People Who've Won A 'Lifetime Supply' Of Something Explain How Long It Actually Lasted Them
When a lifetime supply of something we like is offered in the form of a contest, it's safe to say that most of us would try our luck and enter the contest for a seemingly infinite amount of that desired thing.
But we have to wonder, when they say, "lifetime supply," do they mean a literal lifetime, or do they actually mean a conservative, well-rationed, short lifetime?
Redditor LordFrieza8789 asked:
"Redditors who have actually won a 'lifetime supply' of something, what was the supply you won? And how long did it actually last?"
Altoids and Burritos
"Not me, but my Grandpa won a lifetime supply of Altoids back in the early 2000s."
"They sent him a box with like 200 tins in it, and that was it. I remember when we went to his house, he gave me like a dozen of them."
"Also, when the Moe's opened up near me a couple of years back, my brother staked out overnight with some friends because the first 100 customers got a year's supply of burritos."
"They gave him a card that could be used for one free burrito a day for a year. I think he went every day for three weeks straight and hasn't gone back since, lol (laughing out loud)."
- CarsenAF
The Year of Pizza
"Not exactly lifetime, but I once won a 5000 euro one-year voucher at a pizza place, and it lasted the full year. I spent the last 75 euros on the very last day."
- nillekeks1
"That's a LOT of pizza."
- TheSarcasmChasm
"You have no idea. I ate every pizza they serve, every snack, everything on their menu at least five times."
"I was also invited to a lot of parties that year."
- nillekeks1
A Classic Swap
"My hometown has a minor league baseball team. I won a year’s supply of Pepsi from beating a mascot in a race at the ballpark when I was seven."
"I didn’t realize the prize was Pepsi until I won (I just wanted to meet the mascot, Scout!) and I hated soda as a kid."
"So when Scout handed me my first six-pack of Pepsi as my prize, I said, 'Well, that’ll last me the whole year because I won’t drink it,' and my parents forfeited my prize to the second place kid."
"The park gave me a t-shirt instead and a baseball frame for the picture I got with the mascot instead, so I think I came out on top."
- not_addictive
No More Hunger
"When I was a kid, I won a lifetime supply of meat from a large butcher shop in my hometown."
"My dad put my name in one day and a few weeks later we get a call telling us we won a custom BBQ pit and a monthly supply of meat and supplies for life."
"We got the pit a few days later, and every month we’d get a foam ice chest of various beef cuts, sausages, and steaks, a couple of dozen sodas, a bag of charcoal, lighter fluid, and a bag of whatever veggies they had around or something."
"We were really poor at the time, so this was exactly something that could help the family out in enormous ways. My dad would have a BBQ every weekend, sometimes several times a week."
"I remember sometime afterward, realizing that I hadn’t felt hunger in days or even weeks, and that was so unusual for me."
"For years, we continued to get the monthly supply. There was even one point when the amount of meat and sodas we got doubled. We were having a hard time keeping up, but that’s a good problem to have."
"I remember near the time I was going to high school, we got notified that the butcher shop got bought out by a larger national chain, and the parent company just wanted to cut us a check to end it all. We gladly accepted. The check was for like $10k or something like that."
"By that time, my parents had gone to school and got their degrees and got better-paying jobs, so the free supply of food was just a bonus."
"Looking back, that win helped us out a lot when we were poor. I can imagine the savings my parents gained from not having to buy as much food, which was scarce as it was. We became happier and a little fatter, as well."
- watabby
The Gift That Keeps on Giving
"I won a lifetime supply of printer paper from a Canadian retailer based on an internet contest with the purchase of a Konica Minolta."
"I won, and I realized quickly that I don't need that much paper. They were sending me two reams a month."
"I moved and never updated my shipping address, so someone out there is getting free paper."
- GhostLandsTramp
Free Flights
"Ryanair (a European budget airline) awarded its millionth passenger 'free flights for life.'"
"After nine years, they reneged on the deal, so she took them to court. The Judge awarded her 60,000 euros to buy her own flights (Her legal costs were more than three times that, but Ryanair had to pay those as well)."
"Given the relatively low cost of Ryanair flights, 60,000 euros will probably buy her at least six flights per year for the next 50 years."
- GrumpyOik
An Absolute Win-Win
"I won a year of free Choolaah. It’s a fast-casual Indian restaurant."
"They give a year of free food (via a coupon book with 52 cards for free meals) to the first 100 customers at any location. I saw that the line was short on the way to work and called everyone in the office to get in line."
"We had all our business meetings at Choolaah for a year, with the company paying for meals when people ran out of coupons, didn’t have them, or we hired anyone new."
"The food was perfect because if you ate vegan, paleo, gluten-free, or any combination there was something on the menu you could eat. We still use them for company catering because everyone likes the options."
- teacamelpyramid
In This Economy?
"I won free groceries for 'life' at my local grocery store in a raffle. They give me a digital $100 gift card once a month, which is wonderful. However, it doesn't even cover a week of groceries."
"It will end when the total given has reached $10,000. I've got about $4000 left."
- like_to
Party Time
"Not necessarily 'won,' but I bought a lifetime membership at one of my favorite nightclubs/concert venues early in the pandemic. They released a limited amount as a pandemic fundraiser and they went fast and will likely never do something like it again, so it feels a bit like I won."
"It came with free entry plus-one, coat check, and two drink tickets at every event at the venue (even sold-out ones) for life."
"A couple of years out, I’ve gotten more value than the cost, I’m still on the list for every event, and most of the staff there know me (partly cuz I’m there a lot and also cuz I tip well on those drink tickets). I’ll often just drop by for random events/artists I’d never heard of or dip in for a half hour at a sold-out event with a $50+ door cover just to say hello to some friends."
"I imagine someday the venue will close up shop and my lifetime membership will close with it."
- maddiewantsbagels
Good Manager Energy
"I took my kids to a pizza buffet place when they received a free kids meal coupon for good grades. The cashier mistakenly charged us for the meals."
"When the manager came out to correct the transaction, I said he could just return the coupon and not worry about it."
"He gave us an entire stack (about 50) of unused coupons that were attached together like a checkbook. We got free kids meals until they obviously reached the age limit."
- psgrue
Quantity Over Quality
"My parents did twice in a relatively short period of time. The first was at a fair when I was in high school. They advertised it as a lifetime supply of ice cream sandwiches."
"They ended up giving us 100 boxes all at once. Right there on a warm July day. My mom was only able to collect at the end of the day so there weren't even that many people to hand them out to."
"We got home and had about 60 left after giving away as much as possible and throwing out what didn't fit in our freezer."
"I played lots of sports so I ate a lot and my parents just said I could eat as much as I wanted any time I wanted. I went through 60 boxes in a couple of months. That was a good time but not so good for my weight."
"The second was when they bought an expensive microwave about a year later and won a five-year supply of microwave popcorn. Basically, the same thing happened."
"We got a huge box with like 200 packages and I was told to eat as much as I wanted."
"After living in a house that smelled like popcorn for a few weeks, my parents just threw the rest in the garbage."
- discostud1515
An Excellent Plan
"Not a lifetime supply but my aunt won a 60-second haul at our local grocery store, where you grab as much as you can in 60 seconds and it’s yours. There are obviously rules and limitations, no meat, dairy, or fresh goods."
"This woman took her arm and literally swiped out their entire aisle of coffee. She had a plan going in there, which I guess was coffee, dog food, paper towels, and toilet paper."
"Which honestly, that’s a good plan with the limits they had. Nobody in my family had to buy coffee for at least a year. (We all survive off coffee in my family.)"
- juelbaby
"The way I would DEMOLISH the spice aisle."
- f**k_you__shoresy
The Final Call
"This happened in the late '90s. A local bar ran a wet t-shirt contest where the girl who won would win a lifetime of free bar drinks at the bar. They also had cash prizes for second and third place. I don't remember how much, but it was a lot at the time."
"The result was a packed bar, tons of girls entered, and tons of guys spent money. My friend's girlfriend at the time, now his wife, won first place. She was stoked. He was excited."
"Within a couple of weeks, the building was condemned and torn down."
"Turns out the owners of the bar knew that the building was going to be condemned and just wanted to have one last party."
- pilot4hire70
Long Live the Cat
"18 years ago, we won a lifetime of vet visits for my cat."
"They expected to give it to someone with an old pet, not a new kitten."
"The cat’s still alive. The Vet Clinic has moved and rebranded four or five times, but they’re still honoring the award."
- aegis_526
A Beautiful Family Tradition
"My grandparents were gifted a lifetime subscription to 'Reader's Digest' as a wedding gift. They were offered that, or some other magazine that went out of business a decade later so they made the right call."
"Being a frugal family, that subscription was utilized fully. After Grandma and Grandpa were done with each issue, it would be passed along to siblings and their kids with this little round-robin thing they did (sharing photos and updates of what everyone was up to, passed along in a manilla envelope and when it came back to you, you remove your items and put new ones in)."
"They had been together for 62 years when Grandpa died, but RD honored the subscription an extra decade until Grandma passed."
"I forgot how much was paid for it, but I'm certain the gifter got their money's worth."
- Just_call_me_Marcia
While lifetime supplies may not always be all they're cracked up to be, some of these stories were incredibly wholesome and reminded us just how kind people can be.
It feels like it would be a dream come true... "winning a lifetime supply!" That makes you feel lucky and special. It's backed up the idea there you'll never go without. It's exciting at first thought. That is until you realize you need to be specific about what you hope you get an bottomless inventory of, because unless it's money... there really is nothing else we need a lifetime supply of. But it's still a fun story.
Redditor Kelvin_Inman wanted to know about the aftermath of winning all can have for life by asking...
Redditors who won a lifetime supply of something...what is it, and are you sick of it yet?
Wrenched....
Giphy"My brother-in-law went to a contractor's trade show, and one of the guys on his crew won a lifetime supply of some kind of locking wrench."
"They gave him one - because it comes with a lifetime guarantee." Ganglebot
Kitty No Like....
"My Dad won a year's supply of cat food, but a) it was delivered in one go and b) the cat didn't like it (of course). The people at the shelter were super happy though, so it ended well!" HazelKathleen
"So i read this like you gave the food to a homeless shelter... and i was like WTH... then i thought about is and i hope it was to an animal shelter..."Hobdar
Rinse & Repeat....
"I won a life time supply of shampoo, they come in mini bottles each month and are great gifts for people who you don't like that much but you don't want to offend."reddituser9871
"If you run out of people to gift them to, I imagine a homeless shelter would love your extras."3141592653yum
"sick of them"
"In a contest, I won a lifetime supply of high-quality coffee beans."
"(Contestants had to guess how many beans were in a large glass barrel on display.)"
"Each month, 3 pounds of my choice arrive at regular intervals. As I noted here some time ago, I give away the excess to friends and family - and no one is "sick of them" yet!"Back2Bach
Doritoed!
Giphy"My coworker has a life time supply of Doritos after Doritos truck hit her. She hated Doritos in the first place and donates her weekly/monthly amount to homeless shelters."ItsJust4Dream
Where are the buns?
"I know a family that won a lifetime supply of hotdogs. The problem was the company decided that the average person eats 3 hotdogs a day (no clue how thats the number they got).... this sounds fine at first but they didn't want to ship 90 hot dogs a month they sent the full value of 1 avg lifetime on pallets. 90/month X 12months × 82 years avg lifespan."
"88.5 THOUSAND hot dogs. In 1 shipment."
"They bought a whole extra freezer to store a bunch. But that couldn't hold all, so they ended up donating a massive amount to local churches and homeless shelters."damndingashrubbery
"so what are you going to do about this?"
"I didn't really "win" a lifetime supply of something but I still got a lifetime supply of Eskimo Pies. For Europeans or other redditors that don't know Eskimo Pies are vanilla ice cream bars coated with dark chocolate. Pretty standard freezer section at the grocery store fare."
"Anyway, about 15 years ago I bought a box of Eskimo Pies and went to eat one. And promptly cut the crap out of my lip because there was a big piece of broken glass inside it. I'm aware that this could have been a big payday for me, but i'm not real sue happy, but I still wanted something done. So I took photos, called the makers, and wrote them a letter with the pictures included basically asking "so what are you going to do about this?"
"They sent me a letter with a check for $600 and a phone number to call whenever I wanted free eskimo pies with the letter stating that if I cashed the check they are absolved of any responsibility. So whenever I want, I call and get a coupon for free of Eskimo pies. It makes for a good thing to give to coworkers and things like that."ToxicMasculinity1981
Honeycomb Kids.
"Growing up my next door neighbor won a lifetime supply of honeycomb. The company would ship them a case a month, they planned for like a family of 2 adults and 3 kids. He was the only kid in the house. They had boxes and boxes of the stuff."
"Hanging out meant you came home with a box of cereal. They moved were slow to update the move with the company and the new neighbors gave me the shipments. I thought it was great, I'm lactose intolerant and in the 80's honeycomb was one of the best cereals to eat dry. Non milk alternative were super expensive in those days."tdasnowman
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Subs Away....
"My brother had a friend who won a years supply of sandwiches a local sub shop when he was in college, that guy was sick of subs by the time his year was up, but he still went there almost every day cause he was broke college student, who wasn't on a cafeteria plan."finedayredpony
Yes Swanson!
Giphy"I worked at company that was doing a promotion with Swanson that was giving away a year's supply of Swanson frozen dinners, with 365 coupons for a free meal. There was some legal reason the contest couldn't go through, so my co-worker gave me a stack of like 50 of them."
"I lived next door to a grocery store so for about a two weeks I got one every night. I started to just feel awful during the day, I was just sluggish and couldn't breath as well. I left the remaining stack of coupons sit in my junk drawer for years before I just tossed them."dougiebgood
Snap Away....
"When i was 13 or so, my dad won a Year supply of Snapple among other prizes (a Jeep, a trip to Florida, a bunch of skateboard gear, a meet and greet with Tony Hawk)"
"I remember like a booklet of vouchers, like 365 of them, and it was 6 Snapples worth a voucher or something. My mom used some coupon voodoo and bought it on sale with the vouchers and we got like 3-4 years of this crap."
"Anyways, long story short, my dad hated Snapple so he let me and my brother pick it all out. we had a garage full of the stuff. We drank a ridiculous amount of Snapple we gave it away to friends, we brought it with our lunches. We ended up throwing some away as it started to fade and taste funny."
"We pretty much got sick of it halfway through and started drinking it to get rid of it."nanaki989
Pizza! Pizza!
Giphy"I knew someone who won free pizza for a year from a chain (mind you, we live in NJ with some of the best pizza there is. No one is ordering from a chain). He bought the whole "year worth" in one shot and threw a pizza party for the kids at an underprivileged youth camp."Not_quite_a
Call the Doctor....
"My mom got a year supply of Dr. Pepper. But, it came at a price. Back in the 90s she got a Dr. Pepper from a row of vending machines right as the delivery guy was loading up the last one. There was a hunk of something when she took the first drink, but she thought it was just ice from it being freshly loaded."
"She bit down on it. It was a damn cockroach. Since the distributor saw it all go down, she got free Dr. Pepper for a year. It's been almost two decades and she still will not drink a beverage out of the original container. She has to pour it into a glass first."emmajo94
It's a Bugle.
"It wasn't a lifetime supply but my mom used to work for a charity that visited prisoners and gave them cookies and tried to start bible studies. Anyways, a Frito-Lays distributor several pallets of Bugles to the cause. We didn't have anywhere to put them so they loose boxes just kind of spread through the house."
"She'd wrap them at Christmas (3 years, maybe 4) so they'd look like decor. She did the math and realized that the prisoners weren't going to eat them all before they expired. They were ours as well now."
"She refused to buy any other chips and after a while, any other snacks. We'd get pumped when she bought crackers for a recipe because we knew she couldn't keep us from getting to the leftover crackers. She sent several cases to my sister's when she was at college."
"When my brother moved not only did he get several cases whether he wanted them or not, he packed a lot of his thing in bugle boxes. She cooked with them. We had walking tacos instead of regular tacos. The PRISONERS were complaining about Bugles by the time they were gone and they only got them twice a month."mike_d85
"free list suspended"
"Not lifetime supply, but my mom left her job managing a cinema, and got an unlimited 2 year free pass 2 tickets per visit."
"Close to the end of the two years we lost the pass and reported it lost, and they replaced it with a brand new 2 year pass. so almost 4 years of cinema for free."
"Never got sick of it and love going to the cinema still."
"FYI: If you ever see "free list suspended" on a movie, it means you can't use these type of passes."thundercats88
Sugar Free....
Giphy"My Aunt won a year's supply of Diet Coke. It was 365 cans on a mini palette delivered to her home. It didn't last nearly a year. She has three kids and would share with family and friends. I think it lasted a few months tops." NucularRobit
Chewitt's!
"My mom won a years supply of Chewitt's when me and my brother were kids and we basically had this massive brown box filled with outers of Chewitt's dropped off at our house. We were taking packets of them into school for weeks just trying to get rid of them! FYI this was second prize, she had wanted the first prize of a new tv."emma_sometimes
Rented.
"I won a year's worth of free video rentals a long time ago. Basically they gave me a card that allowed me to get one per week for a year. If I didn't get one that week I lost it. I did get rentals most weeks, but forgot once in a while. I think it was good for new releases, which was cool. Unfortunately I moved a few months before the year was up, so I gave the card to my ex MIL (current MIL at the time). I was super poor so it was nice while it lasted."PM_ME_VEGAN_STUFF
2160....
Giphy"I was given a few cases of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. (we didn't win them... they were just given to us by a store manager)"
"2160 Reese's Cups."
"It took us months to get through them all, even after giving a lot of them away. I didn't eat Reese's anything for at least 15 years after that."Spritzertog
Wan On, Wax Off....
"I remember a comedy bit from a long time ago, but I don't remember who it was. It was about game shows at the time that would give as a consolation prize a year's supply of Turtle Wax. "What does a year's supply of Turtle Wax even look like? I have half a bottle of Turtle Wax in my garage... it used to belong to my father."tfurrows
Winning isn't everything but free stuff is pretty great.
Do you have similar experiences to share? Let us know in the comments below.
There is nothing better in life than hearing the phrases... "You WON!", "Free" and "Lifetime Supply!" Hearing those sentiments can make your heart melt; no matter what the prize is.
Heck, give me a lifetime supply of Corn Flakes and I'll jump for joy. The victory of winning is a highly potent drug. If only all the times we won something money could be involved, then we'd all die happy.
One Redditor asked Anyone who won a "lifetime supply" of something, what did you win, and are they still supplying it to you?