How to save a fortune by shopping smarter

Supermarkets use dirty tricks to make you buy more stuff.

supermarket ethics say "we need to sell more stuff" - selling stuff is what the super market exists to do. No mater how much they claim to be about the little guy, or caring for the housewife or being all about value the bottom line is that they do this to sell stuff. Selling stuff to you is the whole plan.

This article is about reducing the cost of shopping by not only becoming wise to the sales tricks of Supermarkets but by using them, when you have to, to greater personal effect.

In part reducing the cost of shopping is going to be part of creating a positive personal environmental impact insofar as reduced consumerism (the life-style of consuming things) will lead to reduced costs. What we are searching for is a form of sustainability in our own lifestyle.

That sustainability can only come when we are aware of the mindset big chain stores are keen to create for their own benefit and not for yours.

1. Consider the trade off between quality and quanitity. As Stubsy points out at financesandmoney.com [...] at Tesco right now, Andrex 4 roll, plain white, bog standard – pun intended – loo paper is £2.25 but Tesco’s value loo roll 4 pack is 43p! So in order for a packet of Andrex to be more efficient each pack of four would have to last 5.2 times longer. In my experience Tesco loo roll lasts a third of the time of better rolls. So while Tesco Value roll is cheaper and not so good you can afford to buy three times as many for less and so come out on top. (Tesco is the big UK Supermarket for low prices)
2. Have a big lunch before you shop. If you shop hungry those impulses to buy are much stronger and those chocolate bars at the checkout are going to look very yummy and perfect for a post shopping snack.The managers put those there because that is where they sell best as hungry tired shoppers go to pay for their goods. You and your waste line don't need the sweets.
3. Ignore your nose - go when not hungry. This is real the same point as have a big lunch - hunger is a powerful selling tool and big chains are good at making it worse. Big supermarkets put bakeries and other cooked food areas in to make you feel hungry. Hungry people buy more food. Pay no attention to the smell.
4. Make a list and stick to it. Supermarkets are very good at placing content so that you want to buy it. Everything in the shop is about selling you more stuff. By sticking to a list you can reduce the impact of the impulse to purchase extra things. That tasty looking two-for-one offer is false economy designed to make you make extra purchases.
5. Walk to the back of the shop first. A modern supermarket is laid out in such a way as to get the maximum sale from you. First you hit the fresh stuff and the tinned is at the back. After all that you must then walk to the front of the store to pay. Skip a whole passage of temptation and buy nothing that until you are at the back. When finished you will be at the front of the store and ready to pay.
6. Beware of missed deals. Many times stores will put a special on bigger sized units but not on the smaller. For example it is not uncommon for a litre of Bells Scotch Whisky to be priced lower than the 75cl bottle at Tesco stores. When I say less I mean that it is actually a lower price for a bigger bottle. This happens a lot because special offers are not worked out on the shop floor.
7. Share the shopping load. Bulk purchases can save you money but sometimes ten tins of beans is too much. By sharing the shopping load with otehrs you can share the saving of the bulk purchase too. This saves everyone money.
8. Learn to spot free food. Did you know that on more than one occasion I have walked out of a Tesco richer than I went in? The magic discount works when foods on special (50% off, BOGOF, 80p off, etc) are reduced to sell. The "50% discount" on a £2 item is actually a £1 refund at the checkout. You look at the receipt you get and you will see "multibuy saving -0.83" or similar. When food, especially fresh vegetables are reduced that refund is often still active so when you purchase you actually are being given the item for free plus free money.
9. Spot Errors with the Promotion. Famous examples are the man who got his local Tesco to give him all of their bananas (a full pallet of the things) buy demanding the club card points as cash; or the "two pound off offer" that coincided with the one pound trial price. Sometimes what seemed like a good idea at the time can, for sharp eye shoppers by a freeby waiting to be discovered.
10. Ignore the front row. Older stock is placed a the front to stop the store being left with out of date stuff. The items at the back are the freshest and will last longer. By purchasing these instead you will make you food last longer and be less ready to go off.

What tricks have you learned over the years?

5 Tips for Looking Good on a Budget

With the economy on the slide, and prices going up, beauty products may seem like an unnecessary expense. However, don’t worry that you have to ditch them altogether - perish the thought! - there are plenty of cost effective ways to look good without spending a fortune. Here are my top five, but stay tuned for more.

1) Don’t feel pressured into buying expensive brands of moisturiser in the belief that they will make you look twenty years younger, the chances are they won’t. Cheaper, own brand makes may not look as good, but will be just as effective. You could even try baby lotion which has the advantage of being formulated for delicate skin, so is less likely to cause a adverse reaction.

2) That old tip about cucumber slices as eye compresses actually works. And there are numerous other beauty treatments that can be made using products found in your kitchen. Banana makes a good face-pack, and oatmeal a great exfoliant. A quick search of your favourite search engine will turn up plenty of sites featuring recipes for home-made beauty products.

3) Vaseline may have a slightly unsavoury reputation, but it should be a permanent fixture in your make-up kit. Use it to shape eyebrows, mix it with lipstick to create lipgloss, or dab on as a night cream. Buy the version made for babies, if you find the regular stuff too greasy.

4) Shaving gels have become popular in recent years, which is no surprise, because lathering up with soap and water frequently lead to dry skin. However, hair conditioner makes a much cheaper alternative, and leaves your skin feeling silky smooth.

5) Back to the baby products - you could spend a tidy sum on a make-up removal cream or pads, or you could use wet wipes, which are just as effective, but kinder on the skin.