What Your Grocery Store Won't Tell You

[MA-Caver]

Economy bad now... must... save... money.
Not easy to do when stores are trying to keep their profit margins up.
http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/106415/What-Your-Supermarket-Won't-Tell-You

One example:

3. “We jack up prices where you’re least likely to notice.”
When times are tough, super-markets know vigilant shoppers notice even tiny changes in the price of foods like milk, cereal, bread and cheese. In fact, there are about 500 such products, and stores raise prices on these staples at their own peril.
So how do markets deal with rising food costs? They tinker with the price of the roughly 45,000 items people don’t buy regularly enough to have a fixed idea of their cost—tacking on 3 to 4 percent to specialty products like, say, gourmet pasta sauce or fresh-squeezed juices, without consumers noticing. “There’s an opportunity to make some margin back on those items,” says Jim Hertel, managing partner of Willard Bishop, a consultant for the industry.
But don’t expect the savings to be passed on to you when costs come down. Many manufacturers lock in prices well in advance, and they often hold off on bringing prices back down to make up for the resulting losses, says Howard. One way to be sure you’re getting the best deal when prices drop: Stick to basics. Products like coffee and meat are likely “to reflect their underlying costs more quickly than most other foods,” Howard says.

Oh and those loyalty cards... heh... you really didn't think they were there to say "thanks for shopping with us" did you?

Read up and learn how to save money...
Biggest thing... never shop while you're hungry. Eat a full meal then go shopping. You'd be surprised at the difference.

 

[GBlues]

Yep, me an my wife noticed that, awhile back. We spent way more on food when we were hungry than when we had full bellies. Funny how that works. THe brain says, " Food!", and all of a sudden things that you really don't need all of a sudden look really good, and you need them. LOL! Where as when you have a full a belly you won't buy what you don't need cause you simply don't need it.

I like the saver cards myself. I shop at safeway for my groceries. I prefer them over wal-mart, and have noticed that the big "W" isn't all that cheaper, and I feel that the quality is better there. Customer service is way better, and I never get stopped at the door and asked to see my reciept. Plus for every $100 bucks that I spend on groceries and use my savers card, I get .10 cents a gallon off on fuel purchases. DOesn't sound like much, but I've gotten it as hi as .50 cents. That seriously helped out not that long ago. When gas was $2.50 a gallon, at least that day I only paid $2.00 bucks you know.:asian:

 

[Carol]

Grocery shopping? :idunno:

Oh, that's what people did before there was Peapod Home Delivery :lol2:

 

[Aefibird]

I've found the best thing for me to do is make a list of all the meals I'll need for a week, see what I've got available in the cupboard already and think of meals I can make with what I've already got. Then I work out how many other dinners I will need to make and write a shopping list accordingly.

Then when I go to the supermarket I STICK to what is on the list. That way I don't end up coming home with things I already have in the cupboard/freexer/fridge etc. Plus, if I stick to what I've written on the list I don't end up buying crap I don't actually need, such as biscuits.

Since I've been taking a shopping list with me to the supermarket I've saved a good £10-£15 a week, maybe even more just by not buying items I already had or by not buying things I don't REALLY need to make meals with.

Also, shopping when you're hungry sucks and does make you want to buy more.

Not taking anyone with you also means you're likely to spend less as you've not god anyone distracting you or persuading you to get things you don't really need.

 

[theletch1]

When I was in the military the AFRTS would run commercials to help you budget your money. One of the commercials suggested eating something before going grocery shopping. It DOES work. I've always followed that advice.

 

[JadecloudAlchemist]

My wife works in a grocery store. In fact she changes the tags.

She notices that alot of what is advertised in the sales ad really is not on sale. But with a big AS ADVERTISED sticker over the regular price people buy it. I buy my groceries at Target. They were selling Poptarts for 0.41 and bags of cereal for a $1. I get Edamamae for $2 and at the grocery store it cost $4. Also alot of the buy one get one free deals is you really paying full price so its the same as those 2 for $5 just worded different.

Alot of tricks used by the Grocery store from the dim lighting to the soft boring music it is all a ploy to get you to buy.

 

[Tez3]

One I think is funny is having the bakery at the back of the shop then pumping the smell of fresh baked bread though the air conditioning in the shop so you start feeling hungry as you walk around the shop.
We have two chains of German supermarkets here that are very cheap and it seems people are shopping there more now than at the big named ones.

 

[exile]

When I was in the military the AFRTS would run commercials to help you budget your money. One of the commercials suggested eating something before going grocery shopping. It DOES work. I've always followed that advice.

The funny thing is, it works the opposite with beer. If Daphne and I go shopping in the evening and I've had a particularly nice bottle of something really hoppy, it makes me determined to buy five or six more on our trip, just so we don't run out... funny, that!

 

[ArmorOfGod]

And regarding those loyalty cards, I have seen two stories of court cases where the person's Food Lion (I believe it was) buying records were pulled from Food Lion and used as evidence in court. Some guy had been cheating on his wife, who had her tubes tied years back, and he had been buying condoms, which showed up because of his loyalty card.
Big brother is watching.

AoG

 

[MA-Caver]

My wife works in a grocery store. In fact she changes the tags.

She notices that alot of what is advertised in the sales ad really is not on sale. But with a big AS ADVERTISED sticker over the regular price people buy it. I buy my groceries at Target. They were selling Poptarts for 0.41 and bags of cereal for a $1. I get Edamamae for $2 and at the grocery store it cost $4. Also alot of the buy one get one free deals is you really paying full price so its the same as those 2 for $5 just worded different.

Alot of tricks used by the Grocery store from the dim lighting to the soft boring music it is all a ploy to get you to buy.

Yep and popular items are at eye level (to save your neck) and store brands (which are usually packaged plain) are placed right next to big name brands (flashy packages) and you end up buying the name-brand because of the unattractive/unappealing/unappetizing store brand looks like you'd regret buying/eating it no matter how much cheaper it was than the name brand.
Here's a little thing to do... on any item grab the store brand and national name brand and go to the ingredients list... follow it side by side. You'd be surprised, also check see where both are manufactured as that can be a revelation as well (sometimes made by the SAME company). Still I have had nasty taste experiences with store brand vs national. So it's a hit and miss sometimes.

Yes definitely write out a list and stick to it. I try to do the same and allow myself 5 purchases off list and those extra 5 are things that I've :duh: forgotten/overlooked or saw how it would compliment a particular night's meal.
One of the other things that I sometimes do, have a day specific for shopping each week. A day before go to stores that are nearby and have my list but with columns for each store and write down each prices, take it home and compare against newspaper ads. It's kinda fun... especially if you're dressed nice walking around with a clipboard and a calculator ... makes managers think you're from corporate or a mystery shopper and checking on price gouging or whatever else they might be paranoid about. I'll be damned if store managers and employees aren't awfully polite for some reason :uhyeah:

 

[Kacey]

Generally, I plan out my shopping trips. The only exception is for frequently purchased perishables, like milk, which I'll stop in and get whenever I need it. I find myself buying more and more of my food at Costco, as their prices really are better on most things - the most notable exception being soda, which grocery stores often use as a loss leader.

 

[Sukerkin]

The funny thing is, it works the opposite with beer. If Daphne and I go shopping in the evening and I've had a particularly nice bottle of something really hoppy, it makes me determined to buy five or six more on our trip, just so we don't run out... funny, that!

ROFL - top marks, sir. Excellent planning if I do say so myself .

Now dare I have a beer considering that I just spent most the day deeply reflecting on my foolish overindulgence last night?

Probably best not to.

As to shopping, the big problem is always going to be that the subliminal tricks the shops use to get us to buy more operate beneath the level of our reason and can 'get us' anyway .

However, because I spent a few years unemployed whilst retraining, I had no other choice but to be extremely careful with cash and can attest that the suggestions given above about planning meals for the week and shopping accordingly with a list really do work

 

[Aefibird]

The funny thing is, it works the opposite with beer. If Daphne and I go shopping in the evening and I've had a particularly nice bottle of something really hoppy, it makes me determined to buy five or six more on our trip, just so we don't run out... funny, that!

Funnily enough, I often run into the same problem... Beer is one thing I buy whether it makes it onto the shopping list or not...just in case I run out...

(Anyway, back to drinking my Bishop's Finger www.bishopsfinger.co.uk)