Life Lessons & Quality Stamps

January 23, 2024

How many of you grew up like I did, with Quality Stamps, or S&H Green Stamps? Do you remember those? My mom, Ms. Jackie, loved some quality stamps. Mom seemed to prefer Quality stamps over S&H. I guess it was like the difference between Kmart and Woolco. We didn’t have Wal-Mart back then.

Quality stamps back then would be the equivalent of today’s point systems at some stores or cash back deals, etc. Back in the day, as a kid in the late 70’s and early 80’s, quality stamps from the local Big Star grocery store were a big deal.

For those unfamiliar with quality stamps, the concept is as old as retail itself, customers earned rewards for shopping. You could then redeem your rewards for merchandise. The more you spent, the more you earned and the more stamps you got.

Back then, you would collect the stamps, bring them to the Quality Stamp Store and redeem those stamps for merchandise. You could get a toaster, a mixer, some toys, kitchen appliances, cookware, tableware, and a whole lot more.

As a kid, I remember going with mom to Big Star, and as we checked out, Ms. Ella the sweetest cashier (who really liked me), had a machine sitting on top of her register with a bunch of buttons on it. Ms. Ella would punch a few buttons and the machine would spit out some quality stamps. I was so fascinated by this, and I knew these stamps were like gold for I had been well trained by mom that I had better not lose them.

As we collected quality stamps, mom would peruse the Quality Stamp Catalog that came each season in the mail. It was kinda like the JCPenney or Sears Wishbook catalogs, only smaller. Mom would pick out some merchandise and save up enough stamps to redeem for that it. We would then plan a trip to the Quality Stamp Store in Tupelo, Mississippi.

But prior to the trip, we had to lick and stick all the quality stamps into little booklets, then once we had enough stamps collected, we could go to Tupelo. I can recall sitting at the kitchen bar with Mom licking and sticking quality stamps. If I have licked a hundred quality stamps; I swear I have licked a couple thousand. I can still taste that glue taste to this day. You pasted your stamps into booklets and a completed booklet represented a dollar value which could be redeemed at the store. There was no online shopping in 1978.

A trip to Tupelo was a bid deal as the Tupelo Quality Stamp Store had the best merchandise. A trip to Tupelo also meant we got to go to the JCPenney and Sears Mall. Shopping back then for us was an All-Day trip. We’d leave out early, visit Hardee’s or McDonalds for breakfast and wait for the Quality Stamp Store to open. Mom always liked to be early (wonder where I got that from).

Once the store opened, Mom would find the items, wait in line for the salesperson and proceed with purchasing it with her stamps. The salesperson would then count/validate all the quality stamps mom had presented and stamp them with this big official looking stamper. We’d then look around for other items that we might want to save up for and then head out to the next store on our day long shopping trip. We’d probably have lunch at Danver’s or Morrison’s.

Looking back, I now realize just how these life experiences shaped my life. No, it was never about the stamps or the merchandise, it was about the time spent with my mom. The time in the grocery store as a kid, the time at the kitchen table licking and sticking stamps, the anticipation of going shopping with mom, the excitement of going to Tupelo, and those moments in the car listening to Southern Gospel Music.

It was all about the moments in the journey, this journey called LIFE.

Like many other stories in life, we have all been shaped by experiences and moments that we can’t get back. We experience life in a moment and that moment is forever gone. Whether it was today or 45 years again. I can’t tell you how many times I have walked into a grocery store and thought about mom and those quality stamps.

My hope with BestLife50 is that these short stories about life inspire you to live your best life, dream big, take risks, cherish the moments, and be the best you in whatever you do. Life is too short.

If these stories inspire you in some way, please let me know in the comments.

I’d love to hear from you.

Email me at jason.thrasher@bestlife50.blog

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