Photograph Credit: Flickr (Natalie Burdick)
If you have been reading my Tuesday series on event planning, then you already know that our school’s fall festival is a little over a week away. As the coordinator of the Kids’ Zone, I am in planning mode with my phone ringing and my e-mail accounts full.
In using time wisely, many of my household duties are on hold: the laundry is clean, but in the dryer; the dishes are rinsed, but still in the sink; and the food is in the kitchen, but my menu plan is empty. Thankfully, there are options in my pantry, and my fabulous husband has come home to fix dinner numerous times this week.
During these busy times, I am thankful for a system where the pantry is already stocked with options because making a menu is not a top priority.
Last week in this series on feeding my family, I gave a brief overview. Today, I will share my grocery shopping tips when entering the store. Remember to customize your shopping experience. I usually shop with my children, so my routine will be different from someone who gets to shop alone. Also, I shop at two stores: Bi-Lo and Publix, and my system is a little different at each store.
Bi-Lo
1. Scan lobby display for coupons. As I get the car cart for my girls, I glance over at the display. I pick up any coupon booklets and additional store flyers with coupons.
2. Retrieve my grocery list. I slide my list out of my Bi-Lo coupon envelope.
3. Go to bakery. While scanning my list and planning my visit through the aisles, we head to the bakery where my kids receive a free cookie. Occupied with their cookie, my children eat while I begin working through the aisles.
Publix
1. Visit the lobby coupon tower. Depending on the store we visit, the Green and Yellow Advantage flyers (complete with coupons) may be located in the lobby. I check the tower and retrieve one copy of each.
2. Stop by customer service. Many stores are keeping these coupons at customer service since some customers grab handfuls of the flyers. By keeping them at customer service, the employees can give one copy of each to customers and have enough flyers to fulfill customer’s requests. Even if I find the Advantage flyers in the lobby, I will still stop by customer service since they have additional coupon booklets available for the asking.
NOTE: Remember the sales run in cycles. It is not necessary to snag 15 copies of the Advantage flyers. You will want the coupons, but please do not swipe all the coupon sheets.
3. Retrieve my grocery list. Publix places many of their Buy One Get One Free items in an area at the front of the store. I will usually park the cart in this area, get my list from my Publix envelope, and gather any items from my list.
4. Go to bakery. We then proceed to the bakery to get the sugar and chocolate chip cookies for my kids. While waiting, I will flip through the new coupon booklets to see if I can save more on this shopping trip. We then continue our shopping through the aisles.
By keeping the same routine, I can quickly take care of the necessities before adding items to my cart. Knowing where to look for store coupons and making those stops prior to shopping helps me know all my options. If I just received a coupon for a buy one get one free item, I can increase my savings and choose to purchase more of that product, if needed. My entering the grocery store system has the potential to increase my savings while using time wisely.
Question: How does your system differ from mine? Please add your answer to the comments.