Get A Supermarket Saving Hit

People will say “What if I don’t have the time … I don’t have the time”. The answer is to make the time. The rewards will make it worth it.

You could get a quick hit from these supermarket tips:

· Resist the impulse buys in the middle aisle or at the till – these are prime positions for picking off our hard earned cash.

· Have a list and stick to it. The regular items that we buy are not the easiest to reach in the supermarket. We usually have to go past a lot of tempting items. Resist the urge. These items are like snipers lying in wait for us, ready to pick off our hard earned money.

· Look high and low on the shelves – usually items at eye level is the most profitable so avoid them.

· Don’t fall for bright colours, discount deals on things we don’t really need or loaded words like “discount” or “sale”.

· Steer the trolley ruthlessly and ask yourself if you really need the items that you are putting into it.

· Drop a level in branding and you’ll be surprised of the savings that you can make (typically 30%) – this is called ‘Downshifting’:

· Downshift cleaning and toiletries products too

· Become aware of and make use of coupons – they can save you E100’s

· Don’t be sucked in by special offers – they can sometimes be misleading

· Consider using cashback cards – you are sharing your shopping data but you can get further discount

· Think before you Buy One Get One Free (BOGOF) as the ‘free’ item might be unusable by the time you use it

· Use your loyalty points and make sure that you use all of the balance on gift cards

· Time the shopping trip to get the most and best yellow sticker discounts

· Consider eating less meat. For example, Tesco’s Lamb mince is E4.25 for 500g of lamb. Tesco vegetarian mince is E1.75 for 454g.

· Use supermarket loyalty schemes to get further discounts

· Remember that food is okay to consume after its Best Before Date. It’s the Use By date that you need to take heed of. Many people throw out food because the Best Before date has expired.

· If you are shopping online, walk out after you have put your goods in the basket. Frequently the retailer will email you with a discount code to entice you back into the store to complete your purchase.

· Write out a meal plan for the week and calculate what you need and this goes on the list that you stick to.

· Make meals from the leftovers. There are great sites like Supercook and BigOven that help in this regard.

· Cook in bulk and freeze/chill. For example, a large mince might easily provide for two sittings so use the Tupperware to store what is left over. This saves time and money as you are only reheating the meal.

· Local market stalls represent great value for fruit and vegetables and you can typically save upwards of 35% this way.

There are definitely some options that surprised me. However, for some of these options, there is a large cost in buying the item.

Layering

This nearly feels like the old fashioned advice given by my parents. But it works. Outdoor pursuits retailers recommend layering and the same principle will follow through to any of us. There are basically three layers:

The Baselayer

This locks in the body heat

Thermal longsleeved top

Thermal leggings

Cost E4-6

The Midlayer

Locks in body heat

Traps any heat coming out of the Baselayer

Fleece jumper

Cost E5-8

The Outerlayer

Additional layer of warmth

Padded jacket

Jumper

Cost E13-15

Eat Regularly and At Least One Hot Meal Per Day

The NHS advises that if we eat regularly and have at least one hot meal per day, this will help us to stay warm.

If you are struggling to afford food, there may be an initiative run by the local council. There is also the option of a food bank. In most towns, there is at least one food bank. The food bank is not a long term option but it might help as an immediate fix.

Use Slippers

If your feet are cold, it is difficult for the rest of you to stay warm. Covered slippers with a hard waterproof sole will keep the feet warm and dry. Wet socks cause cold feet.

Cost E4-8

Use Thermal Socks and Change Them Throughout the Day

Thermal socks are designed to keep people’s feet warm outdoors so they will help the person to keep warm feet indoors. Change the socks once throughout the day as the feet sweat, the socks absorb the sweat and cool the feet down.

Put Your Feet Up

Your feet will cool with the contact that they make with the floor which is the coldest part of the home.

Walk Around

This gentle exercise can raise the heart rate a bit and keep you war. Try to do this one per hour. Not too strenuous as you will sweat and this cools you down.

Get a Money Makeover

MoneySavingExpert have a Money Makeover tool that claims to potentially save you E1000’s. The link for the Money Makeover is https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/money-help/ . There’ll be a review of that in the coming weeks.