Beyond Couponing – Stockpile!
I’ll admit that the first time I read the word “stockpile” in an article about saving on groceries I was turned off. Stockpile?? It conjured up images of canned peas and spam lined up on metal shelves in the bunker beneath someone’s house. In actuality, it’s a proven method of combining the money saving power of coupons (and rebates) and store sales over the long-term.
I’ve already talked about getting organized and having a saving strategy. You get the most out of your money by using coupons on items that are on sale. Well, to take it a step further, when you find one of these super deals you should buy as many as you can get at that item’s rock-bottom price. I don’t buy most things because I need them that week (with the exception of fresh produce). I buy them because I know I can’t get a better price and I’ll use that item in the future.
The rule of stockpiling is to have a 3-4 months supply of basic items whether it’s toothpaste or pasta. For instance, if you get toothpaste for $0 – .50 cents then you’re saving the $3 or $4 you’d normally spend when you really need it and run out to the store to buy it at full price. I have at least 6 tubes of toothpaste, which we definitely won’t go through in the next 3-4 months, but I spent no more than .25 cents on each one (some will end up in our charity box).
Some things you might want to consider:
- Where are you going to store all of these extra items? The picture above is of my food stockpile, which I moved from a small stand-alone cabinet in the garage to a downstairs closet in which we added some shelving. It has worked out great! The garage cabinet now hold non-perishable items like ziploc containers, dish detergent, air fresheners and paper products.
- What does your family use a lot of on a regular basis? Maybe it’s cereal. I used to buy a new box of cereal whenever we needed it, but now I have boxes of it in our closet “pantry” that cost less than $1 a box…there whenever we need it. I even stocked up on Rice Krispies in order to make Rice Krispie Treats in the future for my toddler (okay, and me). Perhaps you rotate through the same recipes over the course of a couple of months. We love this recipe for Crock-Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup that my good friend gave me. If I make it next week I already have all the ingredients including chicken breasts I have stored in the freezer and the black beans and jars of salsa I have in the pantry.
I have found that once I made a mental decision to stockpile, vs. “just use the pantry”, I started saving a lot of money and stopped buying things for full-price. I no longer run to the grocery store when we need something, unless it’s baby formula, which I’ve also started learning to save a lot on.
Happy Stockpiling! I’d love to answer any questions you might have – email me at frugalmomsarecool (at) gmail (dot) com!
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