Stockpiling WHEN in 2010
Alright, since I am an anal retentive accountant (hey, at least I can admit it), I decided to go through all my old receipts from last year (2009) and see what went on sale WHEN. It seemed like many things came up over and over and over (like when I first started couponing I bought so much cereal that it lasted beyond 2 sale cycles), now I know just to buy enough for about 6-8 weeks. But hot sauce and cat litter were a different story. Those items only came up once, so a later-expiration tearpad was key! Check out the list below to see what went on sale when and we will compare it next year for the same!
January
Look for items related to New Year’s Resolutions. Weight loss pills, vitamins, cleaning supplies, organizers. January is also National Oatmeal Month and my kids love oatmeal. Also great stockup prices on cold remedies, and canned soup.
February
Lots of “Superbowl Party” related items on sale including frozen pizza, chips, and Mexican food fixings. Canned soup and chili also continued at low prices, as did cleaning supplies. A few sales on pasta and pasta sauce.
March
National Frozen Food month…however, I can’t remember any extensive deals on frozen food (although it was well advertised by the stores). Many cereal deals this month – particularly Kellogg’s and Post. I also got really good deals on ‘wraps’ like aluminum foil and parchment etc. This is about the month you’ll stop seeing deals on items such as cough drops and cold remedies.
April
Earth Day meant lots of free reusable bags, rebates, and other goodies. Watch for them again. There were some “Living Well” promotions that featured numerous healthy, organic, and green items at good prices. Trash bags and Ziplocks were at an all time low, stock up…because we haven’t seen them since. We started seeing Kraft and Kellogg’s products being pushed (Salad Dressings…yep, still got some) – this would last through late summer.
May
Watermelon was cheap, and we also started seeing a dip in dairy prices including milk, cheese, and eggs that would last well into fall. While razor deals could often be found throughout 2009, in May we saw a few deals on shaving cream/gel – a product that does not often go on sale – so take note! Same thing with tampons. Once their gone, their gone for a while. The ice cream and hot dog deals started appearing in store ads.
June
Full-fledged summer deals! Hot dogs, condiments, ice cream, and summer produce could be found at the stores. There was also a promotion on ConAgra products at Albertsons during the month (think Hunt ketchup and canned tomatoes). Grapes were at a good price. Also deals on Mexican food items such as canned refried beans and tortillas. Price on cheese was very good…$0.25 cents at WinnDixie with a Catalina. There were also a few deals on cleaning supplies and paper products around this time. Throughout the summer, deals on Band-Aids and Neosporin could be found.
July
HEAVY on Kraft and Kellogg’s deals – both offered rebates and there was an abundance of coupons including printables. Items such as mayonnaise, BBQ sauce, and tuna fish. I am just starting to run out right now! Summer produce – such as cherries, tomatoes, and plums were cheap. Hot dog and ice cream deals continued. There were also a couple notable deals on bottled water and Gatorade. The best deals on school supplies were also found in July.
August
Kraft products continued to be good buys including cheese, Capri Sun, Macaroni and Cheese, and Crystal Light. Kellogg’s products also featured in many ads thanks to their “Fuel for School” rebate. Back to school items such as granola bars and fruit snacks also began to come on sale. A few deals on Skippy Peanut Butter and Ragu could also be found. School supplies continued to be a recurring theme on the drugstore ads. Pasta deals started to pop up regularly, but ended when winter started.
September
Now we started to trend into fall cooking/baking items. Campbells began their onslaught of insert coupons, pasta and pasta sauce started to come on sale. More deals on granola bars and fruit snacks (Betty Crocker in particular) continued. There were a few last deals on hot dogs and cheese. More available for frozen food choices as well – pizza, Mexican (hooray for Hot Sauce), appetizer items. A few last deals on Band-Aids. About this time, Kashi started really pushing their cereals and these deals would last through the end of the year. Glade also seemed to issue more coupons than usual for their new Soy Fragrance Collection.
October
Halloween candy deals appeared every week on ads, and a few great printable coupons made them easy to find each week. Apples, oatmeal, Quaker items, and pancake mix were found on good deals. Nabisco launched a rebate, put out a great coupon, and the stores did a good job on the sales. Then the cold medicines started on stockup prices.
November
Pantry items were on full alert! Flour, sugar, chocolate chips, oil, spices, yeast, canned vegetables, canned fruit, and soup. And don’t forget the cheap turkey and ham. Ragu and Skippy went on stockpile prices again. Due to shortages, canned pumpkin was not a cheap one. Cocoa and tea coupons appeared in weekly inserts and stores obliged with sales. Ice Cream bogo’s with q’s continued. Batteries began going on sale in anticipation of holiday presents that would soon need them. Photo deals started cropping up. Black Friday? Can we say 48 hours of NO SLEEPING for me!! I will repeat that adventure in 2010 for SURE!!
December
Many of the November deals continued for the holidays – in particular canned and baking items. Cold/cough remedies continued and the best deals were generally found at Walgreens. While cereal deals could easily be found all year ’round, Chex in particular was found at its lowest price in December. More deals that you’d expect for the holidays were found – batteries, gift wrap (best deals at the drugstores!), and candy.
Year-Round Items
There were some deals that repeated themselves throughout the months and seasons. So you would not need to worry about stockpiling as much because another sale is likely to come up soon.
Gum, Cereal, Yogurt, Coffee, Coffee, Razors, Air Fresheners (Glade, Airwick), Diapers (although some deals were certainly better than others!!), Shampoo & Conditioner etc, Deodorant, Toothbrushes, Cosmetics, Toilet Paper.
I hope that was helpful to you as you plan for the year ahead. Happy Stockpiling!
