City Grocery

The recession has made us all highly conscious of our shopping habits. Careless spending during a day, a week and in a month can add up to thousands over the course of a year. I always think of spending in terms of money I am currently working hard for. I link my spending to those hard yards I might do at the office. What is the point in working that hard just to whittle it away through being sloppy with the handling of money.

That’s not to say you shouldn’t have any fun! The point is the more care you take in the practical areas of life, such as grocery shopping or choosing the right bank, the more spare cash you’ll have in your pocket to have fun with! 

Here are my five hot tips on saving money on groceries. They are simple and very easy to do.

1. Avoid rash purchases by shopping online

By shopping online you can sort by price and you don’t get ‘dazzled’ by all the marketing hype and products screaming at you to be purchased. I reduced my weekly bill by $40 AUD each week by switching to shopping online.

2. Buy long-life milk and extra bread

By stocking up on these perishables you simply won’t do extra trips to the shops. I am sure you have popped down the shops to buy these items and come home with many extras you found on your travels. Before I started stocking up on these items my extra trips were costing around $30 each visit. (Yes, no willpower!). These trips really added up if I did them regularly.

3. Use a dedicated shopping list

OK. I am the queen of grocery shopping lists because I’ve written a book about it. But the simple shopping list is the best way to stay focused at all times. Get only what is on the list and nothing more. Shopping online really helps with this (see tip #1).

4. Avoid grocery shopping altogether and tretch out your leftovers

Every week before I embark on another shopping trip I go into the kitchen. I pull out every old item, frozen leftover meal and items left in the pantry. From all the items now sitting on my bench I create meals. I use a little calendar (you can pick a free one up weekly at my site) and I mark meals I will cook for the week on it. Most times I have done this I have avoided a whole week’s shopping! Saving me thousands each year on groceries.

5. Don’t get dazzled by special deals and be a strategic shopper

I have learned to question all deals and specials while shopping. Once I visited a supermarket and they had bread on special. The deal was two loaves for $4.80 AUD. Wow! I immediately wanted to grab this deal. Then I did a little calculation and realised that each loaf cost $2.30 AUD and that I would actually be paying more for my special deal. I also only needed one loaf so I was also being upsold more bread for more money! So always check that deals are actually deals, question your wants versus needs and then make a decision.

So there you have it. My super top five shopping tips! If you are interested in saving thousands on groceries each year and investing in more hot tips to make your life a whole lot easier check out my new book at www.tabletucker.com.au. Table Tucker is more than just a cookbook. It is a consumer guide and valuable resource changing the face of shopping, cooking, eating dinner and cleaning up. Essentially my readers are eating their way to more cash and a better world and loving it. Over a lifetime one Table Tucker reader can save $400,000 AUD! See how it all adds up? Amazing…