Shop slowly, save money
April 16, 2009
Some people are staying out of restaurants and making an effort to prepare more meals at home to save money.
I think there are many benefits to eating at home besides the cost savings. (Though, if I’m completely honest, my husband and I end up eating out more than we should.)
Of course if you’re going to cook at home that means you need to go do some grocery shopping. It turns out — according to an opinion piece in the New York Times — that many shoppers are making costly errors when they head to the grocery store, and one is not the error that you might expect.
I always knew that going grocery shopping without a list was a recipe for a supermarket disaster. The best way to save money is to make sure you only buy what you need and also to plan meals ahead based on what items are on sale or in season. Having a list keeps you on task and saves money if can stop your hands from wandering towards things you really don’t need.
I always thought that shopping in a hurry was a big no-no. Apparently shopping slowly is what can really throw you off.
The writer of the New York Time’s piece, Kate Stein, worked last summer as a researcher for the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab. Her task was to observe the habits of thousands of shoppers at a variety of different grocery stores. What the research uncovered was that the shoppers who spent a long time mulling their purchases were the shoppers more likely to stray and buy items that were unnecessary and/or unhealthy.
The piece didn’t offer any reasoning behind this. I would like to see some more information about the study, because I think it’s very interesting. My theory is that the longer you take to shop, the more chance you have to notice unnecessary products in the store. If you are moving quickly, you’ll be focused on getting only what’s on your list and getting out.
So, if you want to manage your time, keep your costs down and your food healthier, make the list and get through it quickly.
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