The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tips to plan a shopping strategy
New ideas to help you save even more this year.
I recently started working with a friend to teach her “Strategic Shopping” skills (at her request). Before we got to the topic of coupons, I asked her a few questions about basic shopping strategies that can cut spending dramatically.
After our chat, I realized these may be new concepts to even the most experienced grocery shoppers, so I am devoting this column to what I believe are the most effective strategies for saving If you master creating a thorough list for the week, you won’t have to go to the store again later in the week for forgotten items. Reducing impulse trips saves money, period. money on groceries.
You may already know all of them, but if not, perhaps one new idea will help you save more this year.
Warning: You may think these ideas are unrealistic. Who has time to plan? Who wants to go to more than one store? Who wants to compare prices? Who wants to switch brands?
If you don’t need to save money, you don’t need to change a thing. But if you would like some extra cash, we are talking about real money.
The average family could save thousands of dollars a year with a strategic approach to the everyday task of grocery shopping — which may replace a part-time job. Saving just $500 a month equals $6,000 a year in savings, and you’d have to earn $9,000 a year to net $6,000 in savings (depending on your income tax bracket). So keep that in mind as you read on.
1. High impact
Only buy your “high impact” items when they are on sale. Figure out which items contribute the most to your grocery bill and pay attention to how often they go on sale and what their lowest price points are. Even if you only focus on one item, that adds up over the course of a year. For example, boneless chicken breasts are one of our family’s highest-impact items. Its price ranges from $2 per pound to $5 per pound and goes on sale for $2 per pound every other week at my store. When it hits $2 I buy two weeks’ worth of chicken during sale weeks and freeze half of it, rather than paying the going rate each week, which saves $450 per year.
2. Plan ahead
Plan your shopping list each week, using the store ads as your guide to plan your meals, snacks and entertaining food. Having a comprehensive list will reduce the number of unplanned trips you need to make later in the week and will reduce impulse shopping that ruins your well-intentioned grocery budget.
3. Do your homework
Review more than one store ad to determine which store deserves your business that week. If more of your common items are on sale at a different store that is still in your radius, being storeflexible will save you money.
4. Shop with deals in mind
Cherry-pick the best deals each week at multiple stores. When you make your weekly shopping plan, you can make short lists for 2-3 stores. You can either shop all stores at once, or you can make a quick trip at the additional stores when you’re driving by in the course of other errands that week. Two or three short, well-organized shopping trips will take about as much time as one unplanned, stressful, disorganized trip at your standard store. If you master creating a thorough list for the week, you won’t have to go to the store again later in the week for forgotten items. Reducing impulse trips saves money, period.
5. Don’t worry about brands
Don’t be overly picky about brands. I call it being “brand-flexible.” For example, last week Kroger had its store brand peanut butter on sale for $1.39 a jar. They had a digital coupon for 50 cents, so it was 89 cents a jar. That’s a stock-up price and you could use that coupon five times, so you could buy five jars for just $4.45. If you prefer a different brand of peanut butter that cost $3 a jar, you’d save $10.55 on just one item and you’d have enough until the next sale hits. My son said it wasn’t his brand and I said “it is now!”
6. Sub it out
Consider substitutions. If family members are willing to be flexible (and even if they’re not), you can do the math and see if changing what you buy reduces spending. I found some options are 50-75% less and over the course of a year, that’s big money. Hot cereal like oatmeal is less expensive than cold cereals, drink mixes like Crystal Light is less expensive than bottled or canned beverages, chicken is less than beef, bananas are less than apples, small apples are less than large apples, popcorn that you pop yourself is far less than other salty snacks, whole bunches of lettuce are less than bagged salad, and sliced chicken breasts for sandwiches is less than deli counter or packaged lunchmeat. Be creative and think through possible substitutions for your regular items, get out your calculator, and you may be surprised.
7. Only buy items you will use
Use coupons for items you’d be buying anyway. Don’t let a coupon lead you to buy items you don’t really need. Find coupons in the AJC and download your stores’ apps to be able to select digital coupons which come off automatically at the register. Just select the coupon on the app or from your store account from your computer. Stephanie Nelson, The Coupon Mom, has been teaching Georgia shoppers how to save since 2000. Find many more grocery deals each week at www. CouponMom.com as well as free printable grocery coupons.