Save Money with Manager’s Specials
“Manager’s Specials”, “reduced for quick sale”, “markdown’s”, whatever your store calls them; they are great for saving money on groceries. Stores will mark down items like meat, produce, dairy, and bread when they don’t think they will be able to sell it before it expires. There is the potential to save a lot of money if you know how to take advantage of these discounts.
Meat is one of the most expensive categories in grocery budgets. Buying your meat on manager’s special will reduce your bill considerably. Check out the expiration dates though. If you buy meat that is expiring that day, be sure to cook it right away or freeze it once you get home. If you find a really great deal, stock up! Freeze it and you’ll have cheap meat that will last you quite a while! Always inspect the meat before you buy it. Expiration dates are just estimations. If the meat looks or smells bad – don’t buy it!
Produce is another budget killer. Buying produce on sale is the only way to go. Occasionally you will find markdowns in the produce department. Bananas, bags of apples and oranges, and bagged salad are a few of the items you should check for markdown stickers. Just remember not to buy more than you can eat before they go bad!
Dairy items to look for on markdown are milk, cheese, sour cream, yogurt, and creamer. Make sure to check the expiration dates on these since it is harder to tell if they’ve gone bad. Some of these items can be frozen as well.
Bakery items that have been marked down can be found at nearly every store. Bread, rolls, tortillas, and desserts are popular items to look for. There will usually be some sort of rack that says something along the lines of “Ooops! We baked too much!”
Save even more on these items by combining these sales with coupons! As far as I know, stores will accept coupons on marked down items. Make sure to point out the markdown sticker to the cashier. Not all items will scan at the correct price and may need to be adjusted.
If you can’t find the markdown section of your store, ask an employee. Your store might not have one and the items may be mixed in with all the regular priced items.
Don’t see a markdown? Ask for it! If you see an item with a looming expiration date, point it out and they will likely mark it down for you. They also tend to be more generous with the discounts when you’re standing right there!
Knowing when to shop for these discounts is key. Find out what day your store marks down these items in order to get the best selection. Stores generally mark down on Tuesdays or Wednesdays after the weekend rush is over.
Do you shop for manager’s specials? Does your store have a special spot for them or do you have to search? I’d love to hear!
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The meat is such a great suggestion. I LOVE to find a great cut of steak in the managers special section at a really good price. It’s rare that steak, or a really good cut of steak, is anywhere near cheap enough for me to put it into my cart. This is about the only way my husband ever gets any!
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Yes, I love to find orange and yellow stickers at Kroger. I always go at least twice a week on the days they mark things down. Great post! That corned beef brisket made me think of reubens-yum!
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Does anyone have a suggestion on how to find out what days things are marked down? I used to find manager’s special meats constantly but I haven’t seen any in a long while at either my Krogs or Tom Thumb.
If I go on Tuesday, I find it more difficult to get items that are in the ads about to expire. Fridays are the least busy most well stocked days for me (particularly if you wait until about 7pm) usually, but never any manager’s specials. What’s a girl to do?
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Nice post
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This is one of the ways I’ve shopped for a long time, well before couponing. Every time I go to the grocery store I look at their meats to see if anything is marked down, they even do this at Sams club so you can really get some good deals. I tend to look every time I go and it’s funny how we end up w/ tons of one kind of food. For a few weeks we had mostly pork products now it seems they are doing a lot of chicken so it evens out! I rarely buy meat unless it’s reduced or on sale for a great deal. it’s too expensive to feed a family of 5 any other way!
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My Krogers marks down organic milk frequently, so don’t forget to look in the organic section.
As for meat, I tend to by beef at Costco because the prices on the steak and pork chops are the same or slightly lower per pound and the cuts are excellent for the price. I haven’t been lucky in finding managers specials on meat.
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