I spend the most money every month on my mortgage, gas and electric, and groceries. Where I used to be able to get a week's worth of groceries for less than $100, I now struggle not to spend more than $200 a week at the grocery store. However, there are several techniques I've been using lately that have helped me to dramatically reduce my grocery bill.
Wal-Mart Competitor Price Match
I used to have a routine of looking through the grocery ads every Sunday and then shopping at three or four grocery stores to get the best prices on what I needed. However, now that gas prices are so high, I'm forced to do all of my grocery shopping at one store, and that store is typically Wal-Mart because of their competitor price match. I collect all of the grocery store ads for a week, make my grocery list, and then look to see if any of the items on my list are on sale at any of the local groceries. If they are, I take the ads with me, and I'm given the better price at the Wal-Mart register. I generally save between $5 and $10 a week by taking advantage of this offer, and I don't have to drive all over town for deals.Double and Triple Coupon Days
Both Meijer and Kroger occasionally have double and triple coupon days. This is a special where coupons for a specific amount, usually less than 25 or 50 cents, have their value doubled or tripled at the register. If you're a big coupon clipper, then this could save you a significant amount of money. Double and triple coupon days aren't heavily advertised, however, so the best way to find out about them is to sign up for email ads and specials through both the
Meijer website and the
Kroger website. They'll send you updates on their specials when they're having them, including announcements of double and triple coupon days.
B & E Salvage
B & E Salvage is a Louisville grocery store that sells salvage groceries. Their product is made up of the grocery items that the national chains did not want to sell at a discount. Many of the items at B & E Salvage are damaged somehow or getting close to their expiration, and that's why they can be sold at such a low price. It sounds unappealing at first. However, most of the damaged products are only damaged physically and are therefore unappealing only on an esthetic level. Additionally, if you only buy groceries there that you plan to use within a week or two, then you will generally have plenty of time to use them before their expiration date.
