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I shop at Walmart and have no problems. They don't sell meat and vegetables at the ones in San Diego, anyway, and I wouldn't buy them there, even if they did. I go to the ethnic grocery stores for all of my produce, and some of my meat. If there's meat on sale at Ralph's/Albertsons/Vons, and it's something that I need, and at a good price, I'll buy it. Otherwise, I don't shop there. I buy my cereal at Walmart and Target for $3.00 per box, with a $1.00 coupon off. The same cereal in a grocery store is $4.00 per box.
To each their own, I shop for bargains, and go where it's cheap. That includes buying Wellness canned cat food that costs $1.59 per can, but with my $1.00 coupons, I only pay $.59 per can.
Cereal is one of those things that I don't buy until it is on sale at the grocery store. B1G1 at Publix then with a $1 off coupon for a regular $4 box of cereal become $1.50. Stock up enough on times like these and I never have to step foot in Walmart. Whippee!
When the cereal that I eat goes on sale at the grocery stores, it's STILL too expensive, and it's still much cheaper to buy it at Walmart.
No way is it cheaper at Wal*Mart when on sale at grocery stores - especially when combined w/coupons! I am going today to Publix, and they have BOGO on Special K 14 oz. & on General Mills cereal (we buy Multi-grain Cheerios). With coupons, I will get 3 boxes of Special K for $3 and 2 boxes of M/G Cheerios for $2.69
There are no Publix in Southern California, and I get my cereal for $1.50-$2.00 per box at Walmart. No grocery store can compare with that. The last box of multi-grain Cheerios that I bought was free.
I was at Walmart the other day and picked up a different brand of cereal - brand name, cost $2.50/box. Liked it better than my "old faithful", so when I was at HEB I thought I'd pick up a box there. Put it back on the shelf - it was $3.25. These were regular prices, not sale prices, in both cases.
There are posts here of people proud to say that when they go shopping for groceries in a given day, they go to three separate stores? Just to save a few bucks? Seriously? So let me see if I understand this.
You go to store 1 (estimated cost of $.5-$3 in gas depending on how far away it is). Do your shopping, get some "savings" (which really aren't savings because they just dropped the profit margin a tickle).
You go store 2 (estimated cost of $.5 - $3 in gas depending on how far away it is and whether you went home first to drop off the first grocery bag set). Do your shopping, get some "savings" (which really aren't savings because they just dropped the profit margin a tickle), not noticing of course that the price at store 2 for the items you bought at store 1 isn't really all that much higher in comparison.
You go to store 3 (estimated cost of $.5 - $3 in gas depending on how far away it is and whether you went home first to drop off the first grocery bag set). Do your shopping, get some "savings" (which really aren't savings because they just dropped the profit margin a tickle), not noticing of course that the prices of the items you bought at store 1 and store 2 aren't really all that much higher in comparison.
So let's lay this out.
- Maximum estimated potential cost in gas: $9 for one day.
- Trips to buy groceries depending on family: 2-4 days a month.
- Estimated value of excess food gone bad: ~$50
So you figure $86 wasted, in order to save $100, for a net savings of $14. Versus just evaluating what you need to carry you to the next grocery day - say, twice a month - and getting it all from the first store, even if it results in a slight increase in the amount of money you pay for the items, where you'd net it out in the gas and waste savings. Hmm.
Anyway, I don't get groceries at Wallyworld. I don't shop there at all. I find the place deplorable. Something's wrong with a place where they tell your staff to remain happy at all times yet they're in the news for gender discrimination and underpaid wages. My path goes as follows:
- Go into Vons/Albertsons.
- Get groceries.
- Swipe Vons/Albertsons card.
- Leave.
Lather/rinse/repeat once a month.
I also agree with what Buckeye in SC says... For me to get to my favorite store to shop, Publix, I pass a Bi-Lo and a Bloom (Food Lion). I have thermal bags in my car which I bought years ago which I can put perishables in. If I'm buying something like ice cream on a hot day, I may have to deviate slightly and pick that up last.
So in your scenerio, I'm using about .15 cents more in gas buy pulling into a parking lot, but saving much, much more. And I don't see where you can be wasting $50 on spoiled food? I have three kids, they eat it up plus more. Occasionally we may through away some stuff that went past its expiration date, but hardly $50 worth a month. That's downright wasteful IMO.
The only downside of doing this is time.
As for my family, I usually only hit one or two stores a week, not including a stop at CVS for free stuff. Using coupons wisely and following a plan, I spend less than $50 a week for a family of 5.
I was at Walmart the other day and picked up a different brand of cereal - brand name, cost $2.50/box. Liked it better than my "old faithful", so when I was at HEB I thought I'd pick up a box there. Put it back on the shelf - it was $3.25. These were regular prices, not sale prices, in both cases.
Grocery stores (including walmart) change prices regularly. I bet if you go back in a month the price will not be the same.
I do a big grocery shopping with my coupons at Walmart once a month, and the prices have never changed. Prices on some things may change by a few cents, but it never has on cereal, and I still save quite a bit on my bill.
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