‘We Redeem Certificates From Master Chef Coffee — 50 Texas Gold Bonus Stamps’ — SA Light, 28 June 1962
Two stacked grocer ad-blocks in the San Antonio Light, published the same day as the S&H Green Stamps redemption badge in the Express-News — but here the partner stamp brand is Texas Gold Bonus Stamps, not S&H. This is the clearest evidence so far that the “250 TRADING STAMPS OF YOUR CHOICE” language in the August 1961 launch ads was a literal consumer-choice mechanic — different grocers honored different stamp programs but all redeemed Master Chef’s universal in-can certificates. Two trading-stamp partners are now documented for the program (S&H Green Stamps and Texas Gold Bonus Stamps); others very likely existed in other markets.
The clip also confirms the per-certificate denomination from the October 1961 trade-fair caption: each certificate is 25 stamps, so 2 certificates in a 2-lb can = 50 stamps total, and 1 certificate in a 1-lb can = 25 stamps total. And the prices match the 1962-01-31 line listing: 2-lb $1.25, 1-lb 63¢ — stable Master Chef pricing across the first half of 1962.
Transcription
(top panel)
WE REDEEM CERTIFICATES FROM…
Master Chef Coffee
50 TEXAS GOLD BONUS STAMPS
IN 2-LB. CAN—25 IN 1-LB. CAN
(bottom panel)
Master Chef Coffee
2-POUND VACUUM $1.25 POUND VACUUM 63¢
Source
San Antonio Light (San Antonio, Tex.), Thursday, 28 June 1962, p. 20, grocer ad block redeeming Master Chef Coffee gift certificates for Texas Gold Bonus Stamps. Newspapers.com clip: https://www.newspapers.com/image/1260236859/ (accessed 20 May 2026).
