Are You Stocked Up Yet? Time Is Running Out, page 2

reply to post by KaginD

Yes, maybe everyone knows this, but a great gas-saving and time-saving effort is to check the weekly specials on all of the grocery chains in your area. Virtually all of them have their weekly circulars on-line, and by checking each one, finding the lowest prices, AND the loss-leaders(those items that are sold below their cost to try to get you into their store), you can save gas, time and a lot of money. About 80% of all food sold goes on special at some time or another. Get to know what the special price is, and wait for it to be advertised. If you are willing to adjust what you buy and eat, you can literally buy ALL of your groceries on special.

Check the Sunday newspapers for coupon circulars. Here's a tip on when they are best and what they are:
1st Sunday of the month- Proctor and Gamble coupon inserts
3rd Sunday of the month- Unilever coupon inserts
Early fall- soups, cheese

Supermarket sales:
Week prior to Labor Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July- huge ,meat sales- chopmeat, steaks, hotdogs
Week prior to New Years- pork loins
prior to Thanksgiving- Turkeys as low as 19cents a pound

Other shopping tips: Don't assume that stores like Wal Mart, Sam's Club or Costco "Always ahve low prices" like they claim.
In fact, Supermarket specials will almost ALWAYS beat their prices.
Furthermore, most supermarkets have a policy that if you are charged more than the shelf-label price, you either get that item for free, or get money, back. Wal Mart does NOT have that policy anymore.
If you insist on shopping at Wal Mart, be aware that MANY times the price that is rung up on the register is MORE than the shelf label.
In addition, Wal Mart will rarely carry all brands of a product, frequently going with one of the highest price brands, and then place their generic product next to it. Be aware that their generic product is usually more expensive than the cheaper brand names of that product.

Wal Mart supposedly has an automated reorder system, but it is in shambles in many locations. I don't have to tell you that. Take a list of items you go to tWal Mart to get, and I'll bet a good many of them are out of stock. What do you do? Buy the more expensive item that they have?

Anyway, I didn't mean for this to be a bash Wal Mart post, but it bothers me to see large families that have a tight budget shopping there and spending much more than if they had gone to other stores and bought the specials.

Anyway, hope this helps.