Fierce in Seattle: Get Your Group On

Who doesn’t love a good bargain? I used to be one of those grocery shoppers who drove to 4 different markets to scoop up all the best deals, ultimately guzzling gas that would likely balance the savings at the stores. I was a coupon clipper. A rebate refunder. A Ziploc bag re-user. OK, I’ll admit, I still do some of those things, but nothing in recent memory has given me such spending and saving joy as Groupon.

A deal that is not full of crepe...er, crap

Serving about 40 metropolitan areas, Groupon claims to have sold over 4 million of the things, saving over $177 million dollars to consumers. And what in the name of Mike is a Groupon you ask? Merely something fun to do, eat, drink or participate in at roughly half off.

An additional awesome Groupon factoid is that it was started by creative, progressive entrepreneurs. And you just know that their office is probably a super cool place to work like Google where you can bring your dog and beer pong is an afternoon team-building session.

Other than saving bucks, Groupon is a great way to support local businesses. Extra awesome while our economy is still in the shitter. I’m happy to do my part to pump it back up by eating crepes, drinking at a local brewpub or having a photography session. I’ve found myself interested in things that I otherwise wouldn’t have considered purchasing such as a flying trapeze class.

...or fall flat on your face. (Emerald City Trapeze)

I always thought that the trapeze looked fun. Mostly the swinging-like-a-monkey part.  So I bought the Groupon for Emerald City Trapeze with a few girlfriends. For 2 hours we climbed a wobbly, skinny ladder to reach a wobbly, skinny platform and swing hanging from a heavy bar that would ultimately blister my hands. Suffice it to say, Cirque du Soleil will not be clamoring for my talent any time soon. I’m glad I took the chance that Groupon put in my face for less than half off when I actually would have paid double for the experience.

The same can be said for La Creperie Voila who serves up fancy presentation as you watch the batter ladled onto the hot griddle.  $5 bought me $10 worth of grub so I snagged a fellow Grouponing pal and we were knocked out by the spinach & gruyere bechamel followed by the nutella crepe with a dollop of whipped creme that served as the perfect ending to a perfect savings.

And that’s just a sampling of the Groupons I’ve redeemed. I’ve overbought a few more and am looking forward to indulging in others. They’re really the greatest thing since coupons for sliced bread.