My Morning Grocery Shopping Experience
This morning I enjoyed my shopping experience pretty early in the morning. Well very early in the morning really, I was in the supermarket by 7am.
In previous times, I would be there just after 6am to get to the reduced items as early as possible. By doing that, I used to save quite a bit because the reductions took the meat especially down to an affordable price.
Unfortunately, the cost of meat products has risen so much that even the reduced items are now expensive. This then negates the benefits of going to the supermarket if I am not getting reduced price items.
So much so that I stopped going to the supermarket and got myself a delivery pass. However there comes a point every so often when my budget is tight and I am looking for a more restricted shop. I hadn’t realised when I got the delivery pass that it is only valid on deliveries over £40.
To purchase online if I was spending under £40 would mean an additional charge of £4. As I normally am looking for delivery at the weekend this is normally the higher end of the delivery costs of about £4 – £6. Which would be an additional cost of £8-10 in total.
It certainly does not cost me that much in fuel to take a trip to the supermarket. So, the last couple of weeks I have gone and done my own shopping.
Anyone who has been following me for a while will I trust be pleasantly surprised to find that I wrote myself a shopping list. The fact that I remembered to take the shopping list and stick to the shopping list is astonishing in itself.
Pulling up to the supermarket at that time of the morning is quite relaxing. I can get parked right in front of the doors and there are plenty trollies available. That for me is a great start to the shopping experience.
For the budget shopping experience, I use the smaller trolley. Who am I kidding? I use the smaller trolley most of the time now as the bending to put things in a large trolley and the even more bending required for the self scan at that time of the morning is just too much.
My small trolley and I have a specific way of starting the shopping experience. First, I head for the reduced section in the fruit and veg to see if there is anything that we would use.
I have learned that reduced pre prepared veg is normally still more expensive than buying the normal veg. Today it was sliced mushrooms reduced to 70p, they were dark and obviously at the end of their freshness. Why would I buy these instead of the asda essential mushrooms at 80p for lovely fresh mushrooms? Don’t get me wrong, it has taken me a long time to not just grab reduced items thinking they are a bargain. Thanks to all of you who comment on my videos, I have learned.
Once I have checked out the reduced fruit and veg, it is on to the reduced chilled section. This is where I am looking for meat in the first instance and then possibly things like coleslaw, pies and sandwich fillers.
The available products in this section can have a wide ranging effect on the rest of my shopping. If I find something I wouldn’t normally buy, then I may change the meal plan for the week to take that into account. If there is nothing that seems particularly good value, then the original shopping list is in play.
I then basically wander the supermarket at will checking out offers and getting what is on the list. The final offer section is the baked goods. I normally get my bread from there and if there are crumpets reduced I will definitely get those.
Then it is checkout time. I have to say I am not impressed that there are no checkout operators at that time in the morning. This means I have to work the self scan machine which is not my favourite thing to do. However for a quiet supermarket shopping experience, it just has to be done.
Normally I am pretty much in and out of the supermarket within 30 minutes which is pretty good for the leisurely pace I use. Then a relaxing drive back home and it’s time to unpack the shopping and make a video to let you see what I have bought.
If you would like to see the video of this week’s shopping experience, you can find it here.
I am one of those people who actually enjoys grocery shopping. I do find though that staying out of the shops and using up what I have at home is certainly making a big difference to my wallet. That being said – I will go to the local shop tomorrow afternoon. I work from home on Monday mornings – send out a number of things to staff and then take a couple of hours to go for a walk and run errands (then back to check on responses and updates for another hour or so in the afternoon).
I only intend buying, milk, bread and some fruit that will get me through the week. I checked the online flyer and there was nothing else that I wanted or needed so won’t even take my bundle buggy. I will check out the drugstore on Thursday (seniors discount day) to see what is on offer and if it’s on my list. I’ll leave a bit early and do that before heading into the office that morning. I am trying to be very strategic with my purchases and I am also determined to do a much better job of rotating through my “stash”.
May I ask – I know you say that you don’t like much fruit but I’ve also noticed that you don’t eat much veg – especially not salads (I mean greens, raw veg etc) – Is this just a preference or is it that the prices are high? I find the UK prices for fruit & veg very cheap compared to what we pay so just wondered. Not trying to be funny but the mayo based salads are considered to be very different from green leafed ones here and during the heatwaves are pretty much all I eat with different proteins and add ons from day to day. It is the cheapest time of year for this produce so try to eat my fill before the Fall.