Before you grab your shopping cart and start going aimlessly up and down each aisle, it is good to go in with a plan. The grocery store can be an overwhelming place. There are seemingly endless places to go and get lost within the fresh, frozen, and beer aisles, wondering what you even came in for in the first place. That is why you always hear of people running in for a couple items like milk and eggs and coming out with a whole cart full of groceries that will probably hurt your bank account, not to mention your waistline.
Stick to a List
If you go in with a few things on your mind you are doomed from the start. There are so many places to have impulse purchases, especially if there are free samples given out, making you want to keep adding to your cart. Since the store is large, in order to keep your head down and focus on a list, you can set up your grocery list in parts such as fruits & veggies, canned, frozen, household items, so that at least you can find everything in roughly the same spot so that you do not have to go on a search and get lost in temptation.
Never Go on an Empty Stomach
It would be wise to eat before you head out to the grocery store, a full meal at best, so that you have a clear mind when you get there and can just stick to your shopping list. If you have gone grocery when you were hungry before, you will know that you probably came home with plenty of unhealthy and expensive impulse purchases that you either scarfed down, or threw out because you didn’t eat after that one time. Believe me, you’ll thank yourself later.
Use the Rewards Card
Like most major grocers, there is a shopper’s reward card that you can plug in your phone number at the register that is associated to the account and you can see the savings start to take away from the balance. In addition to the sale items exclusive to your rewards card, you can also load digital coupons to your card from the store’s website (although you may have to print off the list so you remember what you put on there). Also, just by using you can build up fuel points that will take money off each gallon of gas when redeemed.
Avoid the Weekend Rush
Grocers know that the weekends are going to be packed, so why give any extra incentive. During the week, you can likely find more promo sales that you will not see on the weekend. Not only can you save additional money during the week, but you can also save the stress on yourself but avoiding the crowd, in the parking lot, and in the store, and especially if you can go in the evening after dinner, you will hardly see anyone and can get in and out with little delay.
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