton Times Home Beautiful Show at the Watres Armory since Thursday night. She will be there today from 1 to 6 p.m., continuing her demonstration of how she saves 40 to 50 per cent on her food bills weekly. Now her husband is on a leave of absence from his teaching post and he and several of the children usually travel with her as she makes guest appearances throughout e country. Susan is the author of two books, Cashing in At The Checkout and Coupon Magic. In an interview squeezed in between her daily coupon seminars at the Armory, Susan explained how a friend from Pennsylvania who later moved to California introduced her to refunding. She started with cup-of-soup refunds and tried out all the new varieties. After her first year of refunding, she said, she had made $1500, which she put in the bank to cover the oil bills. Her newsletter began with 13 subscribers. She also writes for Family Circle magazine and has appeared on many television programs. The day after her Today Show appearance, when she was photographed at the supermarket buying $412 worth of groceries for $15.78, she received 25,000 letters and filled up the entire back end of their station wagon at the post office. She answered all of them, with the help of many relatives. On the Phil Donahue Show she bought $80 worth of groceries for $2.40. During her appearances locally she told hundreds of shoppers how to plan their trips to the markets to take advantage of all offers. She follows all sale items and matches them with coupons (double if possible) at all times. She writes a complete list denoting size and price of each item and she carries all her coupons, in an organizer folder, with her just in case of an unadvertised special or an introductory trial size offer. She exchanges coupons with friends and in her kindergarten carpool and at weekly bowling games.
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