For day 3 of the 7 days of Stockpiling I wanted to share with you How to Build a Stockpile.  In case you missed Day 1 and Day 2 you can catch up.

You are going to change your way of thinking when shopping. Instead of making a list for what you need weekly you are going to start shopping for what you use in a 3 month period of time or longer depending on the shelf life of the items on your list. Some items won’t expire for a year or more so you can stockpile those items for a longer time. You are going to begin by purchasing and stockpiling items when they are on sale or hit “rock bottom”. Building your stockpile will take a lot of hard work and dedication. If you feel overwhelmed that is normal, just keep going because the outcome is going to be worth it. After you have built your stockpile you are going to start saving hundreds of dollars a month, each and every month!

Your goal is to be able to shop from your stockpile weekly instead of from the grocery store. You will end up only purchasing perishable food weekly. Another way to save money is to freeze items that are at “rock bottom”.

Items to stockpile may include but are not limited to:

Once you establish your stockpile you are going to really be able to start seeing the savings month after month.

Now how do you know when an item is at Rock Bottom?  You have to understand the sales cycle.

Think logically when it comes to understanding the sales cycle.  Products normally hit rock bottom at the time of the year they will be used or right before that season.  When an item is at rock bottom this is when you want to search for an available coupon to match to the sale price.  I personally advise you to purchase your coupon when it becomes available in the hopes that you you will find a great sale in the future as coupons are often hard to purchase the week they deal becomes available.  When an item is at rock bottom and you have a coupon to match this is when you stockpile.

In the past products have cycled like this.

November – Cough Medicine, Cold Medicine, Soup (Campbell’s), Jello, Oats (Quaker), Tissues

December – Carnation Milk, Baking ingredients, Wet Wipes

Summer – BBQ Sauce, Marinades, Condiments, Country Time Lemonade, Charcoal

July & August – Back to School Supplies

Also know that toilet paper and cereal cycle every 6 weeks.   So you want to watch the brand you use and purchase it when it is at it lowest price in the cycle.  Hopefully you have a coupon to match and when you do this is stockpile time!

Matching is comparing the sale ad with items that are at rock bottom to an available coupon.  It is important that you stockpile when an item is at rock bottom (70% off) and when you have a coupon.  Monitoring the sales cycle and/or keeping a price book will help you figure out when to stockpile a product.

In general brands will have a major sale 1-2 times a year.  Stores will offer special sales on those brands during that time.  For example Meijer will host a Lysol sale and Kroger will host a General Mills sale on average at least twice a year.  During this time coupons and catalina offers “normally” match making it a perfect time to stockpile on those products.  Both of which have a nice shelf life!

You can often get a good stockpile price on meat if your store offers a one day Meat sale.  In my area $1.99 lb is a good price for 93/7 ground beef.  When you find a managers special or sale price on meat even if it is near expiration bring it home and immediately prepare it for freezing.  This extends the shelf life of the meat and allows you to take advantage of the deal that you just found.  I suggest using the foodsaver to really protect and take advantage of those sales.

Also, Kroger marks down meat between 6-8 am every morning.  This is a good time to stockpile when you can find meat that is at a nice sale price plus markdown.  You do need to shop early to find markdowns though.  The early bird gets the worm.  Don’t hesitate to ask your local butcher at your store when they do meat markdowns!

I hope this helps you understand the sales cycle and prepares you for ordering coupons and what to stockpile during the year!  It takes at least 3 months to build a stockpile and before you see the major savings.  Stick with it because it is worth the time!

7 Days of Stockpiling Series:

Day 1 -Utilizing Coupon Clippers

Day 2 – Organizing Your Coupons

Day 3 – How Do I Build A Stockpile?

Day 4 - How To Be An Extreme Couponer

Day 5 – Overage

Day 6 – Utilizing the Freezer

Day 7 – Living in the “Land” of Doubles

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