Power Move #4: Aisle of Shame to Pantry of Triumph
- DavidNorman111
- Jul 1
- 2 min read
Power Move #4:
Aisle of Shame to Pantry of Triumph
Key Concept: Failure to plan is planning to fail.
Goal: To control grocery shopping costs and food waste.
Plan: Balance where you shop with how you shop and what you put in your cart. Result: Save several thousand dollars per year.
Where to Shop: Immediate, effective tactic- make your default grocery shopping at deep discount retailers (e.g. Aldi, Lidl). Aldi: 20-40% cheaper than traditional supermarkets (Kroger, Food Lion. Harris Teeter, Publix). Families of 4 can expect to save close to $4000/yr by shopping exclusively at Aldi, provided they are disciplined in the “aisle of shame.” Bring your quarter (and bags) if you go! Lidl: Close competitor to Aldi; nearest store is in Cary at this time.
How to Buy: Make a list for the week. Do not make a list when you are hungry. Stick. To. The. List. Do not return to the grocery store for 7 days. You can survive even if you resort to eating month old chips and marshmallows out of your pantry. That which does not kill you will make you smarter! Use this challenging time to smarten up next week's grocery list. Technology, like the free app AnyList or your store's website, can help you track essentials for future repurchases.
What to Buy: Generic or private-label products offer 25%-40% savings over brand name products. Shopping at Aldi assures you are getting this savings (more than 90% of the store is private-label), however, the same discount can be harvested from your premium grocery store by buying ‘HarrisTeeter-os’ instead of Cheerios. The cost savings on generic over the counter medicine is striking. Acetaminophen is acetaminophen, regardless of the packaging. Tubs of Kirkland Ibuprofen at Costco can be had for one fifth the cost of Advil.
Whac-A-Mole: Premium stores are also more likely to offer time-sensitive coupons for specific products, manager’s specials (e.g. extremely cheap protein that expires in a day), and/or BOGO deals as loss leaders to get you into the store. Looking for Target-ed grocery product deals is always an option for saving on goods you already intended to buy.
Trivia: Do you know the world’s largest grocery retailer by sales? Hint: It is not even a close contest, but it is close. Approximately 90% of Americans live within a 10 mile radius of this retailer, with roughly one-third of the U.S. population visiting this store each week. It is the world’s largest private employer, with over 2 million employees. Hint 2: if this were a crossword puzzle, Hack #8 down (7 letters) would be “streetcar legislation” in reverse.
David Norman, NBCT, Retd., Chief Ambassador, Take10TM
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