1 Before you hit the supermarket, have a good look in your pantry and fridge. Throw out any out-of-date items and make a note of which items have been wasted. Then, when compiling your shopping list, try to include only items you know will definitely be consumed within their use-by date. Remember any waste of food is also a waste of your hard-earned money.
2 Always compare prices between brands. Get out the trusty calculator and work out the price of the item per unit or kilo or litre. Also, you might find products high or very low on the shelves are more competitively priced. Supermarkets presume their customers are busy people and usually place the highest profit making brands at eye-level.
3 Wherever possible DON’T take your children shopping. They will undoubtedly ask or even nag you for something they have seen on the shelves which may not be on your list. If you need to take the children, try to remain firm when prompted for the inevitable chocolate / ice-cream / toy, etc. Depending on the age of the child, you could offer an alternative treat such as reading a story together or playing a favourite game or perhaps baking a cake or biscuits at home or cooking their favourite meal.
4 Don’t go shopping hungry – you will end up buying treats or other food items not on your list.
5 Give generic brands a go. Often they are made by the same companies as the labelled ones and are just as good quality but at a much better price.
6 Don’t even look at items on display at the counter – if you don’t have them on your shopping list, you don’t need them.
7 Scan the junk mail for ultra cheap specials. Often supermarkets will advertise excellent deals on the front page of their catalogues. Although it is not advisable to go to 3 different supermarkets to do your weekly grocery shop (the cost of petrol to get you there would outweigh any savings you might have made), you might find it convenient to pick up the specials you were attracted to on the way home from work or on the way to the gym or on any other necessary trip. Of course this would only be worth doing if the items advertised are products you know you and your household will definitely consume before their use-by date.
I hope these ideas have been useful! In my next post I will add even more money-saving suggestions.
Happy saving,
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