Monday, May 28, 2012

Bulk Shopping: Budget Busting or Bargan Bliss?


At the beginning of the year I took a hard look at our grocery budget and said to myself, “I think that it is time to trim things down a bit.”  I make a lot of things from scratch so I knew I was not wasting much money on packaged foods.  I decided to take seriously the idea of bulk shopping.  My plan was to incorporate Costco and Azure Standard as part of my monthly grocery shopping. 
Everyone says that bulk shopping is cheaper.  The first month I not only failed to spend less, I spent $50 MORE than I had been spending.  What?  I was so discouraged.  What did I do wrong?  I don’t like to lose, and so I buckled down more determined than ever to try to make this work.
I learned a few lessons, took notes (Yes, I am that big of a nerd.), and tweaked a few things in the last few months.  I have successfully brought our month grocery costs down by $50.  With careful planning I hope that I will be down another $25 in June, and I really want to bring our grocery budget down a total of $100 from the first of the year by the end of summer.  
I would love to share what I have learned.  (For the sake of example let’s pretend that our budgeted goal is $500 a month, and that I typically go to the grocery store once a week.)

1.       Do not use a bulk shopping trip as one of the regular weekly grocery trips.  At the onset of my quest I was trying to substitute one of my weekly trips to the store for a trip to Costco.  It didn’t work.  I would spend my $125 but still did not have what I needed for the week. I would have a lot of flour, almonds and dried fruit but no fresh vegetables.  (“Trail mix again today kids.  We have enough flour to feed The 5,000, but I don’t have anything else to cook with it!”  They were not impressed.)  I know now that I need to plan on my regular grocery trip on the top of my Costco run or Azure Order. 

2.       Use the “Snowball effect” to build up the pantry.  When I switched thinking of my bulk shopping trip as equal to a weekly shopping trip I also had to switch my budget.  Back to my $500 budget, if I skimmed $25 a week off my grocery trips I had $100 for bulk shopping.  That goes quickly especially divided between Costco and Azure Standard.  If I get bulk oats this month the next month I may still have left over oats and can buy honey or olive oil.  Next month I might also find that I am able to skim an additional $5 off each week to increase my bulk shopping amount to $120.  I am building up my pantry slowly, but at a pace that I can afford.

3.       Keep receipts with you on a shopping trip if at all possible.  I keep a 3 ring binder with my “brain” in it.  (Calendar, lists, notes, life)  In it I kept a folder for receipts.  Is the spaghetti sauce I am standing here looking at while at Costco a better deal, or is the one that I have been getting at Trader Joe’s the best price per ounce?  It isn’t a big deal if I over spend a little on one jar, but if I am buying 3 or 4 it will add up.  I only had to do this for a couple of months before I quickly knew what I needed from where.

4.       Make a meal plan before shopping.  If we are only having corn muffins once this month then it isn’t the best bang for my buck to buy 5 months worth of cornmeal while I am building my “snowball.”  Conversely, once I bought all that cornmeal I need to make sure to work muffins into the menu.  It only makes good cents sense!

The month of May is almost gone, and it is time for me to take inventory and see what I need for June.  I’ll make my meal plan and plan my trips.  This is going to be a great summer for savvy shopping!  Any tips you have to pass along?  Please be sure to leave a comment below!  Happy bulk shopping!

This post is linked to "Eating from the Pantry and Freezer Challenge" at Keeper of the Home and
Kitchen Tip Tuesday at Tammy's Recipes.

14 comments:

  1. Good post! I have been thinking about getting a Costco membership--but I'm just not sure my savings will add up to the $50 per year. I'm still considering it--and I really like the tip to not use it as a replacement weekly grocery tip. Sometimes their produce is too big of quantities, etc. so I couldn't do everything there.

    Thanks, Bobi
    http://westernwarmth.blogspot.com

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    1. We actually got our Costco membership because I saw my neighbors and had bookshelf envy! Once we purchased the membership I really wanted to make the most of it. I plan to renew it when it comes up now that I have my list of products that I am saving. It is worth it for our family.
      Thanks for stopping by!

      TARA

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  2. I need to start saving receipts, bringing them with me, and comparing! Good idea!

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    1. Jordan made fun of me but it was well worth it! I hope that you are having a great start to the summer. Thanks for commenting!

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  3. Also linked up at http://www.pennilessparenting.com/2012/05/hearth-and-soul-blog-hop_29.html

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  4. Great tips!
    I do once-a-month-shopping and wouldn't trade it for the world!
    (The gas alone saves me tons!)

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    1. I am hoping that now that now that I have my system down I am thinking I could go down to three trips with some careful planning! (I always said that using cloth diapers saved me on gas and the little extras that we always "needed" at Target. The few trips to the store the better!)

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  5. Great read. Found you from the link up we both did from "We are that family". Hope you stop by my site too!
    http://www.countrifiedhicks.com

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  6. Thank you for the blog post. We do bulk shopping in combination with a few small trips during the month. We go for a huge shopping trip once every three months to Sam's Club, Aldi and a discount bread store. Then I take about $200 a month for killer sales and meat buys. We save a ton on gas and not to mention the time. It's all in planning ahead to assure you are well stocked with all you need to make it through the alloted time before the next trip. We have saved massive amounts doing it this way and not with one coupon having to be clipped!
    http://www.youtube.com/user/sandlappersue/videos

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    1. Thanks for the great suggestions. I love the idea of having a cooking day and canning soups. I don't coupon much. The obvious ones I can handle but the hunting and clipping and organizing is too much for me. Great ideas!

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  7. Great post. We have been working on our food budget, also. One thing that has helped immensely in addition to our monthly big shopping trips is a vacuum sealer. We buy and cook big amounts of meat, and then seal it in single dinner packages. On days that I'm tired and don't want to do much for dinner I pull out a package and add it to pasta, rice, or quesadillas. Fast and easy. Of course, there is the garden with canning. Really helps to get the pantry full by the end of summer! We eat what is in the pantry, even if it's a little on the odd side. I've learned to really like chilled, canned plums over applesauce. Our pomegranate tree gave a bumper crop last year and discovered pomegranate molasses. I've enjoyed making lots out of a little!
    ~~Lori

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    1. "Even if it's a little on the odd side." That's great. We come up with some interesting combos here too!

      I am about to head into the world of canning this fall. I have done a bit of freezing in the past but am looking forward to canning. Someone suggested making huge batches of soups and canning them. I love that idea!

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  8. I completely agree about keeping receipts! I threw together a quick spreadsheet of items I buy consistently and how much they cost at the two local grocery stores and BJ's. After I write my menu plan and shopping list, I can look over the cost guide and figure out whether I'll save money by making the extra drive out to BJ's and which grocery store is a better bet. I only shop every two months, with a few runs in between for things like milk and bananas that just won't keep, and it seriously cuts down on waste and gas money!

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    1. Only shop every two months! You must change your name to "Wonder Woman!" :) I knew I had so much to learn. I love it when people leave comments!

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