When shopping for groceries do you estimate per ounce or per unit costs? Do you buy those one-use packets versus bulk refilling into a dispenser? I understand the tradeoff – ease of use. I regularly do the back and forth questioning myself. Regardless of income level, we need to watch our pennies as we witness the rapid rise in fuel prices. An ominous sign: increased transportation costs directly translates to most every item in your grocery cart increasing. It’s inevitable.
Coupon guru?
I queried several RVers only to find many seasonal folks (six-month stints) regularly clip coupons and look through store flyers for special sales. Do you purchase items even if you didn’t come to buy it when you see the “buy one get one free”? If you generally know the price of the item(s) before they are promoted with a buy one, get one free, you might be surprised to know the store most likely is not losing money.
Use smart phone coupon apps and save
If you regularly watch for those coupon apps, even while strolling through the store and download the QR Code or item coupon, you can save some good coin. For example, this QR code is easy to download to your phone and will be scanned at checkout.
Dispelling the myth
Generic or “private label” products such as this Kroger brand butter are not manufactured by the grocer. Rather, they’re relabeled and repackaged under strict requirements and specifications for the reseller. Even as far back as last summer, we paid $3.79 for one pound of name brand butter. And you know what? The private label brand is just as yummy on toast as the name brand, despite their more colorful packaging. Understandably, there are times when you must shop at small independent grocers who can’t compete with the large chain store’s purchasing power. Regardless of package size or quantity, the independents must charge higher prices to survive.
A second refrigerator helps
From time to time, we take advantage of bulk item sales. Because we have a dual energy refrigerator, it has limited cubic space compared to residential electric only refrigerators. So, for us to take advantage of “sales”, we chose to purchase a second refrigerator/freezer. Our storage bay accommodated what we used to refer to as a “dorm size” refrigerator. On sale it was $99.00 from a big box store. We chose this style versus the top opening portable refrigerator/freezers as our storage bays were large enough and fit our lifestyle. We fill it with can and bottled beverages that take up excess space and alleviates unnecessary trips inside for one beverage. RVers who have a pull-out slide dedicated to a portable refrigerator/freezer are lucky. When summer barbequing really kicks in, all our condiments will be nearby. And it’s very handy when we take advantage of great sales.
We’re seeing our greenbacks shrink every visit to the grocery store. Are yours? What are your thoughts?
Read the edited article published March 8, 2016 here: Do you end up paying more for less? These hints might help – RV Travel
Kate Doherty has been writing for more than 30 years in technical and general media. In her previous business, she and her spouse dealt with special projects within the military/government sector. Recently she published Masquerade: A Logan Scott Novel under the pen name Bryan Alexander, a thriller now available in eBook and paperback on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Apple iBooks. It’s a page-turner!