| Save at the Checkout
Have you checked how much money you spend on junk food, chips, chockies, or other little treats you buy whilst shopping? It can really add up over the year in money and kilos, too. Or perhaps you are shopping at the wrong time? For instance, if you shop on an empty stomach, you will more than likely buy more food than you need at the time. Or if you shop on a day that you discover perishable items will be marked down, you can buy in bulk, throw them in the freezer and save! Shopping with the kids also leads to buying treats just to keep the gang happy. However, with many supermarkets open to midnight in the big cities, it works a treat to shop in the evening without the stress of the kids, and after dinner when all those delicious foods you wanted when you where hungry are less enticing. Not only that, but if you go straight after dinner, you will not only avoid peak times at the supermarket, you can also leave the dishes for dad and or the kids. The best way to save money at the supermarket is to buy only what you need. Basic food items like milk, cheese, and bread are essential needs. That bottle of expensive olives, just because it is reduced, is not. Buying things simply because they are on special, or because you like what you see, is impulse buying. Impulse buying, like gambling, is an addiction, and one of the quickest ways to increase unnecessary food expenditure. Even the small treats can add up alarmingly. If you buy one small $1.20 treat on an average per week, it will cost $64.20 in a year. That's real money! The problem is that even when you are aware of the tricks (most of which are not obvious), it is sometimes still difficult to separate a genuine need from a simple desire for that item. To help refrain from impulse shopping, try to reduce the chances of encountering a situation that may motivate you to make an eventually unwanted purchase. One way to help in the supermarket is to always shop with a checklist of the items you need and stick to it. The most fundamental way to save when shopping for groceries is to buy only what you need. Walking into a shop with a vague idea of what you want is asking for trouble. It is the quickest way to fall victim to the saver's worst enemy, impulse buying.
Article supplied by Sonia Williams of http://www.showmummythemoney.com.au/. We show modern day mums how they can make the most of their purchases, how they can manage and grow their money, as well as leverage and protect the assets they have accumulated.
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