Death of the Top Value Stamp (concluded)

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The following may be apocryphal but as I recall, it was reported as a legitimate news story. I'll share with you what I remember because it illustrates what one person can do to effect change. It begins with a woman checking out at a large chain grocery store in Washington State. When she was handed a large quantity of TV stamps as she paid her bill, she asked the cashier how much the stamps added to her bill. The cashier replied that she did not know and referred the customer to the store's manager. Preoccupied with another matter, he quickly replied that the stamp program added no more than three percent to the cost of her groceries. The customer immediately asked that her stamps be redeemed by the store for cash. He refused implying that her request was not only ridiculous but against store policy.

The following week she made the same request and received the same response. Now angered by her treatment, the customer began talking to her neighbors and friends, many of whom shopped where she did. Most agreed that they would rather have the money than the stamps and began to discuss ways to bring this about. A plan of action was decided upon and two weeks later when the manager opened the doors to customers he was met by several women who were already passing out flyers to passersby explaining their demands, and soon customers were seen reading the flyers as they entered the store. The trickle of women demanding that he give them refunds in lieu of the stamps soon became a flood. The number of picketers on the walk in front of the store continued to grow and this excited media attention. A report of this activity in the local paper was picked up by the national media, which prompted like demonstrations at grocery stores across the country.

Grocery chains began to abandon their TV and similar stamp programs, other merchants stopped giving away premiums such as 'free' dishes and glassware, in return promising lower overall prices and special offers such as 'two-for-one' deals that were much more popular with their customers. Two years later one of the last grocery chains to offer Top Value stamps abandoned their premium program. (See yesterday's blog.)

Moral of this story—one person dedicated to a cause who is willing to work to effect change can make a difference. In my mind, this woman who started the movement that ultimately replaced premium programs with lower food prices and special deals merits the same recognition as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

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