Monday 14 July 2014

How to ¦ Savvy Shopping


Being a student for a little over a year now I've had to learn to cope with being on a tight budget. As such I have developed a few ways to be a "savvy shopper". I've learnt to read the offers, to fiddle with the coupons and to know when to shop. So I thought I would let y'all in on my little secrets!

1/ SHOP YOUR STASH

Possibly the most simplest forms of saving money. I don't know about you but I have this little box full of all my backups, dupes and just products that I've forgotten about. Whenever I'm on a spending ban, or I just don't have much money to spend frivolously I look through my stash of products and you will be surprised with what I come up with! Shampoos & conditioners I've opened but forgotten to use, face scrubs, face masks, make-up removers, cotton pads so much stuff. Before you think "I need that product!" take a look through you collection already and see if you have something similar and try that.

2/COUPONS

This is more towards the American's as I know y'all go crazy for couponing! But simply just trying to find coupons in your newspaper, magazine or online will be super helpful. I tend to get mine through the mail quite a bit but I also print some off from this site here. SuperSavvyMe is basically a site where you can see reviews of different products, get coupons, get the quickest sale; it's so handy! Also you have the option to write your opinions on products which are always hand to read!

3/USE THEM POINTS

Carrying on from the previous point, sign up to an points card! Pretty much everywhere make loyalty cards, where you can earn points for whatever you spend. Say you might have spent a little too much the previous month, no problem because you now have points to use on your card! My most used cards are Boots and Superdrug. But whenever I have the option to sign up to these I do; Tesco Clubcard, Space NK lotalty card, Costa card, The Works loyalty card, if you can get your hands on one, do it! Also signing up to these means you might get extra offers as well! Such as first notice of any sales, the chances for extra points and the chance for coupons!

4/OFFERS

Just be savvy with your shopping. If you see an essential that you know you're gonna need and it's on 3 for 2 then pick it up. Be smart with the offers that are in the stores right now. Even if it means you stand there for a little while figuring out what's what it'll all be worth it when you save money! Also before you plan on buying something it doesn't hurt to look online first; a lot of the time brands will have offers online that you can't get in store. Just be really conscientious of offers and where you're putting your money. It also doesn't hurt to google for coupon codes, I know I'm a sucker for doing this.

5/RETURN ITEMS

Don't be afraid to return items. Have a pair of jeans you bought a while back and haven't worn them? See if you can return them! At the very least they'll just say that you can't return them but you haven't lost anything. The other day I found two pinafores that I have had in my wardrobe since February time, from Asda. And I didn't think I could return them but I went only and clicked the return icon, took them into store and it was fine! Most of all I got an extra £20 in my account! Don't be afraid to try; just because you bought it doesn't mean you have to keep it.

6/KNOW WHEN TO SHOP

This kinda expands on the whole offer's thing. Knowing when to shop is kinda crucial if you want to save money. One of my biggest tips for this is buying summer clothing items in the winter and buying winter clothes in the summer. Quite often clothing shops have a massive turn around on all their stock; basically this means that they have to make room for new stock coming in. Alas, the sale begins! In the summer all of the winter stock goes on sale, this is the time to shop for your winter clothes! You can pick up jumpers, cardigans, jeans for less than £10. I particularly like Peacocks and Asda for these sales. And in the winter you can pick up shorts, tank tops and skirts for less than half of the price! A real simple way to save money. Also know when there's going to be a sale happening; sign up for email alerts, talk to colleagues, browse forums.

I hope this helped you to become a little bit more careful with you're money and that you picked up some tricks! I have some more tips so I may do a part 2 to this post! Let me know you're hidden tricks, I'm always looking for a bargain!

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