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Stocking
up?
So you are
wondering how all these coupon queens are buying 30 tubes of toothpaste
for next to nothing, right? They are stockpiling. Once you begin
to really keep a running tab on what your household consumes,
and the best prices of those items and where, you can then begin
to obtain your coupons in multiples.
Whether it
is through coupon services, your Sunday coupons, through trading
or wherever you will be on your way to stockpiling too. Stocking
up should be when that item is on sale only. Remember that just
because something is advertised it doesnt mean that the
item is on sale. Remember to get a rain check for out of stock
sale items too.
Keep in mind
that if you are lured into using your coupons for items that you
normally dont buy then the product manufacturers have you
hooked. Thats what they are hoping to do when offering the
manufacturers coupon. I wouldnt suggest doing this unless
it is truly a deal that couldnt be passed up.
Keep in mind unit prices when making your purchases.
Sometimes
foods packed in the largest size may appear to be the best buy.
You may think that buying one large package will not cost as much
as a couple of smaller sized packages. Larger packages dont
always cost less. It is important to look at the cost per unit
and compare this cost. The unit price tells you the cost per pound,
quart, or other unit of weight or volume of a package. It is usually
posted on the shelf. The shelf tag shows the item price and the
unit price of the item.
For example:
If oranges sell for $.90 per pound, you know that 5 pounds will
cost $4.50 (5 pounds X 90 cents).
Unit pricing
is most beneficial when the price per unit isn't as obvious.
As an example:
Cereal is
sold different sizes.
- The 14-ounce
box is $2.60.
- The 20-ounce
box is $3.50.
- The 2-pound
(32-ounce) box is $5.00
Which one
is the best buy? Unit pricing helps. (In this case, the unit price
is the price per ounce)
To figure
the unit price, divide the price by the number of units (in this
example, it's the number of ounces).
- The unit
price for the 14-ounce box is $.19 cents per ounce ($2.60/14).
- The unit
price for the 20-ounce box is $.18 cents per ounce ($3.50/20).
- The unit
price for the 2-pound box is $.16 cents per ounce (2 pounds
= 32 ounces, $5.00/32).
Compare the
unit price of each package. Which costs less per unit? In this
example, the 20-ounce package is the best buy because it costs
less per ounce. Foods that cost less per unit are not always the
better buy. The biggest size is not a good buy if you cannot consume
it before it goes bad, or if you cant properly store it.
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