The Great 'What to buy/not to buy in pound shops' Hunt

Winter_Phoenix

Petroleum jelly is always good value at cheap shops. Either it's Vaseline intended for foreign markets (in which case the label is probably in Greek, or the company address is given as South Africa, etc.) or it's a brand such as Cotton Tree.

Both are a far softer version of petroleum jelly than the standard Vaseline we usually get in the UK, so it's much easier to smooth it onto the skin, and much less of it is needed for good coverage.

Jo4

auguste1 wrote: »

Poundland cold sore cream same one as Boots who charge £6.

Is this the Poundland cold sore cream so I will know what I am looking for the next time I am in a store?

41_and_i_know_it

Home Bargains, B and M bargains, and the like tend to be cheaper, because there is nothing more hurtful than buying in pound shops to find it cheaper somewhere else, been there bought the t-shirt (not for a pound lol).
However, I usually buy 3 kinder buenos for 99p which is good value.
Avoid milka bars as only 59p in sainsburys.

John_Pierpoint

Winter_Phoenix wrote: »

Petroleum jelly is always good value at cheap shops. Either it's Vaseline intended for foreign markets (in which case the label is probably in Greek, or the company address is given as South Africa, etc.).

As someone who got instructed by lawyers that I would go to court faster than you can say knife, for writing Vaseline without putting "Vaseline" round it plus an acknowledgement naming the company owning the trade mark [and thus had to pulp a load of care instructions and reprint with petroleum jelly];
I am all in favour of unravelling attempts to rip us off in the UK, by using "parallel imports"if they are available..
Pricing is a game played at all sorts of levels, the marginal cost of producing petroleum jelly is probably very low, but if we are suckers enough to pay inflated prices, remember "sheep would not have been given woolly coats if they were not meant for shearing".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaseline

laloola

Bad Stuff:

I bought a little LED torch on a caribiner from PL, got it home and it didn't work. Never bothered taking it back as would have cost me more than a quid for the bus fare.

A little book light for my Kindle - Think the connections inside were dodgey as if you moved the light went out.

Used to get cans of 330ml Emerge energy at 4 for £1 (25p each), but have since found using my Costco membership that I can get a full tray of 24 cans for £4.79 inc VAT (20p per can), obviously though if you don't have a Costco membership then PL is still the best.


Good Stuff:

The cosmetics if caught at the right time can be good with brands like Rimmel, Revlon, Sally Hansen etc Some of it is garbage though and some times the nail varnish colours are a bit gareish to say the least.

Craft stuff - I make my own greetings cards and can pick up packs of scrap papers and diecuts. Also spray glue, i've never seen this cheaper and it's ok for paper use. Not sure i'd use it for anything stronger.

Have bought melamine Garden/picnic plates and glasses etc, very good quality for the price.

Also bought tinsel and baubles in the past which look as good as any you could pay up to £10 for from other places.

misthaufen01

Bad (or not great) stuff:

• Brown paper isn't usually worth it. It looks appealing at £1 (that's the point of pound shops, after all), but if you look at the length on the roll it's more cost effective to get a much longer roll from WH Smith or Staples.

• Branded batteries can be dodgy. I've bought giant packs of branded (Sony) batteries that have all been DOA, despite being in date. Also, other battery purchases have turned out to be out of date after getting home.

• Padded envelopes are usually cheaper than bigger high street stationary shops and considerably cheaper than the Post Office, but if you sell a lot on ebay you’re best off buying boxes of 100+ from ebay or Amazon.

Good stuff:

• Light bulbs. Our flat is mostly illuminated by those little spotlights, which you can pick up in packs of 2 in the pound shop. They can be a bit hit and miss (I suspect due to the transport/ handling as they’re fragile); I’ve had some that were DOA or blew after a week, but some have lasted over a year. Even considering a few duds, they work out much cheaper than B&Q. If you see them, ensure they’re the right fitting (there are 2 main types) and buy as many as you can carry home!

• Bubble wrap. This is quite rare in our pound shops, but every so often one of them will get some in, and the rolls are quite long too. Great for ebay items or if you’re moving house.

• Unbranded batteries. As these are aimed more at pound shops, you aren’t as likely to get a bad batch. Not much good for high usage devices such as cameras, but great for TV remotes, clocks and smoke alarms. 9v (square) can be picked up in packs of 2 or even 3 in pound shops, whereas the local Tesco will charge £3.50+ for the cheapest single one.

• Suitcase padlocks. Bought a pack of 3 and they worked a treat.

Mantha21

oldvicar wrote: »

Condoms - £1 a dozen in Poundland. Debateable bargain this one, because they are freely available elsewhere.

i cant help but wonder at the reliability of these, considering the quality of some of their other products......


good:
flat watch-type batteries - variety pack of about a dozen, pay nearly £3 for one in sains
as others have said, the clip top boxes, have so many in so many different sizes now lol
also camping stuff, recently a tent peg and puller set - pegs were useless but we bought it just for the puller, cheaper than elsewhere and good quality, nice and strong (ironically the puller didnt fit the pegs it came with :rotfl:)
tomato kit - came with seeds, soil and propogater tray - grew sooooo much better than the other tom seeds i bought for £2.35!
gotta second the branded toiletries - got 250ml listerine enamel care mouthwash, cheapest i've found it elsewhere was 500ml for £2.50
knee-length socks - very stretchy and longer than the likes of primark (they stay up better too lol)
OH buys lots of DIY gadget-y tool-y bits and never really complains
instant bbqs - last about 45mins to an hour rather than the 1hr30 they claim but great for an inpromtu bbq on the beach (my bro & OH took half a dozen to download and lived on burgers all weekend)
lighters - 5 for £1, have paid £1.29 for 1 when desperate
crafty bits - sticky jewel thingies are great for card making, and get loads in the pack
gift bags - can often get packs of 3 or 6 in various sizes

decorative wellies (like clay ones for the garden) - not exactly necessary or money saving but my mum loves them and keeps breaking them. at £1 a time i can keep being a nice daughter and buying her new ones :A



bad:
with food items you've really got to know the prices and quantities elsewhere and as others have said, always check the pack sizes and dates
tooth whitening powder - 69p in savers
dime bars - 97p in wilko
toys - some are really good bargains, some are very cheaply made and wont even make it home
sponges and bath squishy things - 39p/69p ish in wilko (and they're bigger)


I tend to go into wilko first and see if what im after is less than a £ before i go into PL (unfortunately theres no BM or HB near me )


oh and PL seems to be the only place i can find giant soft foam bananas but not at pick 'n' mix prices!

Pee

I find a poundland spend what you want shopping spree gives me the biggest buzz that anything "wasted" is actually classed as sheer enjoyment and saves money elsewhere.
I agree with food you need to price up elsewhere and I would say 50% of the food is a deal and 50% is cheaper elsewhere.
I find the shampoo and conditioner, if suitable, can be a lot cheaper than ever BOGOF deals elsewhere.
Some things are clearly substandard, but some are clearly brilliant.

shazzprozz

Poundland disposable bbqs are very good..don't buy inflatable camping pillows. had 2 different ones from pound shops and both popped on blowi:eek:ng up.

adamnsu

Here is my take on the Pound Land/99 p store

Things to buy:
- Toilet roll (*6)
- Kitchen roll (*6)
- Ballon Pump
- Mutli phone charger (iphone, samsung). Doesnt charge very fast but does its job. Use it at work.
- Bubbles for kids (*6)
- Whole Peppercorn
- 3/4 soft drinks cans. However supermarkets offer even cheaper deals for mutli packs.
- Shoe shiner
- Coat Bag
- Tooth picks (*6)
- PC bluetooth adapter
- Multi plugs
- Gillette shaving FOAM
- Multi pack of crisps
- Roasting tin
- Extra large smints pack
- Halloween stuff
- Cleaning wipes

Not to buy:
- Cometics/shampoos. I dont know know how much truth there is but someone told me the quality of the well known brands in these stores are of an inferior quality
- Unbranded disposable razor blades. Its like using a blunt knife.
- Umbrellas.
- Cleaning products like bleach/washing up liquid as it might be cheaper else where