Buying things not on sale- A Friday Discussion

My friend Emily sent me this question I would like to discuss today.

"What do you do for regular grocery items that you need each week that don't match up with coupons or any sales?"

Another great question! And let me start answering by saying it is a process. A lot off people I talk to seem to think they are going to magically shrink their grocery budget by $300 in one month, and everything they are going to get from that point on will be on sale right when they need it. This is actually unrealistic, as Emily, case in point, is asking in the question. Is it possible eventually? You better believe it, but does it take time to build up your storage of rock bottom cheap things.

Price points are important to consider as we talk about this. For example about two years ago my price point- or the highest price I would buy cereal at was $2.50. Then I started finding it cheaper and cheaper so my price point went down. When it was on sale for $2.50 I knew I could get it for $2, so I wouldn't buy it until it was $2 or under. Then I started getting it for $1 a box using coupons, and so my price point went down further. Now my price point for cereal is .25-.50 with coupons. I don't buy cereal unless it's that cheap for me, but when I do see it that cheap, I stock up! (Hence the Post cereal sale at Albertsons this past week- I got 12 boxes in one trip and 6 in another. I won't need to buy cereal again for awhile, and I still had some from the last cereal sale a few months ago.)

That being said- did you notice how my price point didn't go from $2.50 to $.25 very fast? It took time for me to notice how cheap I could get cereal for, and time to stock up when it was super cheap on a sale. Stocking up on 18 boxes of cereal is also cheaper and easier when I get it for .25 a box, than $2.50 a box.

When I started coupon shopping at the grocery store, I used couponmom, which only had Smiths matchups for sales and coupons. That meant I didn't have a ton of variety of great sales, but it was good so I could start small, get the hang of using coupons, and then when I switched to pinching you pennies I knew the basics so it wasn't too overwelming to do a HUGE sale with a few different transactions and coupons with almost every item.

But now my price points are pretty low because over the past six months I have stocked up on items we use regularly that had five star prices, and usually they will go on sale again before I run out of the item.

For example when I saw I could get cream of mushroom and chicken soup for .29 each last month, I got 16 of them because we use this at least once a week in our cooking. That means I have a stockpile for about 4 months now on that item. Or we go through canned tomatoes in our house a lot, so in February they had a sale at Albertsons that made them .27 after coupons, I got as many as I had coupons for!

Now what does this have to do with when you want to buy something that isn't on sale? I have just been telling you things I got on sale! I'm saying that you go with your current budget and try to trim it down little by little. My goal this year was to trim my budget by $50 a month for three consecutive months. Start with small goals and work from there. You got your budget down to $350 a month- awesome- try to trim it to $320! This will help you start using things you have stored up as well, and help you learn you don't have to go to the store to make dinner, you can make it with things you have on hand. Because grocery trips just to buy one item you need for that dinner can add up as you realize more things you want, and if you do 3 of those $10 emergency trips a week, that's $30 on top of your regular grocery shopping!

And here's the big part, start making a list of items you realize you are having to buy a lot and that usually aren't on sale. Frozen vegetables, canned corn, diapers, whatever it is. Then be on the lookout for a 5 star price on these items, and try to buy as much as you can or 3 months worth if that's possible. Keep doing this for your entire pantry and you'll find that you'll slowly be adding to your amazing stockpile of food, and your money will start stretching farther. Also the next time you start running out of that item, 3 months later there will probably be a sale around that time or before then. (Sales usually go on 3 month cycles.)

Another trick to save money on items that aren't on sale is to not buy the item at all! Modify the recipe, or make a different dinner.

I also only shop for produce every two weeks rather than every week, and I usually only shop at one store for this. This really helps me cut costs as I can be more picky to wait for the best deals, and I save time because I only go twice a month, rather than weekly. Find places that sell more local produce. They usually are better deals because they don't have to get it shipped as far, and it's more fresh for you, double bonus! Here in Utah the best place for produce prices are Reams and our Buy Low Market for those very reasons!

Sometimes you can't do without something for very long though, like eggs, or diapers. In this case you are going to want to buy the bare minimum of that item at it's higher price, and then cross your fingers that you can find a better price for it. Or go to a warehouse like Costco or Sams Club to address some of those needs for the time being, so you don't keep running out, and you can get a decent enough deal there. But even if a better deal doesn't come along for a long time just keep buying the bare minimum of it, and then when a fantastic sale hits, get 3 months worth of it at that time. You need to take care of your family's needs, that's the highest priority! And that's why I say just start small on trimming your budget here and there, it will take time for you to get the things stockpiled that you usually use, but you'll get there!

Good luck, it's a process storing up for your family, and shopping sales with coupons but you'll be so glad you did in the end. You'll start spending less overall on your budget, and if you needed to rely solely on your stockpile at one point, it wouldn't be too big a switch for your family at that point, because it's mainly things you use regularly.