Wow. What an experience. I probably wouldn't normally recommend anyone shop at Wal-Mart to get a deal if it wasn't such a good deal. This week (10/17/13 - 10/23/13) Publix has boneless, skinless chicken breasts on BOGO for $4.69/lb. But Wal-Mart has the same boneless, skinless chicken breasts for $1.99/lb. And they will price match BOGO deals in Florida, so I thought I would give it a try.
We found nice big 5 lb packages that ranged in price from nine to ten dollars per pack. Wal-Mart lets you do two deals per BOGO, so me and DH each got 4 packs of chicken. The thing to keep in mind is that they will charge you for the two most expensive packages and then you get the two cheaper ones for free. I thought they would pair the ten dollar packs BOGO, and then pair the nine dollar packs BOGO, but no they didn't.
Before we even went on this shopping odessy, I called the store and got put on hold four different calls. Finally, I talked to a manager and they said yes they would do the deal, just bring in the ad. So we went prepared for an easy deal. But no. It doesn't work that way at Wal-Mart. And don't bother to call Corporate (479-273-4000 ask for priority assistance to get customer assistance immediately) because the person on the phone will say that the manager can decide to do anything they want. So we knew we didn't have an ally in Corporate (the total opposite of Publix), so we resorted to being really nice and patient.
Our cashier was nice and competent, except the computer doesn't know how to ring up free BOGO meat, or variable price packages. So she went to get help. And more help. It took about 5 Wal-Mart supervisors and managers to void about a dozen tries before they finally did it the "old way" - whatever that way is. So thirty minutes later, with salmonella growing on our warm chicken we finally walked away with 38 lbs of chicken for $38, for a final cost of $1/lb. The same amount of chicken would have cost $89 at Publix on BOGO.
In the end, I'm glad I got my chicken. I paid half of what it would have cost me at Zaycon. But it took a lot of time and patience. Wal-Mart is going to have to work on this. I think an email to fbsupt@Wal-Mart.com will be necessary to let then know how frustrating this experience was.
So, if you're feeling brave and want to try this deal, I recommend calling ahead and getting the managers name and approval for the deal. And be prepared to wait while they figure it out.
Good Luck
