I’ve saved £10k by changing the way I buy my food – now my family-of-four eat for £3 per day & I’ve cleared my £30k debt
10 YEARS ago, Al Baker had it all.
The dad-of-two, from Aldershot, Hampshire, ran his own company selling American goods in the UK – which allowed him and his family to lead a very “comfortable” lifestyle.
“Life was pretty good – I had a nice car, money in my pocket, owned a house and had nice holidays,” he said.
But in 2014, new import rules limited how Al could run his business – and three years later, he was forced to file for bankruptcy.
He explained: “As I had personal guarantees, I became liable for £300,000 for a large percentage of the debt.
“Although I did my best to keep up with payments for the debts, I was in a position where I was unable to pay so I had to make myself bankrupt.”
Read More on Food Shopping
As a result, Al had no choice but to sell the family home and move into a rental property which cost £1,500-a-month.
He said: “Every month we hoped there would be a new miracle that would give us just enough money so we would be able to pay the rent.
“I was suffering from severe depression and anxiety with little idea on how the next bill would be paid and it affected me deeply. I had little idea on how things were going to improve.
“As someone who had experienced a better lifestyle when the business was booming, being thrown into a new world of desperation and poverty when it all crashed around me was a short and sharp wake up call.”
Most read in Fabulous
During that time, Al and the family became pros at shopping yellow sticker bargains in supermarkets and still continue to snap up salmon fillets reduced from £6 to 62p and huge meat joints for a fraction of the price.
He explained: “We were able to survive due to savvy shopping and had £3-£4 a day budget for food and shopping – which the yellow sticker buying made possible, otherwise we’d have had no chance.
“I suspect I saved around £10,000 over the most important two years when our finances were at their worst.”
Describing it as a “way of life”, Al said: “You’ll save up to 90 per cent by ensuring you snap up bargains which can stretch your food budget.”
What’s more, the dad – who works in e-commerce for a local company – also swears by cashback apps and websites.
He continued: “If you are buying something online, always go through a cashback site – why wouldn’t you want to earn cash back on something you need to buy anyway?
“Use the cashback sites to buy gift cards for purchases you need to make in-store, not online. As an example, you may spend £250 a month at your local supermarket, which you are unlikely to get cashback on.
We were able to survive due to savvy shopping and had £3-£4 a day budget for food and shopping – which the yellow sticker buying made possible, otherwise we’d have had no chance.
“However, if you buy a gift card for your supermarket, you will generally earn between three and five per cent cashback for purchasing the gift card, so potentially that’s £12.50 a month in cashback, maybe more.
“If you buy supermarket fuel, you can also use a gift card to pay. My van costs me £100 a time to fill up; I get five per cent cashback on a £100 gift card, so I save £5 every time I fill up, and the more you use your car, the more you will save.”
Ultimately, Al stressed how important it is not to fall into the trap of impulse spending.
He explained: “Take a breath when looking to buy something! Don’t be impulsive – sleep on what you are going to buy and you may well think differently.
“But if it’s something you need to buy, and are buying online, pop the item in the cart and leave it. You will likely get an email reminding you that you still have something in your cart.
Read More on The Sun
“Often you will get a discount code to use on your purchase, reducing the cost – and make sure you can’t buy it cheaper by using Google shopping to find out who’s cheapest.
“You can also install a browser extension such as Honey, which will automatically apply discount codes to your cart to try and save you money.”
For more money-saving tips, check out Al’s blog The Penny Pincher.
