Posts Tagged ‘Grocery Shopping’

How a Price Book Can Save You Money

Saturday, May 23rd, 2009

I’ve worked on my Price Book over the past week entering my grocery data into the Open Office spreadsheet. It’s a respectable amount of data and over time should help me better identify where I need to make changes if any are needed, as I’m sure they will be. As I continue to make purchases or a price changes, the data will continue to grow. I want to be able to see some historical data so some items may be listed twice but with different values. I may also have an item listed twice due to a price difference for two stores. I have one store that doubles one like coupon per transaction in my area up to $1.00, and while I think that many of the items are overpriced at this grocery store, a doubled coupon will sometimes beat the price of another store.

I have a few items listed that don’t include pricing information yet. For these entries I either can’t locate a receipt for the item or haven’t purchased it in quite some time and can’t remember the pricing information. I still want to include it in the price book because it is something that I will purchase in the future. Having the incomplete entries on my price sheet for things that I already buy will allow me to fill in the price while grocery shopping.

The price book comes in handy when an item is available in different sizes. I can quickly compare the unit price instead of relying on the price of the item to determine which is the better price. An example is an entry for shredded cheese purchased at Aldi in a 12 oz. package and Kraft Cheddar Cheese purchased at Buy4Less in an 8 oz. package. The unit price for Kraft Cheddar Cheese is $.19 and the unit price for shredded cheese at Aldi is $.25.  While not a huge difference in unit price, it is a difference of $.48 for 8oz. Here’s where the price book helps stretch my budget. At the $.19 unit price I would pay $5.92 for four 8oz packages of cheese, but at the $.25 unit price I would pay $8.00 for that same amount of cheese. The $.19 unit price clearly wins out, but not breaking it down by unit price would make it difficult to determine the savings.

My price sheet is now in the front of my coupon binder, and over time I think it will allow me to reduce my grocery budget, or at least identify items that don’t vary in price. Instead of putting it into a plastic sleeve I’ve left it accessible so that I can write any notes that I need to. Check here for more on What is a Price Book.

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What is a Price Book?

Thursday, May 14th, 2009

What is a price book? A price book is an itemized list of grocery items that will allow you to easily identify the best price you’ve paid for an item in the past. Why a price book? I am starting a price book because I think it will help me determine areas where I can make further savings. I would like to see that the steps I’m taking are truly netting me the lowest price on an item at any particular time.

I also need a price book because I have a hard time remembering what I pay for items over the course of my shopping.  Sometimes this forgetfulness is due to infrequency of purchasing an item, and other times it’s just because I simply can’t remember all those prices in my head. I have a few items that I absolutely know the top price that I will pay for an item, like cereal for instance. I never buy generic cereal and I rarely pay more than a dollar for a box of cereal. I wait for a sale, combine the sale with my coupon and stock up while it is on sale. If it runs out during the sale, I get a rain check. The other thing a price book is good for is to determine if a sale price is actually a sale or if it is just the normal price.

A price book is really up to the individual to create since it is based on the items that they buy for their family. Since grocery prices vary by region and sometimes even in the same city, it only makes since that the price book is created by the individual that intends to use it. Price books are easy to start, and once you have an established price book, they are easy to maintain. To start your price book all you need are your last two or three grocery receipts which will give you the price. Then, hunt down the matching items in your cabinet or pantry to get the size of the product (unless of course you have that information memorized). With the price and the size you can determine the per unit price. The per unit price will be based on whatever makes sense for the item you are purchasing. If you are purchasing olive oil or a bottle of syrup it makes sense to use ounces. If you are purchasing sugar or flour it makes sense to use pounds for the per unit price. The per unit price will allow you to easily look at your price sheet and with the help of a calculator quickly determine if the sale price is truly a good price.

With a price book you will be able to identify quite easily if it is more economical to purchase an item in bulk at a club store or on sale at your local grocery store. Using a price book will also give you a clearer indication of a stores sales cycle and allow you to make your purchases during the lowest price possible.

I’m starting my price book in our Open Office program that is similar to Excel. This will allow me to put all my information in and easily add new items or categories, and then print the price sheet to keep in my coupon binder.  The great thing is that if the price doesn’t change there is nothing to do. The spreadsheet will allow the computer to calculate your per unit price. 

I will update my status on my endeavor to create a Price Book. Posting here will certainly give me motivation to get it started and finish it. 

On a side note, I’ve been searching for a coupon binder that zips. I can only imagine what I would feel like if my coupons went flying through the air. I finally found one at Staples a few nights ago. I went just to get a general price on the binders and after browsing the limited selection felt that the prices were a little steep. Prices varied from around $15 all the way up to $30ish. I had  passed a clearance rack on the way to the binders and thought I would give it a glance to see if they had any on clearance. Lo and behold a purple zipper binder (not my first color choice) was on clearance for $12 something. I thought I had better grab that while I had the chance. After I corralled the kids and finally made it to the register I was in total shock because the binder rang up at $2.50. I felt like I was stealing it. It was great! I further inspected the binder when I got home thinking there must be something wrong with it for the $2.50 price, but it’s perfect.

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Posted in Coupons, Grocery Shopping | 3 Comments »

Why Do We Eat at Home Instead of Restaurants?

Thursday, May 7th, 2009

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When my husband and I got married, we made the decision that we wanted to eat dinners as a family. We felt that our society was moving away from the type of living that both of us experienced growing up. We are both old enough (35 and 37) to remember the days before cable TV, the internet, and cell phones. Our families ate dinner at a table together and talked. We did not go to restaurants several nights a week. Now that our daughters are almost 13, they don’t talk to us as much as they did before. Eating at the dinner table is our window to their world. It’s also an opportunity to pray with them on a daily basis and to teach our son manners. This is our time to turn the TV off and talk.  

With this philosophy in mind, our grocery shopping trips are designed to feed our family for two weeks at a time. We buy enough meat for approximately 10-12 meals and usually anticipate eating a few meals without meat (i.e. egg sandwiches, pasta with vegetables, etc.). We generally spend $400.00 per month or less on groceries. We feed a family of 5 on this money. Therefore, we have to buy big multi-packs of chicken, pork, bison or whatever meat we’re eating. We then separate them and freeze the meat in portions designed for single meals.  We eat out for dinner once every two week period and that usually runs between $40.00-$50.00 depending on where we decide to eat and whether or not there is a Kids’ Menu. Since we do not eat at a restaurant very often, it is more of an event for the kids and we usually pick a restaurant that is locally owned.  Our philosophy is that we want to be a strong family and eating together gives us the best chance.

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What Exactly is ALDI?

Monday, May 4th, 2009

 

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I have received a number of emails asking about the ALDI stores. Many questions have been asked and it became apparent to me that ALDI is not in every state in America. I am going to use this post to answer these questions and explain the ALDI concept.

Where is ALDI?

Although ALDI is based in Germany, ALDI is currently in 29 states and has 1,000 stores in America. ALDI is huge in Germany and across Europe where consumers are much more likely to buy private label or “generic” brands of most grocery items. Many Americans haven’t caught on to the private label concept. Private label brands comprise over 50% of sales in Europe and it is well known that private label brands have a high quality. Americans are slow to catch on. When Con Agra’s Peter Pan brand of peanut butter was pulled from the shelves due to recall, it was no coincidence that Wal-Mart’s brand was also pulled. 

What is ALDI?

The company started with a concept similar to that of Wal-Mart. They wanted to offer low priced goods all the time without a lot of frills. The guys that started ALDI are no-nonsense. Many of the business practices from their German stores are used in America. These practices include: turnstiles that guide customers out the door after shopping, charging for bags, allowing customers to bring their own bags or boxes, charging a coin deposit to use a cart (to encourage the return of carts), “bankers hours,” the low price policy, and no acceptance of coupons. The stores in America will accept cash, certain debit cards, and Discover cards. Visa and Mastercard are not accepted unless they are debit cards and part of ALDI’s list of accepted networks.

What is unique about ALDI?

Their stores contain mostly private label or “generic” goods that in most cases are identical to the name brands that are available. Some gourmet or specialty items from Germany are also sold under various ALDI brand names. Our local stores have carried prosciutto, chicken sausage, and various other items that cannot be found at other discount grocery stores. The stores are not decorated. Pallets of their products are stacked beside each other with most of these products being displayed in their own boxes.

The checkers are also very fast. The staff at the stores generally consists of a manager, a checker, and one other person stocking items. No assistance is provided to customers beyond answering questions. This is not the place to go if you want to chat it up with a clerk or require someone to carry your groceries to the car. If you are slow, you may want to consider going during non-peak hours.

How I use ALDI

I use ALDI for most canned goods, many seasonings, sugar, milk, butter, cheese, sausage, rice, certain pastas, breads, produce, soups, tortillas, and bread. We don’t shop for everything at ALDI. Some of their private label items are great and some are not. Most of their private label brands are just as good as the name brands. Their canned fruit is excellent and their milk is produced by the same people that make the name brand milk (I saw the name brand truck delivering it to the store!). Their private label version of cheese crackers is not an acceptable substitute for Cheez-Its. We love to eat Cheez-Its and those are so good that a generic is just not an acceptable substitute. I like their canned black beans. We occasionally buy some of their unique and seasonal items like chicken sausage, prosciutto, chorizo, Mexican cheese, and others. Their stores are known to make special purchases on name brands and they keep a big display of those boxes as well. I sometimes find things I like on display there. If you live in one of the 29 states that has an ALDI in America, give it a try and be open minded. If saving money is important to you and you are willing to put forth some effort, you will be rewarded with a lot of savings. Another thing I like about the ALDI store is that I can keep track of our 3 year old son in there. The stores are small enough that he can walk around and I can keep my eye on him.

I do not purchase meat, canned tuna, or cleaning supplies at ALDI. I like their frozen Salmon filets and their frozen stir fry vegetable mix. I encourage you to try ALDI if you need to save money on groceries. When you shop there the savings will pile up item by item. You will save approximately 20%-30% over other grocery stores. We end up using our savings to subsidize either a trip to a restaurant or a high end meat or fish market purchase.

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Meals for less than $5.00: Scrambled Eggs, Sausage & Wheat Toast

Thursday, April 9th, 2009

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Breakfast for the lunch or dinner meal is fairly popular in America.  Just look at the proliferation of IHOPs and other breakfast restaurants in America.  We cook this meal about once a month for fun.  The kids love it, it’s convenient and tasty as well.  My husband’s mother cooked this meal for him growing up so he especially enjoys it.  Our family gets fresh eggs from my mother.  She has chickens that roam free and she supplies us with fresh eggs.  Please note that we used $1.24 for the cost of a dozen eggs because that is the price we would find at our local grocery store.  We made this meal for under $5.00 and everybody had plenty to eat. 

12 eggs from ALDI ($1.24)

6 slices of whole grain wheat bread ($0.25)

1 package of link sausage from ALDI ($1.99)

3 slices Kraft American Cheese ($0.50)

1 teaspoon Goya Adobo with Cumin seasoning ($0.10)

1 teaspoon dried parsley ($0.10)

TOTAL: $4.18

NOTE: We use Goya Adobo seasonings in place of salt in a lot of our cooking. This a Spanish brand of seasoning that is similar to garlic salt but much better for cooking.  It is granulated garlic, salt, and a variety of herbs or pepper, depending on the variety you purchase.  We also purchase our loaves of bread at a “Day Old” bread store and usually can get high quality brands there such as Orowheat.

Meals for less than $5.00 is part of Kerri’s series on how to feed a family of 5

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Grocery Shopping: Think outside the box

Monday, April 6th, 2009

grocery-bagThink outside the box when you do your grocery shopping to maximize your savings. Normally when we think about grocery shopping one or two major stores come to mind. Often there are other alternatives for grocery shopping that can be just as rewarding as shopping at your regular grocery store. The key is to find those other sources for grocery shopping but only purchase those items that are a bargain. I have access to five major grocery stores and two major drug stores where I purchase our groceries and my shopping varies at those stores based on what is on sale for a particular week.

Shop the loss leaders: loss leaders are those items that are priced at rock bottom prices and are used to lure you into the store in hopes that while you are there you will purchase other items. I have one grocery store that is so overpriced that I can only purchase their loss leaders and a few other items with a coupon to be able to shop there. When I initially started shopping the loss leaders at this overpriced store I felt guilty since their expectation is that I would also purchase other items that would make up for their loss leader items. I no longer feel guilty since I’m not looking out for the stores bottom line but mine and I faithfully shop their loss leaders to stock my pantry if the price is right.

Purchase items on sale with coupons: I know this is common sense but before I started really using coupons I would actually purchase items at regular price. Sometimes I had a coupon for the item and sometimes I didn’t. I only shopped at one store (up until about 3 years ago) and since an item only goes on sale occasionally I would usually make my purchases when things that I needed were not on sale. To maximize savings wait until your item goes on sale whether it is at your regular store or at another store that you shop at infrequently and use a coupon to really increase savings.

Use a shopping list and create a menu based on items that are on sale: A shopping list will help you stay on track with your budget. Splurging every once in a while is fine, but those items really add up fast. We have perpetual items in our pantry, freezer, and refrigerator that allow us to put a meal together out of a few basic things that we always keep stocked. As we use our groceries we add them back to our shopping list if we run out of a something.  One of the easiest ways to plan a menu and stay on budget is to create your menu based on items that are on sale that week. Plan your menus based on the season since produce that is in season is usually going to be more economical than something that isn’t in season.

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Meals for less than $10.00: Mediterranean Spaghetti & Spinach Feta Salad

Thursday, April 2nd, 2009

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For those who are reading my series on Meals for less than $10.00, I realize it may be easy to think that the only thing that can be prepared for 5 people for so little would be box dinners, chicken thighs and cans of green beans, casseroles, or soups. There is so much more possible!  We prepared this excellent meal for less than $10.00.  It was tasty, nutritious, and we had leftovers.  

When our family eats at restaurants, we like to eat at local places rather than chains. We enjoy a local Mediterranean restaurant, an Italian place, and of course all of the various Spanish restaurants. We also get ideas from food blogs and cookbooks.  My husband got the idea for the Spinach Feta Salad from a Super Bowl party at a longtime friend’s house a few months ago and the spaghetti recipe was improvised with ingredients we already had stored. We made a Mediterranean meatball recipe not too long ago from Cooks.com and part of the idea came from that one.  

  • 1 lb. tube Honeysuckle White 93/7 ground turkey ($1.93)
  • 1/2 small white onion ($0.20)
  • 1 cup curly parsley ($0.30)
  • 2 cloves garlic ($0.10)
  • 1 teaspoon salt ($0.05)
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper ($0.10)
  • 2 tablespoons regular olive oil ($0.50)
  • 1 teaspoon Oregano ($0.25)
  • 1 teaspoon dried Thyme leaves ($0.40)
  • 1 can diced tomatoes ($0.49)
  • 1 lb thin spaghetti ($0.88)
  • 1/2 bag fresh spinach ($1.67)      
  • 1/2 of 4 oz. package of Feta cheese crumbles ($.98)
  • 4 servings Italian dressing ($0.80) 
  • 5 servings of Parmesan cheese ($1.00)

TOTAL: $9.65

Recipe:  

Brown the ground turkey with the seasonings on medium high heat with the olive oil.  Add the parsley and onions along with the garlic.  Add the tomatoes after the onions are translucent.  Simmer this thick sauce on low and covered while the spaghetti is cooking to al dente (firm but still tender).  Assemble spinach salad on the plate.  Enjoy!    

 

NOTE: We used private label or store brand items with exception of the fresh spinach and the dried Thyme leaves.  We shop sales!  All amounts are estimated honestly and when in doubt I round up slightly.  Most items are verified using receipts.  I don’t use sales tax because many states do not tax groceries.  We are feeding my husband, 12 year old twin girls, a 3 year old boy, and myself.  We do not eat beef, but you could likely substitute one pound of ground beef here. However, it would push the recipe above $10.00 considerably.   


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Aldi Grocery Store: Shopping at Aldi

Friday, March 27th, 2009

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I have nothing but good things to say about shopping at Aldi.  A first glance at your local Aldi grocery store doesn’t look like much.   In fact, I drove past our local Aldi many times before realizing it was a grocery store.  Only after friends and family began telling us about Aldi did we venture over to check it out.  We were warned in advance of the oddities we would encounter and came prepared.

When we started shopping at Aldi we only tried a few things wanting to check the quality.  I’ve found that most of the products are either of the same quality or better than name brand.  There are items that I like to purchase name brand or that Aldi does not have available, but we now purchase at least sixty percent of our groceries at Aldi.  Purchasing  Aldi products allows us to save at least 25% on our grocery budget for most staple products that we purchase.

The first oddity about about shopping at Aldi is that you have to rent a shopping cart for a quarter.  Rest assured that the quarter is returned once you return the shopping cart.  Putting the responsibility on the consumer to return the cart allows Aldi to keep costs down by not having an employee collect carts in the parking lot.  

Upon entering the store, you are greeted with wide well lit aisles. Merchandise is stacked on either side of the aisle on crates in their original shipping boxes. Product prices are either above the item on a price board that runs the length of the aisle or directly in front of the merchandise and reminds me a little of Sam’s Club.  The majority of items sold at Aldi are their own store brand sold exclusively at Aldi.  Aldi has just about everything that can be found at your local grocery store only on a smaller scale.     

The other odd thing about shopping at Aldi is that you will need to provide your own shopping bags.  They have paper bags ($.05 each) and plastic bags ($.10 each) available for purchase if you didn’t bring bags with you.  Aldi accepts cash, debit cards, and the Discover card as forms of payment.  Checking out is actually pretty quick since the cashier doesn’t have to bag your groceries.  Your purchased items are moved from the conveyor belt to your basket where you can then push your cart to a counter available for you to bag your own groceries.   

Once you get past the fact that you have to pay for your shopping cart, bring your own bags (or pay for theirs), use an acceptable form of payment, bag your own groceries, and put your shopping cart back at the cart return for your quarter it should turn out to be a great shopping trip.

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