Hey Friends,
If you were blogging at all last summer you probably remember when a blogger posted something about a great sale or product it caught on like wildfire. I think that was one of my favorite parts of blogging last summer. Before blogging we relied on text chains and that has been a lot of fun too. Either way, this has been a hot topic this year and many of us really make a big deal out of back to school shopping. Let's face it...it's fun. Let's be real...for some of us these are just about the ONLY back to school supplies that we get in a year. I will let you figure out which category I fit in...
I will be the first to admit...I am a bit extreme when it comes to back to school shopping. I am sure not going to be the teacher standing in the kinder room without the needed school supplies...no thanks. Every profession has a tool and school supplies are ours and without the proper supplies, it is just miserable. For many of us, we pay for these supplies out of our own pocket. So in all reality I am saying part of our paycheck goes towards buying school supplies. I am not complaining at all just stating the plain and simple facts. So I guess you can imagine how upset I was to read this.
Let me back up a few years. Back in the day when teachers could not get 25 of the sale item, I would go to the store and purchase my limit, go get a drink and go back. I would do that Staples routine over and over and over again until I had what I needed. Finally one day I asked to talk to a manager. I just simply asked if it was necessary for a kindergarten teacher (yep, I pulled that one) to go in and out and in and out all day long to get CRAYONS for a kindergarten class. Lucky for me he told me to get what I needed and we called it even. I was so relieved that I no longer had to put on wigs, baseball caps or change clothes to buy glue. And I no longer had to carry caravans of kids or friends or relatives to buy my kinder crayons. So you can imagine the utter thrill of last summer getting 25 of the extreme deals for teachers. I swear it was like a jackpot.
Help me out friends. Am I reading this right? Does this mean that I will get 5 at the extreme price and 20 more for regular or extreme price and Staples will hold on to that for three months and then send me a reward check? Seriously, is someone kidding me or am I not understanding? I have to ask why in the world a consumer would even fall for this? Is someone trying to take the extreme joy out of back to school shopping? Who in their right mind would do that? Not funny at all.
2011 TEACHER POLICY:
25 packages of loose leaf binder paper = $2.50
2012 TEACHER POLICY:
limit of 5 = 50 cents
25 packages of loose leaf binder paper = $2.50
2012 TEACHER POLICY:
limit of 5 = 50 cents
regular price - $1.99 X 20 packages = $39.80
$39.80 + .50 = $40.30
If this makes you want to cry kinder tears then you have to read this post from Teach123.
I wanted to be sure this was all true and correct so I called Staples. The service representative told me I was reading it right. I have a follow up call scheduled for tomorrow so we will see if the policy can be modified. Until then...
Ummm... are they for real? That is ridiculous!!! I will take my business elsewhere if I can't get the good deals like before! Thank you for bringing this to our attention!
ReplyDeleteJessica
You are my new hero! I just wanted to get the word out to teachers. You are doing something about it. I love it!
ReplyDeleteYOU GO GIRL!!!! Maybe if we make enough buzz on the blogs we can get them to change it.
ReplyDeleteJenn
Finally in First
Fight it, girl!! Way to stand up for the teachers! We don't have a staples here, but the general public needs to understand how much of OUR OWN MONEY goes back into our classroom and our students! Good luck on your call tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteKathleen
Growing Kinders
tell them teachers all over the country are boycotting them bc of this,, so they'll be losing more money than before!
ReplyDelete♥ Jen
The Teacher's Cauldron
That's really awful! They obviously don't want our business. I hope this changes. Good detective work there! Renee
ReplyDeleteI agree... I am taking my money elsewhere (or bribing 20 people into buying 5 items a piece lol).
ReplyDeleteEvery New Beginning Blog
Yes, that's a shame. And you realize, of course, that the Staples Rewards can ONLY be spent at Staples. That means that you get a coupon in the mail worth X amount of dollars, and you get to spend it all at Staples on anything you want. It's good but not the same as keeping the money to spend on your electricity bill. The money is still gone.
ReplyDeleteAt the Office Depot near my home, they let teachers buy 30 of any sale item, as long as they have a teacher card. I don't know if that is unique to the store in my town (La Verne, CA) or not, but that's where I go if I want more than five of something! Otherwise, I bring my husband, and then go back, and go back, and go back....
You know the drill!
Heidi Butkus
http://heidisongs.blogspot.com
I agree! So ridiculous!! I know I should be better about using the rewards, but when we need the supplies, we need them THEN and not in a few months! Totally agree with the fact that part of our paycheck ALWAYS goes back into the classroom (not complaining either, it's who we are - we want to make out classroom better!) I hope we can get something done about this! I will blog about it, too!
ReplyDeleteNicole
Rowdy in Room 300
I got that email and that's how I read it also. For years I have been getting the above the limit amount at Staples. I have loved it and now not so much. I think it will make me an Office Depot customer once again.
ReplyDeleteKathy
First Grade a la Carte
Oh wow, that is a horrible change! Now, can we go back to doing it 5 at a time and just coming in multiple times? I used to bring my daughter and husband with me to buy the dry erase markers on sale. I hope at the very least we can go back to that route, although it will be a pain!
ReplyDeleteJennifer @ Herding Kats In Kindergarten