Meet the Coupon Clipper Creators: Q&A with Our Team

Ever wondered who's behind your favorite grocery savings tool? We sat down with the team that created the Jewel-Osco Coupon Clipper browser extension to learn about their backgrounds, motivations, and what drives their passion for helping Chicago families save money on groceries.

Sarah Chen - Lead Developer & Co-Founder

Q: Sarah, tell us about your background and how you got into tech.

Sarah: I grew up in a family that was always looking for ways to stretch the grocery budget. My mom had this elaborate system of coupon organizing that I thought was genius, but also incredibly time-consuming. When I got into software development, I kept thinking there had to be a better way to automate all that work. I studied computer science at Northwestern and spent five years working for various Chicago tech startups before deciding to tackle the coupon problem myself.

Q: What's the most rewarding part of working on the Coupon Clipper?

Sarah: Honestly, it's the messages we get from users. Last week, a single mom from the South Side told us our extension helped her save $200 last month on groceries. That's real money that she could put toward her kids' school supplies instead. When you're coding late at night debugging digital coupon APIs, those stories keep you going.

Q: What's the biggest technical challenge you've faced?

Sarah: Jewel-Osco's website structure changes frequently, and their coupon system is surprisingly complex. We have to constantly update our algorithms to make sure we're catching all available coupons and applying them correctly. It's like playing whack-a-mole sometimes, but in a good way - it keeps us sharp!

Marcus Thompson - UX/UI Designer & Community Outreach

Q: Marcus, how did you get involved with the Coupon Clipper project?

Marcus: I met Sarah at a Chicago tech meetup in 2023. I had been working as a UX designer for e-commerce platforms, but I was getting burned out designing ways to make people spend more money. When Sarah told me about her idea for helping people save money instead, I was immediately interested. Plus, as someone who grew up in Bronzeville, I understood firsthand how important grocery savings are for working families.

Q: What's your design philosophy for the extension?

Marcus: Simple, accessible, and respectful of people's time. Nobody wants to spend 20 minutes figuring out how to use a coupon tool - they just want to save money and move on with their lives. Every design decision we make is filtered through the question: "Would my grandmother be able to use this easily?"

Q: How do you stay connected with the Chicago community you're serving?

Marcus: I spend a lot of time in actual Jewel-Osco stores, talking to people about their shopping experiences. I've done informal interviews at locations in Pilsen, Logan Square, Hyde Park, and the South Side. People are usually happy to share their grocery shopping frustrations and tips. It's amazing how much you learn just by observing and listening.

Dr. Elena Rodriguez - Data Analyst & Pricing Researcher

Q: Elena, your background is a bit different from typical tech workers. Tell us about it.

Elena: I have a PhD in Economics from the University of Chicago, and I spent several years researching food security and pricing patterns in urban markets. I was initially brought on as a consultant to help the team understand grocery pricing strategies, but I got so interested in the project that I joined full-time.

Q: What insights have you uncovered about coupon usage patterns?

Elena: The data is fascinating! We found that families who use our extension consistently save an average of $47 per month, but the savings patterns vary dramatically by neighborhood and shopping frequency. Interestingly, the biggest savers aren't necessarily the most frequent shoppers - they're the strategic ones who plan their trips around the best coupon availability.

Q: How do you ensure your pricing research benefits all users fairly?

Elena: That's a great question and something I think about constantly. We make sure our coupon detection algorithms work equally well across all Jewel-Osco locations, not just the affluent ones. We also track whether certain types of coupons are being offered unfairly to different zip codes and advocate with Jewel-Osco when we spot discrepancies.

James Park - Customer Success Manager

Q: James, what does customer success look like for a free browser extension?

James: Even though our extension is free, we're still committed to making sure users have a great experience. I handle all our user feedback, bug reports, and feature requests. I also create tutorials and help documentation. Success for us means users are actually saving money and finding the tool genuinely helpful, not just downloading it once and forgetting about it.

Q: What are the most common user questions you receive?

James: The top three are: "Is this really free?" (yes!), "How do you make money?" (we're currently bootstrapped and exploring sustainable revenue models that don't compromise user privacy), and "Why doesn't this work at other grocery stores?" (we're focused on doing one thing really well, but we're considering expansion).

Q: Any funny or memorable user interactions?

James: A woman from Naperville emailed us a photo of her grocery receipt with a note that said, "Your extension saved me $23.47 today. I'm using the money to buy my granddaughter ice cream." She had circled each coupon discount in red ink like she was grading a test paper. It was adorable and made our whole team's week.

The Team's Shared Vision

Q: What drives the team's passion for this project?

Sarah: We all grew up in families where grocery money was tight. Whether it was my Chinese immigrant parents stretching every dollar, Marcus's grandmother shopping with physical coupons, Elena's research into food insecurity, or James growing up in a single-parent household - we all understand that grocery savings isn't just about money, it's about dignity and opportunity.

Marcus: Exactly. When you save $50 a month on groceries, that's money that can go toward kids' activities, car repairs, or just having a little breathing room. We're not just building a coupon tool - we're building financial breathing room for families.

Q: What's next for the Jewel-Osco Coupon Clipper?

Elena: We're working on some exciting features based on user feedback. Smart shopping lists that automatically factor in available coupons, price tracking to help users know when to stock up, and better integration with Jewel-Osco's loyalty program.

James: We're also exploring partnerships with local Chicago organizations to help spread the word to families who could benefit most from the savings.

Q: Any advice for other entrepreneurs who want to build tools that help their communities?

Sarah: Start by talking to real people about real problems. Don't assume you know what people need - ask them. And be prepared to iterate constantly. Our extension today looks nothing like the first version we built, and that's a good thing.

Marcus: Be patient with adoption, especially in communities that have been burned by predatory financial products. Trust is earned slowly and lost quickly. We've had to prove ourselves one saved grocery bill at a time.

Supporting Local Chicago Families

The Coupon Clipper team is committed to Chicago families and the local community. Here's how they give back:

• Free financial literacy workshops at community centers across the city
• Partnerships with local food banks to share grocery savings strategies
• Open-source documentation so other developers can build similar tools for their communities
• Regular community feedback sessions held at libraries and community centers

Q: How can people support your mission?

James: The best support is using the extension and sharing it with friends and family who shop at Jewel-Osco. Word-of-mouth is how we grow, since we don't have a big marketing budget. And if you have feedback or feature requests, we genuinely want to hear from you.

Sarah: We also welcome other developers who want to contribute. We're working on open-sourcing parts of our codebase to help other teams build similar tools for different grocery chains.

Looking Ahead

The Coupon Clipper team continues to innovate while staying true to their core mission: making grocery savings accessible, automatic, and genuinely helpful for Chicago families. As they expand their feature set and explore new partnerships, they remain committed to their founding principle that technology should serve communities, not the other way around.

Whether you're a longtime user or just discovering the extension, knowing the people and passion behind the tool makes every dollar saved feel a little more meaningful. These aren't just developers building another app - they're neighbors building a tool to help their community thrive.

Want to try the Jewel-Osco Coupon Clipper? It's available as a free browser extension and takes less than a minute to install. Start saving on your next grocery trip.

Team Fun Facts

• Sarah maintains a sourdough starter named "Claude" and frequently brings fresh bread to team meetings
• Marcus is a volunteer basketball coach at a South Side community center
• Elena speaks four languages and often helps elderly neighbors translate grocery store flyers
• James once saved $87 in a single Jewel-Osco trip using only digital coupons (a team record!)

The team meets every Friday at a different Jewel-Osco location for their weekly planning sessions, combining business with firsthand research. They've become familiar faces at stores across Chicagoland, and several store managers now recognize them and eagerly share feedback about customer coupon usage patterns.