Cheap skate or savvy

Snakeeyes21

Ive just seen this thread over on HUKD and wondered what you guys thought.
http://www.hotukdeals.com/item/581008/cheap-skate-or-savvy

This is the text from the poster,

"As has been kindly pointed out by somebody on another thread im a cheap skate, apparantly because I choose to spend my money a bit more wisely by shopping in the likes of aldi, lidl, poundland etc

So does shopping in these types of shops make you a cheap skate or are you just being a savvy shopper?"


I personally shop in the discounters as i have little money, and the larger supermarkets are out of town so the cost of a bus / taxi to get back with my shopping isn't worth spending for the little i may save.

pipkin71

I buy where I can get the price the cheapest.

Due to disability, I can't actually get round the shops much, but I have friends / family who live near certain stores who will shop for me

So, if something is cheaper in Morrisons, my mum will pick them up. If something is cheaper in Somerfield, a friend will pick them up and so on

Savvy or cheapskate? It doesn't really matter what anyone else thinks, imo. Everyone needs to shop to their budget and if that means shopping at the cheaper stores, then so be it.

Kimitatsu

Why is it anyone elses business as to where you shop? Personally I am lucky, I live out in the stix so I have to travel to a supermarket wherever I go. So I tend to plan my shopping as to who has the best offers on that week, some weeks I will shop at Netto, Waitrose and Lidl, others it will be M&S, Morrisons and Aldi (depends on the direction I am travelling in!)

All of these stores have good offers on at differing times and it is not about whether you are a cheapskate, its about availability and how you can stretch your budget to get the best value for money.

andygb

I would only describe someone as a "cheap skate" if they simply bought the cheapest possible every time, without taking into account quality.
A lot of people on this forum bake their own bread, does that make them a cheap skate because each loaf costs about 30p?
I made a sausage curry yesterday, using Paul Rankin sausages on offer in Waitrose. The whole meal cost around £3 to make (sausages £1.79 ish), and will feed six (well it will feed me four to six times), does that mean I am a cheap skate?
I have to economise more than ever at the moment, so I would never be judgemental about anyone else.

valk_scot

It's more "Thrifty or spendthift?" or "Sensible or just plain daft?" in my mind. What's the big deal about spending more money on a product where the only advantage is it gets packed in a different carrier bag?

I shop everywhere from M&S (chickens!!!) to Lidl (bacon & muesli) because I think I get the best quality for the least money that way. For a lot of other things I buy where the deals are. Surely this is only sensible?

DianaMattos

Sometimes people don't have a choice but to buy the cheapest of the cheap if they want to eat anything. To me, being a cheapskate is buying the cheapest of the cheap even though you don't have to, but yet not being generous with what you have saved. Otherwise, what is the point?

scotrae

Savvy!

My children sometimes have a moan that I'll only buy food if it's reduced for quick sale or on special offer (not entirely true) and that I won't do anything "unless MSE and Martin Lewis say so". But they didn't complain about the selection of Christmas gifts that they thought had cost a fortune (largely Grabbit forum tip offs and savvy shopping) or our budget sightseeing trip to London.

Neither did they turn their nose up at the five buckets of mini Jaffa Cakes @ 31p each yesterday (RRP over £2.50) with a BB date of March.:j

I decide which shop to go to on the basis of the offers available and I'm far more 'savvy' since losing my job. It's for the individual to find the balance that works for them and meets all their goals.

phizzimum

In my experience, people who turn their noses up at Lidl have usually never shopped there. the food is the same quality as any other supermarket - but you save money because you're not paying for huge advertising campaigns or free plastic bags.

I often jokingly refer to myself as a cheapskate - my friends know I make every penny count, but I hope they don't think I'm mean or tight fisted with them or my kids. I just think people are mugs if they pay over the odds purely for a "name".

vodkawitch1

Isn`t it sad that it actually matters to some people were we shop. Most of my shopping is done in poundland and the markets and if people think I am a cheapskate I don`t really care.

parsonswife8

:money:I'd rather be thought of as a cheapskate, then get myself into debt, just to keep up with the Joneses.:money:

bungle4x4

this is the very definition of a cake munching cheapskate.

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2196593