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With stubborn inflation, senior discounts are having a moment
The Washington Post via MSN ^ | March 19, 2023 | by Jaclyn Peiser

Posted on 03/19/2023 7:13:35 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer

It was the free soft drink at Whataburger that got Melvin Schwartz hooked. Then he learned Chick-fil-A does it, too.

“I hate spending $2 or $3 on a Coke,” said the 75-year-old retired IRS agent, whose senior discount also earns him 10 percent off his usual Hungr-Buster combo at Dairy Queen and nacho salad at Taco Bueno near his Dallas home.

Senior discounts have been around for decades. Now, they’re having a moment.

Reviewer mentions of “senior discount” soared 36 percent from 2021 to 2022, according to data from crowdsourced review site Yelp. And AARP says a growing number of its more 38 million members are taking advantage of benefits for gas, event tickets and health care.

For many older shoppers, scoping out promotions to save a few bucks on a meal, soda or new pair of pants is a welcome perk of aging. But others view them as a necessity, especially as inflation continues to gnaw at their spending power. This is a growing group — 42 percent of adults 50 and older “either are working in retirement for financial reasons or expect to do so,” according to AARP Research.

Like most Americans, older consumers are feeling the weight of relentlessly high inflation.

Many seniors have also seen their retirement funds shrink thanks to an unstable stock market. A Fidelity Investments report found that by the end of 2022, retirees lost 23 percent of their balance year-over-year.

Social Security benefits are also lagging behind inflation despite the government agency upping benefit checks by 8.7 percent starting this year. The boost isn’t enough to offset rising prices on essentials, leading many to dip into their savings and some to return to work, said Chip West, a retail and consumer behavior expert at the marketing solutions company Vericast.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: brandon; discount; inflation; senior; seniordiscount; seniors
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1 posted on 03/19/2023 7:13:35 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Senior coffee at McDonald’s, 85 cents. I guess I’m making out like a bandit.


2 posted on 03/19/2023 7:17:37 AM PDT by hardspunned (Former DC GOP globalist stooge)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Biden I picture...”What? No pudding???”


3 posted on 03/19/2023 7:18:05 AM PDT by digger48
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

First they came for the Senior Discount, and I said nothing.

Then they came for the Veteran’s Discount.


4 posted on 03/19/2023 7:20:13 AM PDT by moovova ("The NEXT election is the most important election of our lifetimes!“ LOL...)
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To: hardspunned

$0.05 per cup of Folgers in digger48s kitchen


5 posted on 03/19/2023 7:23:39 AM PDT by digger48
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

A habit I need to develop now that I’m 62......”do you offer a senior discount?”

OBTW some establishments actually honor 55 and older


6 posted on 03/19/2023 7:25:30 AM PDT by V_TWIN (America...so great even the people that hate it refuse to leave!)
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To: digger48

I wonder what status gets you a discount on a $5 cup of Starbucks?


7 posted on 03/19/2023 7:27:03 AM PDT by hardspunned (Former DC GOP globalist stooge)
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

With enough lobbying they could make the senior discount mandatory.


8 posted on 03/19/2023 7:29:34 AM PDT by Mr Ramsbotham ("God is a spirit, and man His means of walking on the earth.")
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

The only one I regularly remember to ask for is at Culvers. I think it’s 10% discount.

Where I used to live (moved a couple years ago) the small town grocery had a Senior Day on Tuesday with a discount as long as you had their rewards card.


9 posted on 03/19/2023 7:30:04 AM PDT by John Milner (Marching for Peace is like breathing for food.)
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To: hardspunned

The preferred status of paying 5 bucks for the .50 cents worth of the tar remover they call “coffee”


10 posted on 03/19/2023 7:34:35 AM PDT by digger48
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To: hardspunned

Dunkin offers 5% discount for seniors. I don’t drink coffee so rarely there.


11 posted on 03/19/2023 7:35:08 AM PDT by gcparent (God Bless America )
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To: hardspunned

Many places have senior discounts.

Subway has a BIG discount for veterans. Lowe’s offers 10% for veterans. Baskin & Robbins has a veterans discount as well.


12 posted on 03/19/2023 7:35:58 AM PDT by libertylover (Our biggest problem, by far, is that almost all of big media is AGENDA-DRIVEN, not-truth driven.)
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To: libertylover

https://www.seniorliving.org/finance/senior-discounts/


13 posted on 03/19/2023 7:48:59 AM PDT by GAgal
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To: Oldeconomybuyer

Chick-Fil-A doesnt do it around here ...

Nor do they give discounts to military/veterans not even on Veterans Day ...


14 posted on 03/19/2023 8:03:46 AM PDT by Tennessee Nana
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To: hardspunned

On Veterans Day Starbucks give a tiny cup of plain coffee ...


15 posted on 03/19/2023 8:05:31 AM PDT by Tennessee Nana
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To: digger48; hardspunned

Exactly. Not throwing shade on McDonald’s, mind you. But even with the price of eggs, I can make a three egg sausage and cheese omelet and coffee at home for less than the amount of a decent tip at a diner.


16 posted on 03/19/2023 8:12:54 AM PDT by Larry Lucido (Donate! Don't just postill clickbait!)
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To: John Milner

” Senior Day on Tuesday with a discount as long as you had their rewards card.”

Too many big outfits ‘trick’ seniors with this discount AND ONLY OFFER IT IF THEY CAN TRACK YOU.

NOT !

Someday they will be selling your purchase history to medicare or insurance ‘partners’


17 posted on 03/19/2023 8:21:44 AM PDT by George from New England
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To: Larry Lucido

I will NOT install an app on my phone to get a senior discount. NOT Can you spell ‘track me’ ?


18 posted on 03/19/2023 8:22:45 AM PDT by George from New England
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To: George from New England

I don’t know anything about any apps. I thought the gray hair was the membership card.


19 posted on 03/19/2023 8:36:18 AM PDT by Larry Lucido (Donate! Don't just postill clickbait!)
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To: Larry Lucido

But it’s hard to do that if you’re not at home. It’s not as though I drive there to save a quarter on a coffee.


20 posted on 03/19/2023 8:47:30 AM PDT by hardspunned (Former DC GOP globalist stooge)
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