Some of the grocery shopping comments made in the sweatpants thread got me to thinking of my own grocery shopping habits. It occurs to me that the way I do it is modeled from my mom’s custom of doing things (although I differ in many ways).
Mother always went on Saturday morning. She would visit at least one store, sometimes two or three, depending upon what was on sale. She tried to get everything we would need for the coming week, in that one trip. She was shopping for a family of seven.
OTOH, there are folks like my friend Rosa who is from South America. She grew up going to the market every day with her mom, so she likes to go to the grocery every day.
So, here’s the poll:
Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
How many people are you shopping for?
And just for fun,
About how much does that work out per person, per week?
My answers:
Yes, I try to do one weekly trip. I like to consolidate errands and trips to the store for efficiency reasons.
I like the Kroger stores in the area, and there are two which are my number 1 and 2 favorite stores. I have been shopping at the #2 store for 20 years.
Yes, I purchase all other household items which are reasonbly priced at the grocery.
I am shopping for a family of five these days.
It runs about $25 to $35 per person, per week. It would be less if I didn’t indulge my older daughter’s penchant for organic stuffs, and my hubby’s insistence on certain brand name items (Miracle Whip, I’m looking at you).
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go? Yes, I try to do my grocery shopping for the week all at once. 2. Do you have a favorite store or stores? I tend to shop at Kroger, for the gas discount, but also because I have an eidetic memory – especially as pertains numbers, and that lets me keep up with prices – Kroger tends to have better prices consistently than Wal-Mart, Publix or the other major chains that are within easy reach. 3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store? No – for household items, I go to Wal-Mart. 4. How many people are you shopping for? 4 – 2 adults, 2 children, and we eat breakfast and dinner at home most days, and bring lunch from home.
And just for fun, 5. About how much does that work out per person, per week? It works out to approximately $30 pp per week.
We usually do every two weeks. Sometimes we have to go on the ‘off’ week to pick up one or two things.
Winco lol Sometimes we’ll make the trip to Salem (45 minutes) to go to Super Walmart but Winco is closer (barely) and less crazy.
Yup. Everything we can get at Winco, we get it. Not big fans of going to multiple stores.
3, two adults and a baby but her food is so minimal it doesn’t really count.
Uhhh yeah…my mom refuses to buy anything buy name brand so we spend anywhere from $50-$65 a week per person. Once I get moved out though, that will change
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
I go about once a month for big shopping. But I like to have fresh fruit so I pop in to get new fruit every week or so.
2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
I go to Giant Eagle, which is the only major chain in our town now. There’s also Marc’s and Aldi but I hate going to the store and not finding one or two items and then ending up at Giant Eagle anyway, so I just go there.
Also, you get 10 cents off a gallon of gas at the Giant Eagle gas station for every $50 you spend at Giant Eagle. Right now I have $1.30/gal off. It is a major incentive for me.
Oh, and I use their pharmacy. Until last week, the Walgreens in town didn’t accept my insurance so I had no other choice. Now I’m “locked in” with them.
3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
Yep, because I’m too lazy to get them elsewhere. Except for my Bon Ami - I have to go to another town to get it, but I buy like 4 cans at a time.
4. How many people are you shopping for?
Just me
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
It’s usually about $70 if I go every 2 weeks, or $130 if I wait a month. So about $35-40 per week.
I go the store once a week; Wednesday or Thursday at about 9 AM.
I went to the Schnucks in the city till I moved out here eight years ago. Then I went to the Schnucks up in town but they closed when Wal-Mart opened the supercenter. That’s where I’ve gone for a few years now: there’s an AG store and a Shop-N-Sav in town, but their produce departments just don’t cut it.
Yes, I buy household stuff at Wal-Mart, unless it’s hardware items; then I go to the Ace store on Main, which is one of those super-overstuffed old hardware stores. I also get my prescriptions at Wal-Mart, which is a huge convenience for me.
I’m shopping for one.
It’s about $30 a week: I buy whatever produce I want and I don’t worry much about the price. If you’ve seen any of my pictures in the photo threads, you *know *I’m not spending the money on clothing!
I go whenever I run out of something and impulse shop a lot. Shop for 2 people and 7 dogs, I have no idea how much time or how much money I spend on this.
**1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? **
Once a week unless we need something specific. I usually do it after work, as the wife and kids don’t make it off the mountain much in the winter. (Her car’s a neon, and is terrible in the snow) 2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Shaws - it’s that or Hannafords, and Hannafords charges more for everything, doesn’t have sales, and doesn’t have any rewards program. Between the sales,coupons, and the Shaws rewards I always save between 30 and 45%. I also hit the reduced produce, day old bakery, and dented can racks hard, but these don’t show up on the receipt as reduced, so it’s probably closer to 45 to 60%. 3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
Yes. A large portion of our grocery bill is diapers + other baby stuff. 4. How many people are you shopping for?
Four. Two adults, a 3yo, and a five month old. 5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
<$20 pp,pw
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
I go once a week for regular shopping.
2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Unless I want to go all the way down into the city there is only one supermarket (Safeway) and one good health food store in the mountain town nearest to me. They’re both OK. I just started going to Costco but I doubt that I’ll go more than every month or 2.
3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
I have been, but now I’ll get them at Costco.
4. How many people are you shopping for?
2 adults, 4 cats and a dog.
And just for fun,
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
It’s about $45 per person and $15 for the animals now, but I have a ton of stuff from Costco that will last for months.
Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?** No I do not. I work at a SuperTarget right now. So I do my grocery shopping on a Day-to-day basis picking up random things I need at random times.
Do you have a favorite store or stores? SuperTarget!!! (I get a discount). I will also get stuff at Costco when the roomie goes. 3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store? Yup. Also, my Target has really really kick-ass clearance deals. Soft towels for 5 bucks, video games, decorations etc. So I very often buy other household stuff and gifts there because you can find some REALLY nice stuff for REALLY cheap.
**
4. How many people are you shopping for?** One and a half. It’s mostly just me, but the roomie takes some stuff from time to time. I buy all of the Milk because I will go through a gallon in about a week all by myself, the roomie will have a glass or two, or cook something with it, but not enough for him to buy an entire friggen gallon. So I buy all the milk cuz of that, but he still has some.
And just for fun,
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week? Oh, jeez…uh…since I shop about every other day…I would say…$20 for me…about $5 or so for him.
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
Ivylad does the grocery shopping at Sam’s, about once or twice a month. We have a chest freezer. I go every two weeks to pick up “my” stuff (work lunches, a few odds and ends I might need)
2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
I like SuperTarget, but if I don’t need anything non-grocery, I’ll go to Publix.
3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
No, SuperTarget.
**4. How many people are you shopping for? **
At the max, four.
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
Ivylad spends about $300 every time he he goes to Sam’s, so that works out to about $37.50 a person per week. I budget $100 for “my” shopping, but I rarely spend that much, so add a max of $50 a week to that.
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
Nope. We are far too disorganized to do something THAT wacky. We go when we feel like it or there’s a particularly good sale going on or we’re out of something or we have a hankering for something specific for dinner.
2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Dominick’s, then Jewel (although lately I’ve been pretty pissed off at them), then Eurofresh, then Caputo’s, then Aldi. I wish there were still some Cub Foods around…
3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
It depends. If we are there and need them, yes. If we’re there and they’re on sale and we need them, yes. If we’re there and don’t need them, no. If we’re at WalMart and need them we’ll get them there. It all depends on where we happen to be and how much of a hassle it would involve to go to another place to get what we need.
**4. How many people are you shopping for? **
My husband and I, and a dog.
And just for fun, 5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
I have NO idea. None at all.
Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
Mostly once a week, not counting a trip to the farmer’s market some weeks. It is usually Saturday morning, and before we go we plan the meals for the week to make sure we have everything we need. Our meals are heavily influenced by the ads for the week.
Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Safeway, because they have their act together, especially wrt checkout lines. If Lucky’s has something on a good sale, we might go there.
Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
Yes, to cut down the trips.
How many people are you shopping for?
And just for fun,
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
Anywhere from $40 - $60. Some weeks we eat out of the freezer, some we buy a lot of something on sale, which drives up the price.
I never even used to notice sales but now that I’ve retired and looking at ways to cut expenses I pay more attention. If something we use regularly is on sale I’ll get as much as I can store or use before it goes bad and I’ll grab meat in bulk that I’m not planning to use right away and freeze it. We’re going to buy a freezer soon and then I’ll start buying more groceries in bulk at Costco. I won’t drive out of my way for a sale that’s going to save me less than the gas costs, though.
Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
We go one every two weeks.
Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Kroger and Biggs
Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and light bulbs, at the grocery store?
Yup all the house hold expendables.
How many people are you shopping for?
2 adults one infant
About how much does that work out per person, per week?
Our biweekly food budget is $250 for the family. We do lots of cooking at home no prepared foods, all organic veggies. And decent cheese is expensive.
We always go to King Soopers (Kroger), as do my parents, and all my siblings.
Yep, we purchase everything we need, unless there is something we cannot get there, like specific light bulbs or whatever.
Two people. The dog gets her food delivered.
Probably about $50-$75 per week, which includes lots of raw foods, and not very much prepared food. I cook dinner at least five night a week, we buy food for lunches, and I also make breakfast on the weekends.
To answer the previous question, I will delay a non-time sensitive purchase to see if something goes on sale, but I will not go to another store if a particular items is on sale there.
I am curious about the amount of meals the amounts given buy for people. I mean, I could spend like $5 a week if I ate McDonalds for every meal…
Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go? I try to do all mine in one trip, every other week on payday. I plan two weeks’ worth of meals out in advance and buy the specific items needed. I usually have to make at least one quick stop in between to pick up more soda, fruit, or whatever.
Do you have a favorite store or stores? I shop at the locally owned grocery.
Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store? Sometimes. If I have time to get to a larger town nearby where there’s KMart and such, no. If I don’t plan to make a trip there soon, yes.
How many people are you shopping for? Two
And just for fun,
About how much does that work out per person, per week? About $70; this includes dinner at home almost every night and lunch for myself every day since I go home at lunch time.
1. Do you (attempt) to do all of your grocery buying in one trip for the week (or month)? If not, how often do you go?
We try to get at least the staples done all at once. Since there are 3 grocery stores and a farm stand between work and home, I can pick up fresh produce or last-minute menu items without making any special trips. We generally shop once a week.
2. Do you have a favorite store or stores?
Yes. Stater Bros. gets the majority of our business, with Trader Joe’s and Fresh & Easy picking up most of the rest.
3. Do you purchase other household items, such as cleaning supplies and lightbulbs, at the grocery store?
These we try to purchase in bulk at Costco or Target.
**4. How many people are you shopping for? **
2 human, 5 feline
5. About how much does that work out per person, per week?
Maybe $70-75
I think I said this in my answer, but there are 4 of us (2 adults, 2 kids) and I make 90% of our meals. I cook breakfast M - F for the other 3 (I eat my breakfast later, but usually a microwave thing – specific and different dietary needs), as well as making my kids’ lunches M - F and dinner (usually) 5 out of 7 nights for the 4 of us. My husband and I like to bring leftovers for lunch, but when we can’t, we bring frozen things.
I cook the majority of what I make from scratch, so the majority of our grocery bill is bottled water (we’re on well water), meat and fresh produce. Last week, my grocery bill for the 4 of us was $98, some weeks, it is as high as $150, but it averages to $120. I don’t buy name-brand stuff generally speaking, though.
Extremely sales driven. I have a huge freezer, and my pantry is probably 6 months deep. I never pay full price for anything. Still, sales alone hardly ever get the price of anything down to the price of store brand (which is usually just name brand in a different package). With coupons and sales combined though, I doubt I pay what the store paid for most of my food.
I should also note that I can get away with <$20 per person per week because I put 40 chickens and a hog in the freezer last fall, as well as a lot of my own produce. I also canned tons of food. I cook a lot from scratch too, so meals are much cheaper. We can’t afford to eat out more than once a month or so.
