Becoming a purchasing manager

Mary's suggestions brought to mind an article I read several years ago. It was about how one family saved a bundle on food, but it wasn't just the typical "clip coupons, shop sales, yada yada yada."

What stuck with me was one comment from the wife/mother, when she mentioned she had trained herself to behave like a purchasing manager instead of a grocery shopper, and that got me thinking about how to really manage my family's grocery purchases, instead of buying when it was convenient to shop, or when we absolutely needed to re-stock the pantry and fridge.

Here are the 7 disciplines I've tried to implement (with varying degrees of success) into my shopping mentality:

1. Know your staples. What is it you ALWAYS have on hand? List them out, even the paper goods, cleaning and personal care items. (ESPECIALLY these last ones, because they will store the longest, and you can really stock up when there's a good sale going on.)

2. Know your prices. Yes, it's a pain to sit down and figure out what all these items normally cost, but it's worth it to know you have a basis for comparison when someone is running a "sale" - is it a bargain, or not? (I continue to be amazed at how many stores will advertise a "sale" price that's higher than what I'd EVER pay for the item.)

3. Keep a price book. I filled in mine with the items we always have on hand, grouped them to correspond to the sections of my coupon sorter. And I keep track of the lowest prices on these items, as well as their everyday prices.

4. Scan the whole paper AND the sale ads every week. Our newspaper has some terrific deals that are advertised in the middle of the first section - I have no idea why. But I always scan through that section, just to check. Then I figure out if it's really a sale.

Example: this summer, our Kroger's ran Capri Sun juice pouches, box of 10 for $1. That was an excellent buy - they're normally $1.75-$2.00 per box of ten. DD and DS take them in their lunch, and we need them when it's our turn to provide refreshments to the soccer team. I start really stocking up when I can save 50% off or more on an item we use regularly.

5. Figure out how much to buy. Actually, this is a two-part question:
a) What's the shelf life of the item? and
b) How much would we normally consume within that amount of time?

To continue my example, I bought 25 boxes of Capri Sun. (There was a limit of five, so I took a couple kids with me, and we made several trips during the sale dates.) I figure we use just under one box a week, and there are 30-some weeks of lunches during the school year, and I backed off from that number since they do eat at school occasionally. My supply might not last me the whole year, but I know the last pouch will still be safe to drink, whenever that may be.

6. Find storage space. This is probably one of the toughest hurdles (next to figuring out how to have enough $$ to stock up.) But IMO, wire shelving is pretty cheap, and most closet space isn't fully utilized. Find some unused space in the top of closets (especially a kids' room or laundry room) and add a few shelves. Just don't forget where you put stuff!!!

7. (really important) Force yourself to use the sale items at the same rate you would if you paid full price. I discovered early on that stocking up can lead to excessive consumption, especially on snacks and beverages. My family knows if it isn't in the pantry or fridge, it's off limits; I dole things out as we need them. Otherwise, my cache of Capri Sun boxes could easily disappear in a few weeks, if I allowed them to drink all they wanted.

So what are some of the buys I look for?

Tuna - 4/$1 is when I really stock up. Otherwise, 3/$1 is still a good price around here (everyday price is $.40/can)

Butter - $.99/lb. Usually around Thanksgiving, someone will offer this special. And I buy 10-12 pounds and freeze them. That much will last us about a year.

Sugar - $.99/5 lbs. Again, holiday baking seems to bring out this loss leader. When I find it at this price (or even $.99/4 lbs), I buy anywhere from 5-20 bags of sugar, depending on the per-customer limit, how much room I have, etc.

Whole chickens - anything under $.50/pound is a decent price. But unless I find them for under $.40/pound I don't stock up much, because I need the freezer space for other things.

Canned soup - 4/$1 for tomato and/or chicken noodle soup is when I get serious about buying it. My kids will take a mug of it in their lunch, or use it as an afternoon snack during the school year - it's hard to beat $.25 for their main course in their lunchbox.

Shampoo - with coupons and rebates, I can normally get 12-ounce bottles for $.50 to free. If we run out, I pay around $3.50 for a 32-ounce bottle.

Toothpaste - like shampoo, I try to use the coupons and rebates to keep the cost as low as possible, and usually have pretty good success. If we run out, the Equate brand (WalMart) is comparable to Colgate, although a little bland. And it's under $1/tube, so that's my benchmark when I'm comparing prices.

So how does everyone else approach stocking up? What are your best tips, and when do you decide to stock up on something?