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3 Tips To Help You Save You Save Bucks at the Shops

Living on less can be challenging. Shopping with less is always going to be difficult especially when the prices of everything are progressively going up. So, if you can’t control the prices what can you do to save some bucks when you go to the shops?

‘shop for items at the right shop and avoid any stores that are overpriced’

An obvious choice is to shop for items at the right shop and avoid any stores that are overpriced. This means getting to know what things cost and where you can get them for the best rate. Now, it is important to also realise that driving around a lot from shop to shop and paying for extra parking and petrol to save yourself R10 on some chicken pieces may not actually be worth it in time and transport costs so you should be reasonable in this regard. Here are 3 simple tips that may help you to shop better:

Know How Much you are Going to Spend Today

if you are under debt review then you will have discussed with your Debt Counsellor how much you need to cover your groceries and household items each month. While they may have suggested a slightly different figure, you will have a figure to work with. You need to strive to stick to that figure or even beat it each month. The key is knowing that if you are heading to the shops today ‘this‘ is exactly how much you have to spend.

Make a List

It sounds like how your granny used to shop but it is a highly effective way of forcing you to consider in advance what it is you need and what you are going to be preparing to eat over the next few days or weeks. It also cuts down on impulse buying which often shoots one over budget. The key then is to stick to the list as much as possible. Making a list also makes it possible for you to head to the shops less.

Shop Less

If you are like most people then every time you are at the shops you see an item that you had not planned on buying but now realise that you want. You scoop it up and add it to your basket. It may be a Kit Kat or a tin of something. Either way, you had not budgeted for it, did not have it on your list and are now going to spend money on it. Heading to the shops many times during a month or week gives you multiple opportunities to give in to these impulse buys. The more often you have the chance the more you will have spent by the time the end of the month rolls around. Add up all those small impulse buys and you may be horrified at what they add up to. So, consider doing one or perhaps 4 shopping trips in a month rather than popping past the shop every day to grab items.

‘Rather than stumble blindly around the shop throwing things into a trolley plan ahead’

There are other ways to save as well obviously such as switching from the brand you used to use to a more affordable brand or trying an alternative product entirely but these 3 simple steps force you to plan your shopping better. Rather than stumble blindly around the shop throwing things into a trolley plan ahead for the week or even better the month and get only the items that you really need (and yes, that can include some popcorn and chips for when you watch TV as long as you budget for it). View each trip to the shop as a type of competition where the shop tries to get you to spend more than you plan and you try beat them at their own game. Plan ahead and stay within your budget.