In an era where recycling is en vogue, grocery stores are encouraging cloth bags and plastic bags are taking over landfills, it’s interesting to note Office Max's marketing campaign.
Through the end of this week, Office Max is running a 20 percent off coupon on a brown paper bag that was an insert in the local newspapers.
Bring in the brown paper bag, fill it with Office Max merchandise and receive a 20 percent discount.
The interesting thing is that the bag is then surrendered at the time of checkout and customers' purchases are placed in a separate plastic bag to take home. "It's a one time use bag, you can't take it home," said West Bend Office Max manager Stefanie Kressaty who didn't think the process wasteful.
"Customers can only use the 20 percent bag coupon once," she said. When questioned, why not just put a black slash through the bag to indicate the coupon had been used, Kressaty gave a wide-eyed look and said the "bags are surrendered at the checkout."
Menard's is another franchise that uses the brown paper bag coupon, however customer's purchases are left in the bag and that same bag used to carry the merchandise home.
Asked why not just use a simple paper coupon similar to a grocery store ad, Kressaty said people put their items "in the bag" and that's how the clerks determine how much merchandise is covered by the 20 percent discount.
Many grocery stores are adopting green campaigns, trying to steer clear of loading landfills with plastic bags. Kressaty said they recycle the brown paper coupon bags, by stacking them in a bag and throwing them in the recycling.
Office Max runs its brown paper bag sales twice a year, and Kressaty indicated she was not aware of any pending changes to the process.
Judy is a Milwaukee native who is ever exploring the country. Her favorite mode of travel is her 21-speed, blue Centurion bicycle, which she bought after high school. Judy has worked in the local media for the past 20 years. "I need to do something to support my biking habit."
Judy has an extensive history in radio news, having worked at WISN, WUWM, WTMJ, WKTY in La Crosse and WBKV in West Bend. A strong interest in sports also had Judy reporting for ESPN Radio covering the Packers, Buck, Brewers and Badgers. "One of my first Brewer games at County Stadium the security guy yelled as I walked into the locker room LADY IN THE LOCKER ROOM. Now its so commonplace. But that story makes me sound really old."
Judy is currently working at WISN-TV in Milwaukee. She is a freelance writer and her pieces have been seen in The Small Business Times and The Business Journal. Her travel journal has appeared in Minnesota Trails Magazine, The Statesman and the West Bend Daily News, to name a few.
Aside from biking, running and being active in her community, Judy is known as someone who is "very, very thrifty." "I get candles for Christmas. My friends call them my space heaters because I normally keep the heat in my house at 40 degrees during the winter. Its not that I cant afford to turn up the thermostat, I just hate paying for heat."
Judy said her "conservative attitude" plays a part in her bike tours ... not needing to pay for gas and frequently spending nights camping inside churches. "First of all, it makes me feel safe since Im traveling alone and second all youre doing is sleeping, so why pay for that. Its no wonder I cant ever get someone to travel with me."
Judy grew up in Whitefish Bay and graduated from Dominican High School and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Judy is the second oldest among seven siblings and spends a lot of her time working as a "park tester" along with her eight nieces and nephews.
