I must confess: for me, shopping is a relaxing activity, even if it’s about food alone. To walk between the shelves, to choose what I like and to imagine what this pair of shoes matches or where I might go out with this dress – all these give me a feeling of great satisfaction almost as great as enjoying my morning coffee in my favorite coffee mug. The same happens when shopping online. The thrill of choosing between so many options presented in a page is comparable to the one in a real store. If I could live by doing shopping for others, I’ll give up my career in a minute.
Being such an avid shopper, I have learned in time some useful tips on how to shop smart.
Food shopping
- Don’t go shopping your grocery list when you’re hungry. It’s the stomach, not your brain who’ll decide what to put in your shopping bag, and more often than not, you’ll end adding up more products than you planned.
- Stick to the seasonal vegetables and fruits. They are relatively fresh compared to the ones that have to be brought from the other side of the world. Also, generally they are less expensive.
- Avoid buying two pay one products, they have a motive to do that and that is not in your best interest, but of the store. Usually, these products are about to expire and chances are you won’t consume them before the expiration date.
- Choose fruit canned 100% in fruit juice and vegetables with “low sodium” on their label as they are considerably healthier.
- When shopping food online, avoid shopping for products like meat (chances are they’ll bring you the close to expiration bags – it happens to me when I made online shopping at Carrefour), sliced salami or vegetables that need to be weighted. Stick with heavy products (like water, oil, sugar, flour, potatoes, rice, shampoos, washing powder etc.)
Clothes shopping
- Stick to your shopping temperament. Your clothes should reflect your personality and lifestyle, not go with the flow. Take time to get to know yourself, and build a personal clothing style.
- Stick to plain items, that don’t have decorative details or embellishments if your budget is tight. They are better matched to your existing wardrobe items, and you don’t need to buy accessories for them.
- Plan ahead your wardrobe and make a list of the items you need to create the outfits that suit you. When going shopping look for those specific items, don’t let your attention span over other stuff. There are many temptations in a clothes store and if you’re a shopaholic you’ll have a hard time to resist them. Meditate at this before leaving the house in order to strengthen your power to say no.
- Stop 5 minutes to think if you’ll regret this purchase once back home. It helps to prevent the acquisition of items that are not absolutely necessary, but they are a part of so a good deal that is easy to convince yourself you really need that stuff. Online shopping? Don’t press the button the same day you chose your clothes, sleep a night over your decision.
- Don’t take your credit card with you when go shopping for clothes. Studies show that people are more inclined to spend more when they pay with a credit card than when paying in cash. Women especially are more inclined to consider a new dress they like a must-have in their wardrobe, and with a credit card on them chances to buy it right away are high.
Electronic shopping
- Do your homework before buying any electronic appliance. Read as many online reviews of the products you intend to purchase as you can and decide what are the best for your needs. Pay attention in special to negative reviews or the reviews of the real costumers, probably they are the most honest reviewers. In this world of so many paid advertorials, is not an easy task to navigate between false recommendations and the real ones.
- Have a close look at the warranty period. As with any other product, electronic supplies might need to be fixed or to be replaced if they are not working well. An extension of the warranty period will save you good bucks.
- When in doubt, go for well-known brands, chances are that you get a good electronic appliance as they might not want to spoil their reputation with a defective one.
- Compare the prices. With so many sites that sell electronic appliances today, you can almost instantly compare prices. You don’t need to walk miles from store to store to find the best price for the product you want. Why would you want to pay more when you can pay less for the same item?
- Don’t be shy about asking for an advice when you don’t understand “the electronic language”. If you have an engineer friend, colleague, neighbor or a relative, make sure you check on their opinion first. An expert advice may make a huge difference when choosing the right electronic appliance.
I am not a big clothes and electronic shopper but I have to watch myself in the grocery store! I’ve gotten a lot better since making a list so I’m not just buying random ingredients and then trying to figure out what I can make.
OMG I hate going grocery shopping when hungry. All it makes me want to do is buy the whole store lol
I’m a really bad impulsive shopper. I’l return stuff later though! haha!
I go shopping all the time when I’m hungry, so not a good idea! I’m not sure Why I continue to do this. lol Bad habit..
Awesome tips! I always buying more than I want to so I need to right down some of those tips and have them while shoppingg
These are wonderful tips. Especially when it comes to comparing prices. I take one day a week and shop three stores, most people think I’m crazy but I go where the deals are. lol….
That credit card advice is too real. I am totally that person that thinks “I’ll just charge this dress. No big deal.” And yet it is. I also love the bit about not grocery shopping when you’re hungry. That is just a bad idea.
Great tips ! I have become obsessed with online shopping lately! It is so much less time consuming with 2 little ones! I still like to do the old fashion mall trip when I am in the mood!
These are great tips. I always get into trouble when I take my credit card with me!
Great tips! I love online shopping for clothes especially at Zara. I’ve never tried BOGO stores before but I’m going to check it out.
I always make a plan of what meals I’m going to cook before I do a food shop. Then I just get the ingredients I need, making it cheaper and giving me less waste!
I rarely shop for clothes now but when I do I make sure that they are not impulsive buys and that they reflect my personal style. Pink and floaty is usually a go to haha x
Great tips. I also love shopping.
I love these tips. I sometime overspend and I will use these tips to be a smart shopper. Thanks for sharing!
I love shopping! I even love window shopping if I’m honest! There’s something I like about browsing – it’s so relaxing.
I shop only with a credit card to earn points and other rewards. Then again, I mostly shop at thrift shops rather than full-price places.
Such great tips! I like to stick with BOGO items and clearance matched with coupons!
These are some great tips, I have to admit though I HAVE to do the food shopping when the other half is hungry or he doesn’t want anything. That said we do, do it online to be ordered so he can’t go mad in the shopping isles.
These are great tips and extremely helpful. I think that the electronic shopping tips are my favorite. Its so easy to go crazy when shopping online!
I have to be very careful to to grocery shop when I am hungry as I will not make the greatest choices in food items and I will definitely end up with much more than I intended to buy. Shopping for clothes is one of my favorite pastimes however!
This is a great list of tips to save money while shopping. I love the tip to not go shopping on an empty stomach. I’m so bad about doing that!
Great tips! I am the worse when it comes to grocery shopping! I always go after work, when I am starving so end up buying unhealthy things! xx corinne
Lots of good tips in this post. I am the food guy and shopper and you are so right. I never stick to my list. Oh well.
I love shopping it’s best therapy for stress and others. Good that you share this shopping tips as I don’t want to over spend and wanna shop wisely. I almost shop the other day as looking at the sales but then I didn’t purchase it and kind of feel sad but then I think is good I no spend on it as I maybe no time to use it.
Great list of things to remember when shopping. I have to say though the BOGO in the Publix grocery store chain are true BOGO’s and aren’t expiring food. Comparing their prices to other chains, and the BOGO’s make it much cheaper.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I never shop in BOGO stores, we don’t have them here in Romania.