Impress Your Guests for Less!
Posted by Mary Caraccioli | Filed under Budget, saving, shopping
Admit it, one of the best things about the holiday season is the food. Delicious deserts, colorful cocktails and tasty treats – the holidays are a time to eat and eat lots!
However, if you have guests visiting or are throwing a holiday party, feeding everyone can get very pricey faster than you can say ‘mmm pie!’ Especially when you want to impress.
If you find the discount warehouse stores don’t offer a fancy enough selection for you, or more importantly your guests, then why not try shopping at a gourmet grocery outlet?
Gourmet grocery outlets sell high quality goods and brand names for half the price of the supermarket price – or even less than half at times! You may be able to acquire some of these items at a warehouse but could end up buying them in bulk when you really don’t need that much, and therefore spend more. Also, many times items you can get at a warehouse with 25% off will be available at a gourmet outlet for 75% off! However, the main advantage of shopping at a warehouse is the stock levels. You may find it more difficult to obtain particular items at an outlet. So when you see something you know you’ll use, stock up.
These outlets often acquire items that supermarkets have overstocked on and know they won’t use before their expiration date. This allows you to buy them at a highly discounted price. So there’s nothing at all wrong with these items – unless you have a problem with an awesome bargain?!
Last time I was there I picked up some brand name chocolate bars that cost $5 each in my local supermarket for just 25c! The only fear here is gaining weight as you cut costs…I guess I could always use them as stocking fillers instead…why is that so much less appealing?
So if you are entertaining this holiday season and need pricey ingredients for that gourmet gateau everyone expects you to make, why not search online for your nearest grocery outlet. Often times these outlets don’t have the finances to advertise their locations but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist. In fact you’ll probably be surprised by how many there are in your region.
What is more, many grocery outlets also stock health and beauty items too, so you can stock up on these for a fraction of the cost.
One word of warning: don’t just buy because it’s cheap. Remember a bargain is only a bargain if you really need that item!
So this holiday season stop disguising your cheap coffee in fancy containers and get to your nearest gourmet grocery outlet! Happy shopping and more importantly happy eating everyone!!
Tags: eating, money confidante, saving, shopping
