Did you know that our second biggest bill after the mortgage is our groceries bill? A crazy truth?
Don’t misunderstand me, we all have to eat. But … do you know that you don’t have to pay the full price for fresh, healthy and even organic food? Let me show you how simple it is!
Let’s start from the beginning:
We have all heard about Extreme Couponing (this blog and our super group were created thanks to this program). Where you see happy people entering the grocery store and 45 seconds later (TV magic), they leave with $800 food for $0.14. It may look great and amazing, but they don’t show all the work you need to master your coupons to that level. I analyzed the coupons from every possible perspective and initially it was excitement to ‘do all this for free’ but ultimately what I could do with a hundred bottles of mouth fluid. These are the reasons why I no longer believe in coupons, even at a mega level:
It takes a lot of time. Not only does it take a few hours to fill in forms, print and trim coupons, and compare them with current shop offers, it can also double the time spent in a grocery store.
It limits what you can buy. Sure, maybe I will be able to get 16 boxes of tampons this week … but what if I really need celery and chicken?
Coupons are usually intended for processed food or cleaning products. The most expensive products in your shopping cart are food, meat and dairy products. And coupons usually don’t include many, if any.
I know that many people love coupons and think they are worth the time. To you I say: go – for you we have a whole lot of coupons HERE! But I will argue until the day I die is not the fastest, cheapest and healthiest way to shop.
And it is quite simple.
Step 1: Before you go shopping …
First you need to know how much you can spend on food each month. A quick and easy explanation is £100 per person per month. This includes everything you can get from a typical grocery store – from food and products to basic cleaning products, medicines, baby products and even pet food. I’ll bet you have a million questions, so see this post that will explain everything in detail.
which will explain everything in detail. Then you need a method to track your budget. My simple trick is? Track your budget weekly instead of monthly! For my family I get £400 per month. This is broken down into £100 per week, see video above for a detailed explanation. I believe that buying everything with a card instead of cash is the best solution. Simply do not use cash, because tracking cash is a nightmare.
Finally, and this is my most important trick to shopping in the grocery store … go to the grocery store ONLY 1 FOUR PURCHASE. If you do not apply any other rules, use this one. Plan ahead and don’t enter the store for the next 6 days, or my bad powers will pass through the computer screen and frighten you! Use Sunday to plan your meals for the whole week in the fridge/painfreezer/freezer and check out what’s on the offer (more about this below), then choose a day for shopping. If you run out of milk, send your spouse. Someone who buys no more than 1 bottle of milk. Alternatively, eat toasts instead of flakes. But don’t go back to the store! Why? Because this milk bottle costs £50 in other things that you suddenly “need”! Just trust me. 6 days is not long, you can do it!
Decide what you need. I recommend that you keep a shopping list on your phone because you never leave without a phone. I divide my list into two shops where I shop (Asda and Costco – more about the Costco at the bottom) and the things I usually buy there. The basic principle of smart groceries shopping, never go to the store without a list!
See what’s on offer. This is the key to the whole operation! All you have to do is know what the offers are for this week and buy them! How can you check this? Your best option is:
MySupermarket to check prices in the 15 biggest stores in the UK
Plan your meals before shopping (after knowing what you already have at home what you can use) You will know what you need to cook it with.
Step 2: Go shopping …
Now that you have a budget ready for shopping, a list and a meal plan, it’s time to attack the store! I recommend to take your shopping list and get to the nearest Tesco (or Asda) so that you can get the best prices in one place thanks to the price guarantee! (more per second). If you don’t have Tesco or Asda in your area, choose the best bargain shop and shop there this week. Print a list of the best priced purchases from mySupe