Highlights in this issue:

*** Never go unprepared – it’ll cost you a fortune if you do…
*** The golden rule of never overspending at the shops again...
*** Why you should never go shopping on a Monday…

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From the pen of Karin Iten…

Dear Investment Academy Reader,

Let’s say, yesterday you walked into your local grocery store and decided to buy only five items: a 5kg bag of maize, a 1kg chicken, 2l of milk, 1kg worth of lamb chops and 1kg of beef mince.

Did you know, your bill would be about R50 more than it was eight months ago? This means, if you’re buying these, and only these, products every week, you’re spending R200 more every month than you did last year.

And let’s face it, none of us fill our trolleys with only five items when we do our weekly shopping. Frightening really, considering we haven’t even thought about the price of a loaf of bread, a dozen eggs, a pocket of potatoes, salad, tomatoes and all the other things you usually have in your trolley.

What if you could shave more than 15% of your monthly grocery bill?

Would you be interested in learning this secret?

You bet you would! Who wouldn’t want some extra money to put into their savings, help pay off their car or spend on a night out with friends?

12 simple secrets for slashing your shopping costs

Secret #1: Know how much you’re spending
Save your receipts and, once a month, take them out and look at them. If you’re spending R300 one week, R560 the next and R495 the following week, you probably don’t even realise your spending a weekly average of R450. Knowing how much you spend, makes it easier to budget your purchases and stick to.

Secret #2: Plan every shopping trip
When we’re in a rush, most of us simply dash into the shops and buy the first thing that tickles our fancy. But, research has proven, by planning your meals in advance and making detailed shopping lists you can cut your grocery spending by 20% or more. This doesn’t mean you have to limit your dinner to macaroni and cheese every night, but you should try and build your shopping around sale items and seasonal produce. The other day, I paid over R40 for two avocadoes because I didn’t check to see if they were in season or not. Needless to say, when I got to the till, I almost had a heart attack.

Secret #3: Stick to the list
It’s a proven fact, shop layouts are designed in order to entice you into buying things you wouldn’t normally buy. That’s why chocolate, magazines and other naughty goodies are always right by the checkout line where there’s more chance they’ll catch your eye and get sneaked into your basket. Add this to the fact that companies spend millions to make their products more attractive than their competitors, and it’s easy to see you’re a goner if you go shopping without a plan. By keeping to your list, you’ll not only be less tempted to stray but you’ll also get your shopping done a lot faster too. Remember the golden rule: “The more you linger, the greater the chances are you’ll buy something you don’t need.”

Secret #4: Avoid impulse buys
Just because it’s on sale doesn’t mean it’s a bargain!

Secret #5: Never shop when you’re hungry
It goes without saying right? The hungrier you are, the more likely it is you’ll buy something you don’t really need.

Secret #6: Leave the kids at home
Shiny packaging and children is a recipe for disaster! This aside, have you ever noticed that all the items you don’t want your children to see are right on their eye level? Yup, you guessed it! Companies pay big money to get their products displayed at the eye-level of their target audience.

Secret #7: Break your brand habit
Many products are virtually indistinguishable from no-name brands when the label’s removed. Be honest, can you really tell the difference between no-name brand sugar and Illovo sugar?

Secret #8: Avoid highly processed foods like the plague
Learn to distinguish needs from wants (potatoes vs. ready-cut oven fries). Not only will following this secret save you money, it’ll allow you to be creative and live a healthier life. So instead, buy the basics and add the spices yourself. Who knows? You could just discover your inner-chef!

Secret #9: It’s not about the packaging
If you’re buying in bulk check the unit cost of each product. Small (or single) portions often work out cheaper than their “Jumbo-sized” counterparts.

Secret #10: Avoid falling victim to tunnel vision
Remember what I said about children? About big companies spending lots of money for prime shelf space? Well they target you in the same way. If it’s on the eye-level shelf, you’ll probably find it’s a big brand with a big price tag. Items on the upper and lower shelves frequently work out cheaper, so it’s worth looking around.

Secret #11: Don’t buy perishables on Monday
OK, here’s something you really have to know… shops generally only get their fresh produce (veggies, fruit, milk, etc) on Tuesdays. So, if you’re buying salad on Monday, there’s a good chance it’s very close to its “best before” day. And this means you’ll probably end up throwing a lot of it away if you don’t use it all that day.

Secret #12: Shop around
We live in a country where there are big shopping centres just about everywhere you go, so there really is no excuse not to find the best price. Your weekly free residential newspaper is always full of ads from major retailers, such as Pick ‘n Pay, Checkers, Clicks and more, so take five minutes and run through these flyers to check what the latest specials are – especially when it comes to ever-important, and usually very expensive, toiletries.

As you can see, none of these ideas require you to change too much. But, by implementing just a few of these secrets to your weekly shopping, they’ll save you lots of money.

Happy investing,

Karin Iten
for the Investment Academy