Jan 20 2012

Save Big at The Grocery Store and Spend Big on the Kids!

Fruit and berries in a grocery store, Paris, F...

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Being retired, I have found that the very same tricks that helped me manage the family grocery budget with a household of six also helps me to manage a home full of grandchildren!

There are so many ways of cutting financial corners, Groceries are just the tip of the iceberg.  You will be surprised how fast an extra $20.00 will find you.  And since that will allow you to spend extra money as well as extra time, you can plan a great adventure with your grandkids, so stay posted for my upcoming article… Grandchild Adventures on $20.00!

  1. Plan Ahead: Do you use time and gas making extra trips to get a forgotten item? I use Sundays to plan out my errands for the week so I can maximize my gas dollar.  Of course, the best laid plans can sometimes be foiled by an unexpected surprise mid-week or an emergency, but coordinating the most efficient route for errands can save you not just hours, but miles.  The current tax reimbursement rate per mile traveled is $0.55, so even cutting 20 miles per week out of one regular day will save you almost $600.00 per year!
  2. Food:  Eliminate the waste by taking the time to clean your fridge regularly each week and have a special shelf for leftovers. For bread, leave out only what you will eat before it molds and freeze the rest. For canned items, write enlarged expiration dates on cans with a sharpie so they are easily visible. Rotate cans and put the ones that expire first in the front. Plan meals around items that need to be used. You aren’t saving money if food ends up being thrown out.
  3. Coupons: Have you ever gone shopping and forgotten to give the cashier your coupons? Find a system that helps you to remember to redeem coupons. I put a note on my grocery list, but I also have friends who have a dedicated shopping wallet: it contains their list of must get items, grocery money for the week, and their coupons. When they go to the store, they take that wallet instead of their every-day one.
  4. Grocery/Club Cards: Some stores offer club cards that offer members reduced prices. In exchange they usually ask for your contact information and some personal information so they can market to you.  You do not have to give “real” information, they do not check!  Just make sure to use your card to get the proper discount. If you try the grocery wallet trick, you can keep these cards there.
  5. Know What Stores Offer Matching: In my neighborhood, some stores will double or triple coupons, that is great, but it isn’t always the best deal.  The best deal is when I can make one trip, get what I need and get out and start having fun!  I have found some stores, like Walmart Marketplace, do not advertise, but they quietly offer price matching on all local stores ads.  So all I have to do is go through the weekly ads, compile the list of best prices and bring the ads when I shop.  I get the best deals and I maximize my gas dollar.
  6. Buy the Right Size and Amount: One grocery store had a special going where if you bought five items, you got five dollars off. It was cheaper to buy five than to buy two or three during these sales. There are also times when the larger item may be less expensive per unit, and if it won’t expire and you have the room, it may be worth buying more.  Check to make sure you have the right size and number of items so you the bargain price.
  7. Reusable Bags: Some stores offer incentives (up to 25 cents per bag of items purchased) for bringing in your own bag. You also help the environment. You can find out with a quick internet search if your local grocery store participates.
  8. Rebates: Many stores and companies offer rebates when you buy their merchandise. Be prompt in mailing in rebates or you may lose the opportunity.
  9. Shop the Outskirts: Most grocery stores keep their fresh food on the outskirt of the store, produce to one side, meat and dairy in the back, and fresh bakery to the other side. Not only does shopping the outskirts keep you away from processed foods that contain hormones, preservatives, and dyes that are not as healthy for you or your grandkids as fresh foods are, but those pre-prepared items cost more too!  Except vegetables, which can be much less expensive if you buy frozen than fresh, most of the food that you can use to prepare healthy snacks and meals can be bought at the outskirts of the store at a tremendous savings!
  10. Beware Organics:Organic is a food label used to play on your emotions as a grandparent.  It is not a word that means anything, it is like saying something is “magical”.  I actually saw the word organic on a gummy fruit snack the other day!  How a gummy chew qualifies as organic is beyond me, but the price of that gummy snack was an entire dollar more than the non-organic version. Save you spare dollars and look at the labels.  Pesticide free, dye free, hormone free, preservative free foods are without argument healthier: but you can remove any residual pesticide from your apple by the simple act of washing it, and by paying $0.40 less for every apple you buy, you can easily save $60.00 a year.
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