How to Save Big at the Supermarket

Ken Dolan: Hi, Dolans.com members. How are you? We’re Ken and Daria Dolan. Thanks for all of your questions and support. Again, you know Daria has taken the lead a lot of these videos. I’m like a second player here especially when it comes to shopping in a supermarket. But I’m very upset. Two of my favorite health foods along with a lot of other foods are up, potato chips and peanut butter. It’s a near disaster. However, in light of that fact— Daria Dolan: He wouldn’t even know. This is the guy that says, “Pick up a bottle of milk when you get to the store” Ken Dolan: I’m still back into 40’s. Daria Dolan: I haven’t seen milk in bottles since I was a baby. Ken Dolan: Anyway, we have some inside tips shopping at the supermarket that came from a store manager, so we’re going to pass it along to you. Food prices continue to spiral. Eggs, meat the fact that we just talked about local little diner and Rick, the owner was just complaining “Eggs and beef, and everything is up”. So you know better than I do Daria how much it cost so I’ve got a couple of tips to pass along and let’s have you start them. Daria Dolan: Alright. Well, you state the obvious one because I know you can handle that. Ken Dolan: And what do you mean by that may I ask? When we talk about full stomach, you immediately look at me. Don’t shop in a full stomach Daria Dolan: On an empty stomach. Ken Dolan: Shop with a full stomach. Daria Dolan: Yes, exactly. Ken Dolan: See, I have one chance to do something and I blew it. Don’t shop on an empty stomach. Everybody knows that. Daria Dolan: Unless your store like mine the other day was passing around little samples of sandwiches while I was shopping and I was hungry, I’ve broken the first rule so I ate a sandwich while I shop for free. Ken Dolan: I know something you don’t know. Daria Dolan: What? Ken Dolan: All those red prices and pink prices in great, great— Daria Dolan: No, I told you this one. I told you this one. Ken Dolan: All those prices in red with the fluorescent pearl of prices aren’t necessarily on sale so be careful. Daria Dolan: Not at all and I discovered this the other day. I had gone into the store couple of days before to buy a particular item. As I was going through couple of days later to pick up some more things, I passed at the front of the aisle big price sign in, bright orangey, neon, red, and orange. And it was for the same I picked-up two days before. As I look, what happened? I remembered what I paid for it, it was the same price. It looks like a sale but it didn’t say “sale”. And just because it’s on a bright red sign to get your attention, doesn’t mean it is for sale. Ken Dolan: I need to say something Daria. I forgot to tell everybody this is a two part series. We’re going to do it in two parts. Daria Dolan: Oh, okay. Ken Dolan: That’s why we’ll do a bunch and then we’ll do another video. So this is part one because we have a lot of them. I don’t know if this works Daria. I never tried a two for one special. Rich crackers, Skippy Peanut Butter are two of my favorite food, two for one. Well, I don’t need two Ritz. Can I take one and get half price? Daria Dolan: I always take the two Ritz when it is two for the price of one. You go through them very quickly. Ken Dolan: You know my example now. If it’s two for one can I get one for the half prize? Daria Dolan: You can ask. Sometimes it automatically comes off on the register that way generally not asked to be sure because there is no need picking up two of something that you’re not going to use in a hurry like the Ritz Cracker is that I goes in to our house and paying that price when you can get it for half of that price. Ken Dolan: One thing you do Daria. You bring in one cloth bag, maybe two. Bring in a one or two cloth bags when you go shopping. In fact, I swear, at the last time I went shopping with Daria and I hate shopping. I hate shopping anywhere. But Daria brought two cloth bags and I carried them for you because what that does is cut down on temptation. Get your list. There’s the two cloth bag. Don’t get more than you can carry. Use the list. Does that work? It worked with you last week. Daria Dolan: I’m doing it mostly because it’s good for the environment, all those horrible plastic bags all over the place. Mine won’t do. I won’t be sending any to the landfill. But it is a good way to limit the amount of stuff that you buy at the grocery store. Ken Dolan: How about the shelf trick? Daria Dolan: Also, look as you go down the aisles. They put the most expensive products right at eye level. So if you’re looking for canned piece, don’t look at the ones at eye level. Look above and look on the bottom shelf. Ken Dolan: Like store brand. Daria Dolan: The less expensive goods which we’ve all got to stop buying all these branded names. The less expensive goods can be put at the top or at the bottom of the shelves and you’re missing the best bargains. Ken Dolan: Daria, last one at part one as I said we have part two, we’ve got some great ones in part two. Last one is shop alone, generally speaking because when you’re yakking, especially you. I mean when you’re talking and discussing things with your friends, you tend to try things and you tend to put things sort of haphazardly in to the bag. Daria Dolan: And get off the cell phone because you annoy shoppers like me because you’re never paying attention to where the other carts are in relation to you. But you’re also distracted by the phone conversation and might be throwing things in the basket that you really didn’t intend to buy. Ken Dolan: Or not getting the best deal on the things that you didn’t need. Daria Dolan: Right. Ken Dolan: Part one, Inside tricks from a supermarket manager. Look for part two here on Dolans.com. Now is the day. Let’s save a couple of bucks.