Grocery Shopping Organization
My mom has grocery shopping down to a science and I thought I would share how we both grocery shop. By shopping the way that we do, we have pretty much insured that we don't forget anything and it takes less time than it used to as well as saving close to 50% on each trip.
We have a printed list of all the things that we buy on a regular basis. Some of the things on my list are frozen spinach, frozen broccoli, milk, eggs, etc. This isn't all that special, but the way we organize this list is special. We keep the list on the computer and it is arranged in the way that the store is laid out.
For example, eggs, milk, and all other dairy products are listed first, then chips, crackers, etc are listed next since they are in the next aisle over from the dairy. We do this for the entire store, so everything is listed as we will come upon it in the store. This keeps us from forgetting anything since everything is in order.
Anything that we need that is a staple, we just check so we know we need to get it. If we don't need an item that is already printed on the list, we just cross it out. Anything else that isn't a staple, we write it in on the side of the paper. I try to write it where it would be in the store, but I'm not always that organized.
By the time we have finished shopping, all the items that are either checked or written in are procured and nothing has been overlooked, meaning there are no random trips during the week to pick something up that we forgot.
I also look at the ads for the week and if anything is on super-sale, I will write that in to stock up on or if it's something we buy as a staple, I highlight it so I know that we need to buy a ton of it since it's something we use all the time and it's on sale.
After I go through all the coupons that I have, if I'm using any that week, I paperclip them to the list and after the item on the list, I make a notation, for example:
Lays potato chips (C)
That way I know I have a coupon for the item.
Shopping this way seemed hard at first, but once we got they system down, it's been very easy. Since my mom has been shopping like this since I was about 10, it comes naturally to me to do it the same way. We save around 50% on each shopping trip by using coupons and being able to match sales so being organized really does pay off.
Do you do anything special with your grocery list? Do you use coupons and sales to stock up on items that you use frequently?
recommend this
email
print
link to this page
Comments: 9
We do check the papers for coupons, but our stores also have courtesy cards we use to get even better deals, sometimes much better than if using a coupon for the same item.
We never buy items on impulse just because they are on sale, unless it is something we regularly use anyway.
On every grocery trip we also stock up on a few of the items we use on our Emergency list. We use them at least once a week, so our stock can be rotated and stay fresh.
It pays to have a system and stick to it.
I try to use coupons, but our stores do NOT dbl or triple and most of the time I can buy the store brand much cheaper.