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When It Comes to Being Shopping Savvy It's First Things First
Every day I am asked "how do I get my grocery bill down?", it's something everyone wants to know, especially these days with inflation putting food into the luxury list.
Your grocery bill is the one bill you have absolute control over. You, and you alone, decide just how much money you spend on groceries each week. You choose what to buy, the brands you buy, the quantities you buy and where you buy those things.
So, with those choices in mind, here's an outline of the strategies you can use to get your grocery bill down.
1. Clean, organize and inventory your pantry, fridge and freezer. Starting with a clean and organised work space saves you time, energy and money. Planning is easier when you can see what you have and where the gaps are, so don't be tempted to skip this step.
2. Decide how much you are going to spend and set your grocery budget. News flash: it doesn't have to be the amount you are spending now. Try trimming last week's grocery bill by 10 per cent to start. If that works, next time you shop take another 10 per cent off and see if that works.
Keep going until you find you aren't buying everything you need or you start getting complaints, then add 10 per cent and stick to it for a few weeks. If it works, great, that's your optimal grocery budget. If after a few weeks you find it doesn't work, add 5 per cent and see if that makes a difference.
Prices are going up and up, sometimes every couple of days, but you can control your grocery budget, and this is an easy and simple way to start.
3. Create a meal plan. Whether it's weekly, fortnightly or monthly you need a meal plan. It is easier to work a meal plan to fit your shopping routine so if you shop weekly, meal plan weekly. If you shop monthly like I do, work on a monthly meal plan. Keep it simple. Most families have the same breakfasts and lunches, so start with planning just dinners. Put them on the fridge so everyone can see what's for dinner, and as a reminder if you need to take something from the freezer the night before. Members can login and download the current month's blank meal planner and my meal plan for the month to make meal planning easy.
4. Collect the junk mail, the local papers and get online to find the store ads. Use them to write your shopping list and more importantly to familiarize yourself with the sale cycle, and just what comes on sale and when. I know junk mail is a pain but when it comes to hunting out sale prices, it makes putting a shopping list together so much easier than trying to juggle three or more web pages.
Your grocery bill is the one bill you have absolute control over. You, and you alone, decide just how much money you spend on groceries each week. You choose what to buy, the brands you buy, the quantities you buy and where you buy those things.
So, with those choices in mind, here's an outline of the strategies you can use to get your grocery bill down.
1. Clean, organize and inventory your pantry, fridge and freezer. Starting with a clean and organised work space saves you time, energy and money. Planning is easier when you can see what you have and where the gaps are, so don't be tempted to skip this step.
2. Decide how much you are going to spend and set your grocery budget. News flash: it doesn't have to be the amount you are spending now. Try trimming last week's grocery bill by 10 per cent to start. If that works, next time you shop take another 10 per cent off and see if that works.
Keep going until you find you aren't buying everything you need or you start getting complaints, then add 10 per cent and stick to it for a few weeks. If it works, great, that's your optimal grocery budget. If after a few weeks you find it doesn't work, add 5 per cent and see if that makes a difference.
Prices are going up and up, sometimes every couple of days, but you can control your grocery budget, and this is an easy and simple way to start.
3. Create a meal plan. Whether it's weekly, fortnightly or monthly you need a meal plan. It is easier to work a meal plan to fit your shopping routine so if you shop weekly, meal plan weekly. If you shop monthly like I do, work on a monthly meal plan. Keep it simple. Most families have the same breakfasts and lunches, so start with planning just dinners. Put them on the fridge so everyone can see what's for dinner, and as a reminder if you need to take something from the freezer the night before. Members can login and download the current month's blank meal planner and my meal plan for the month to make meal planning easy.
4. Collect the junk mail, the local papers and get online to find the store ads. Use them to write your shopping list and more importantly to familiarize yourself with the sale cycle, and just what comes on sale and when. I know junk mail is a pain but when it comes to hunting out sale prices, it makes putting a shopping list together so much easier than trying to juggle three or more web pages.
"And remember, ingredients give you options"
5. Stock up on staple ingredients. Every family has different staples, ingredients they always have on hand. Use these staples to start your grocery stockpile, buying one or two extra staples each time you shop and stocking up when they come on sale. Items such as baking goods, meat, breakfast cereals, toiletries, cleaning supplies, canned or frozen foods are usually staples in most homes and are a good starting point. Half price sales can build a stockpile very quickly.
Keeping flours, sugars, spices, butter, eggs and milk in the pantry ensures you can make breads, cakes, scones, muffins, pancakes, pastry, biscuits and slices that don't cost a fortune.
And remember, ingredients give you options, even when it comes to cleaning products and toiletries. Basic staples such as vinegar, bicarb soda, salt, washing soda and eucaplyptus oil are all you need to make the cleaners you need for your home.
6. Donate your extras. Living the Cheapskates way does not mean we are stingy, or mean, or selfish or greedy. It's quite the opposite in fact. Because they are debt free and cashes up, or on their way to being debt free and cashed up, Cheapskates can afford to be generous, and they are. Cheapskates live by the 10-10-80 rule: give 10 per cent, save 10 per cent and live off 80 per cent. Giving is as much a part of living the Cheapskates way as saving. Use some of your stockpile to donate to food banks and soup kitchens in your area or volunteer in your community and share your knowledge and skills so others can learn the joy of living the Cheapskates way. You don't need to give money, you can be generous with your time, skills and energy too.
Keeping flours, sugars, spices, butter, eggs and milk in the pantry ensures you can make breads, cakes, scones, muffins, pancakes, pastry, biscuits and slices that don't cost a fortune.
And remember, ingredients give you options, even when it comes to cleaning products and toiletries. Basic staples such as vinegar, bicarb soda, salt, washing soda and eucaplyptus oil are all you need to make the cleaners you need for your home.
6. Donate your extras. Living the Cheapskates way does not mean we are stingy, or mean, or selfish or greedy. It's quite the opposite in fact. Because they are debt free and cashes up, or on their way to being debt free and cashed up, Cheapskates can afford to be generous, and they are. Cheapskates live by the 10-10-80 rule: give 10 per cent, save 10 per cent and live off 80 per cent. Giving is as much a part of living the Cheapskates way as saving. Use some of your stockpile to donate to food banks and soup kitchens in your area or volunteer in your community and share your knowledge and skills so others can learn the joy of living the Cheapskates way. You don't need to give money, you can be generous with your time, skills and energy too.