Supermarket shopSaturday
Read a great article telling me how much value I can get in the likes of Poundland and other discount stores which have proliferated in our high streets over the past couple of years. It had some great example of savings: for example WD-40 at £1 when elsewhere it is on sale for £1.99, a 200g pack of After Eights on sale for, guess what, a pound! I can check many of their offers at www.poundland.co.uk before I set out as well.
Monday
I heard on the radio that we throw away on average £480 worth of food and drink each year – surely not? Then I realised I threw away a small plate of chicken risotto that I hadn't finished the night before and half a loaf of bread that had gone mouldy. I should have used the risotto for a snack the following lunchtime and frozen some of the loaf when I bought it. I decided to plan our weekly menu and created a shopping list from that so I didn't overspend. I had a brainwave and put down a large chicken instead of a medium one. That meant I could have a roast on Sunday and use the excess meat in a curry for Monday and make soup from the bones for a midday snack one day.
Wednesday
My wife Theresa asked whether I had noticed the difference in the yeast extract spread we used. I had to admit I hadn't. Last week she had spotted the supermarkets own brand at £1.66 for a huge 240g pot. Not only was the pot 40g bigger than our usual brand purchase, it was £1.12 cheaper. I am going to do this with other items. If I could save 40% by buying 'own brands' and notice little or no difference then it's worth it. If we like them then we will change, if not, we can always revert back.
Friday
Food shopping day! I didn’t make the mistake of going on an empty stomach – boy, the food bill certainly goes up then! I went via Lidl as I had got a leaflet through the post with some great offers including 60 Finish Powerballs for £3.99 – I’m sure I have paid over £10 for that before. I know it will take me 3 months to go through all of those, but the saving massively outweighs any interest that I could gain from £4.
I noticed that the supermarket were doing a 2 for 1 on cheese and milk, as well as 3 for £10 on packs of chicken breasts and minced beef. It annoys me that I cannot take advantage of these offers as I wouldn’t go through these items before they perished, so I bought some for Anne next door and we split the costs and made great savings.
Maybe pennies do look after the pounds – I saved myself around £25.
Written by Marc Lockley – a negotiation coach and money saving expert. Marc's opinions are his own and for general information only. Always seek independent, professional, financial advice. Details correct on date of publication, September 15, 2010. Marc Lockley is the author of 'How To Pay Less For More', which you can buy at a special discount price in the Saga Bookshop.