In one of my earlier posts, I shared with you how I save money on grocery shopping each month and shopping in general. I’m pretty much used to following the routine I set for myself, because I know that it works. This month, however, I did a few things a little differently and I was pleasantly surprised that I managed to save even more! So I thought I’d share with you a few of my January finds and grocery savings.
Pick ‘n’ Pay Online
As I was planning my monthly budget a bit earlier this month than I normally do, the Alberton Record wasn’t out just yet so I decided to have a look at the supermarket specials online and plan accordingly: Checkers, Pick ‘n’ Pay and Spar. All their specials are advertised online and you can even do a search for store-specific deals which I found very useful.
I’d never done bulk grocery shopping online before and I had no intention of starting now. But as I was browsing through the specials, I discovered that Pick ’n’ Pay online are offering free delivery until 31 January for orders over R500 which caught my eye. So I carried on browsing through the specials a bit more seriously and I was overall, pleasantly surprised to say the least!
I found that a) a lot of the items which were on my shopping list for the month were on special and b) seeing that I wouldn’t have to pay a delivery fee, I would save on that plus my own petrol had I decided to drive to the shop and buy the same items anyway. I thought that was a good deal. And the best part was – I didn’t have to use a credit card to pay online. You can pay using your debit card, and still use and accumulate your Smart Shopper card points!
Takealot
Another item on my shopping list for this month was Beeno flatties/rollies biscuits for our 4 pooches. They just love those! I had bought them from Takealot before as they were cheaper than the price on special in most supermarkets which is now R27.99. And guess what, I was in luck – the biscuits were still R21 on Takealot! They are currently offering free delivery on all orders placed through their app. So I decided to go for it.
I downloaded their app, logged in and made my purchase in less than a minute. I bought 5 packets of Beeno flatties for our dogs, which usually lasts them a while – they’re small pooches and get additional treats anyway. I saved a total of R34.99, and I didn’t pay a delivery fee, or spend any petrol going into the shops to buy the items. Takealot has a cash on delivery option on a lot of their items so again, there is no need to reach for your credit card.
Faithful to Nature
The main reason for shopping at Faithful to Nature online shop this month was to buy the Eureka Mills unbleached, stone ground bread flour. We make our own bread at home for a variety of reasons – it is cheaper, tastier, lasts longer, and it’s also more filling and more convenient i.e. we don’t have to ‘run to the shops’ for bread and waste petrol. You can read more about why we make bread at home in my post Is Homemade Bread Healthier and Cheaper?
Even though the Eureka Mills GMO-free bread flour is more expensive than ordinary bread flour, with all the discounts I got, I did not end up paying more. I was really pleased about this! As I’d never bought from Faithful to Nature before, I learnt that they are offering a R100 voucher when you sign up for the first time (which I used), free delivery on orders over R350 and there is also a R150 voucher available for Faithful to Nature on Vouchercloud, which expires on 31 February 2016. Wow! And when my order finally arrived, I also received a few free samples (below) as well as a voucher for 10% off my next purchase. Read about how I used the Oaty Chia Raw Cacao freebie to make Overnight Oatmeal with Chia and Raw Cacao.
Monthly Money Saving Tips and Advice
And last, but not least, here is a great find for me this month – a Facebook page Monthly Money Saving Tips and Advice. Having a variety of current specials, discounts and vouchers in South African shops all in one place can be of great help to the frugal consumer. Browsing through all the different brands online, especially if you’re experiencing a hectic day, week or month, can be quite time consuming. I’m really happy to have found this page and look forward to receiving alerts on a variety of specials as they come through the Newsfeed. Thank you to admin, Wendy, for managing the page for everyone’s benefit!
I would love to hear all about your January finds and savings. Please post a comment below.
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January is “use your points” month for me. I save all my points through the year and then use them all in January 🙂
I am still in two minds about PnP online shopping. I have done it a few times but even when I click don’t sub they do and usually with something more expensive.
This Jan we actually had some cash so I was able to take advantage of a few sales which was nice! I think I may actually save up a bit each month just for that reason next year.
That’s actually a good idea – saving up those points to use in January. Thank you for that tip. 🙂 I tend to use up my points over the Christmas period, or just before, but it makes sense to use it up afterwards instead.
I was overall happy with my first order at PnP online – they didn’t sub and they also didn’t give me any plastic bags which I said I didn’t want. I might think about a repeat, depending on the specials.