A quick trip to the grocery store these days can certainly wallop the wallet. From beef roasts to eggs to snack food, so many items cost much more than this time last year.
Have you looked at the suggested price on a bag of chips lately? The suggested retail price for an 8-ounce bag of kettle-cooked chips is nearly $5.
Snack food giants like Frito-Lay are recognizing consumer worries. PepsiCo., FritoLay’s parent company, said in a recent earnings call that in the U.S. there is “clearly a consumer that is more challenged and is a consumer that is telling us that in particular parts of our portfolio, they want more value.”
Figuring out how to stretch your dollars in the face of higher prices is a challenge, and spotting a good sale or bargain at the grocery store is one area where I consider myself to be an ace. Anybody who knows me knows I can quickly do a cost-savings analysis on a product or a sales promotion.
And there’s one sales promotion I’ve had much savings success.
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Some grocery stores, including local chains Meijer and Kroger, run sales promotions that offer additional savings —typically 50 cents to $1 extra off — when you buy a certain number of items.
More:Costco membership fees to increase by $5 starting Sept. 1
About a week or so ago, Kroger ran its Buy 5 select items and get an extra $1 off each one promotion. With a plan in mind and a list in hand — always, always have a list — I headed to my local store to pick up a few items.
While several items were listed in the store’s sales flyer, the store is filled with even more, often identified by larger shelf tags touting the price with the extra savings.
My shopping trip was a huge success. Huge! I cut the total cost for the six items (yes, six, more on that later) I bought by more than half.
All six items retailed for $22.34 before sale prices, coupons or taxes. My final cost was $9.86 including 12 cents tax — a more than 50% savings.
Here’s what to know
- With these Buy 5 (or whatever number of items) sale events you typically don’t have to buy all 5 of the same items, though many people think you do. Also, most stores let you buy more than five items in the same transaction and still get the discount.
- It’s important to look out for other sales/promotional items around the store because there are typically more than what’s listed on the flyer.
- Make a mental note or snap a photo of the shelf-tag price before you check out. When you check out make sure the advertised price, extra promotion offer and any coupons are applied.
How I saved
- With the Buy 5 promotion, $6 was automatic savings from the start — $1 off each item.
- All the items were on sale before the extra $1 savings. For example, the Kinder’s sauce was on sale for $3.49. Mixing and/or matching with other “Buy 5” products reduced the price to $2.49. As a bonus I had a coupon for $1.25 off any Kinder’s sauce or marinade, bringing it to a final cost of $1.24.
- Another good example is the Heluva Good dip. I paired the Heluva Good Buy 5 savings with a 50-cent off Catalina coupon bringing it to a final cost of 79 cents. Catalina coupons are the ones that spit out next to the register receipt once you’ve totaled out.
6 tips on how to save
- Join a store’s loyalty savings program.
- Clip coupons from inserts found in the Sunday newspaper (including the Sunday Detroit Free Press) and anywhere else you come across them.
- Don’t ignore Catalina coupons that often are dispensed next to registers. Many are geared toward items you already buy and can offer additional savings.
- Most grocery stores — including independents — now have digital coupons. It takes only a few minutes to check what’s available and clip them. While most can’t be paired with other paper coupons, digital coupons are useful when you are buying more than one item.
- Use coupons on products you would buy unless it’s something new you want to try.
- Look for in-store sales and savings that you can pair with coupons.
Contact Detroit Free Press food writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news to: [email protected]. Follow @SusanMariecooks on X (formerly Twitter.) Support local journalism and become a digital subscriber to the Free Press.
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