Begin with an inventory. Even more important that knowing not to shop on an empty stomach is to know what you are shopping for. Some people may find it helpful to keep their grocery list on the fridge door, so that once an item is eaten or used up, it’s easier to write it down immediately. Once you’re ready for your trip to the grocery store or market, you have a ready-made list ahead of time.
Go through your cupboards and fridge to take note of what is about to go bad, or what is more than two thirds empty if not completely gone. Write those items down on your fridge door list; if you’re extra thrifty, you get points for making your own grocery store notepad out of a collection of used envelopes. You can either staple or clip them together – no paper would be wasted in writing it out.
Coupons, Flyers are Money Saving Tools
Knowing when your store is having a sale is as good as money in the bank. Generally, it’s not economical to buy pre-made foods or canned and processed goods since it costs more than buying the ingredients separately and preparing them yourself.
However, not everyone is comfortable in the kitchen. For those out there who would rather buy their Kraft Dinner rather than buying generic macaroni and waiting for a sale on cheese, think of previous generations’ tactics in saving money:
- Check your local flyers for sale dates
- Read the newspapers for coupons
- Don’t hesitate to look through the “bargain bins” or “Reduced Rack” for foods you should eat the day of, or at least freeze and eat sooner rather than later.
- Print and/or clip out the coupons, and attach them to your fridge door grocery list
Web Sites for Coupons and Flyers
For those who placed “No Flyers” signs on their mailbox, there are still ways to find out when the rebates or sales are in effect. More grocery chains are taking advantage of online flyers, and various sites are devoted to providing a list of online flyers, so one can compare prices without standing idly near the store’s entrance while circling items for a last minute list. One of the more comprehensive cross-Canada listings is Flyermall.com, which also includes Québec stores in among its online flyer listing.
Here are a couple of websites that currently supply coupons online: www.save.ca and The Coupons Database.
Choose Generic, “Store’s Own Brand” or “No Name” Options
Buying a generic or store brand doesn’t really affect the quality of your dinner. Joanna Pruess, author of Supermarket Confidential, confides that most times, the same manufacturers that make the brand name version of more popular products make the identical item under a generic label. All that may be altered can be food colouring, and packaging, but otherwise, the main ingredients are often the same.
Take Note: How to Keep An Eye on Prices
Buying foods ahead of time will not only stock up your pantry, but will eliminate panic riddled grocery trips. The trick lies in knowing if the sale price is lower than another store’s regular pricing.
The Tightwad Gazette author, Amy Dacyczyn recommends making a price journal. Once you know which foods you usually buy the most of, bring along a little notebook, where you list the comparative prices of the same product for each store that is nearest you.
For example, one entry could read: Tuna fish – IGA $1.15, Sobeys $.99, Loblaws $.87. That way, if one store features a ‘sale’ on tuna at $1.25, you’ll still know that you can get it at a lower price at another store close by.
However, keep an eye on those regular prices and don’t forget to update your grocery notebook – despite occasional sales, the average store price is still rising. Just buy goods when they are on sale, not when they are most needed.
