£ The Smarter Spender

Spending money is not bad, spending other people’s money is! Be money smart, spend the money you can afford and get the best deal you can.

What is likely to drop in price this week? Child car seats

12% cheaper on average than last week

Cat food

10% cheaper on average

Soft toys

Retro trainers

19% cheaper

Smartphones

7% cheaper

Rain boots

15% cheaper

This is a good time to think about buying… a tennis racket

While the freezing weather might mean you’d rather be curled up on the sofa than out on the tennis court, it turns out that January is the best month to buy a new racket.

The lockdown means tennis facilities are closed, but due to the game’s naturally socially distant nature, it is likely to be one of the first to return.

Buying a racket in January can save you 11% compared to buying in the priciest month of April.

This week, we reckon UK consumers will be buying… something to entertain the kids

Even though we’re in round three of lockdown, somehow the situation of combining working from home, childcare and home-schooling seems to be getting harder, not easier.

No doubt the cold weather and the time of year has something to do with it.

While a lockdown in warmer months means the children can be outside for much of the day, leaving frazzled parents with time to focus on the next remote meeting, a winter lockdown means kids are cooped up.

We predict that by now many parents are at the end of their tether when it comes to keeping the kids entertained so might be looking to purchase some new toys, or perhaps even the odd educational game to keep the little ones busy for a while.

Expect demand to rise for things that can be done indoors, and ideally quietly!

That means toys from Lego and Playmobil, model-building kits and dolls’ houses.

Data provided by Idealo.co. uk, the price comparison site.