Ninja Shopping Strategy: How To Save On Your Grocery Bill
We have a bit of an obsession with finding the best deals… on just about everything we buy!
Our weekly grocery shopping is quite a strategic affair, so I thought I’d lay it all out in case you want to give it a go.
On most weekends we go to four stores to pick up the specials at each one, namely:
- ALDI
- Coles
- NQR
- Woolworths
Sometimes we also add Foodland to the mix 😊
ALDI, Coles, and Woolworths release their new specials every Wednesday.
On Tuesday evenings, I check through the online catalogues for Coles and Woolworths, adding everything I want to buy into my shopping cart.
You could of course buy online (which saves you from giving in to all the impulse buys cleverly placed to entice you), but somehow, I found a man who enjoys grocery shopping more than I do, so for us it’s a physical trip to the stores almost every weekend.
I have the Coles and Woolworths mobile apps on my phone so use them as shopping lists once I’m instore (all the items I added to my shopping cart appear in the app).
ALDI doesn’t offer online shopping so I browse through the physical catalogue which we would have picked up in store the weekend before (if you’re a regular shopper you’ll know that you will almost without fail be offered a catalogue when you check out). You can also view their online catalogues here. I use a shopping list mobile app to make a note of what to buy from ALDI.
NQR offers online shopping but only for selected items, so I go through their online catalogue under Weekly Specials, once again using my shopping list app to note what I want to buy.
With the rising cost of fuel, you don’t want to be driving too far to get to all four (or five) stores, so it’s a good idea to find an area where all the stores are very close together.
In our case, the Modbury area works perfectly, 6km from home, with everything we need in a 1km radius.
- ALDI, Coles, and Woolworths at Westfield Tea Tree Plaza
- NQR at Modbury Triangle Shopping Centre (along with Foodland and Chemist Warehouse)
Another decision to make is where to park. When we go to Westfield Tea Tree Plaza, we park at Tea Tree Plus (under the Savers) where we always find a spot without having to circle around. There’s a travelator up to the shops and a walk across the parking lot will take you to Woolworths.
Modbury Triangle Shopping Centre usually has many available parking spaces, so we usually park right in front of NQR (which really helps when it’s raining buckets). Helpful Hint: Always wear a jacket when shopping at this NQR as they have a walk-in fridge that makes you feel like a living popsicle.
So, there you have it… our Ninja Shopping Strategy in a nutshell, neatly packaged for you to try out for yourself.
Although it takes a bit of preparation and planning, shopping for specials can save you heaps on your grocery bill. You can invest the money you save, use it to pay off your mortgage quicker, or even upsize your entertainment budget… the choice is yours!
Happy shopping folks!
