Great 'Best stuff to buy in bulk' Hunt

The key for me is only to buy bulk of things that you don't use more of just because it is in the house

I have a booker card, so I buy catering packs of essentials such as teabags, bleach, washing powder

All much cheaper than smaller packs

My dogs have Beta pet food and I always buy it when the large bags are 'buy 1 get second half price" at Pets at Home. When buying vet drugs online, not only do I look at generic drugs and different brands (eg I get Loxicom instead of metacam) I always buy the largest amount I can get at a time. Frontline, the anti-flea 'spot-on' stuff is expensive but other makes I've tried are either ineffective or have caused a nasty reaction. On ebay there are sellers from the USA selling it cheap because they buy in the largest pipette sizes (which are cheaper per ml than that sold for small/medium dogs) of Frontline then provide you with a syringe, storage container and dosage instructions - apparently this is common practice at dog shelters, vets etc. Yes, I know there are risks but they come sealed and I figure it's not profitable enough for people to sell fakes, yet. It's worked really well so far, but next time I'm going to check out whether I can 'cut out the middleman'. If anyone buys Pedigree dog food it used to be the case that if you had 3 or more dogs you could be lassed as a breeder and buy in bulk, at lower prices - not sure now. I've negotiated a deal with my local hardware store on boxes of pigs ears which work out a lot cheaper than buying them individually.BUT You do have to be disciplined and ration them because if you just use more it's not a saving and you'll end up with rather rotund pets! I learned this trick at uni, I persuaded a local shop to sell me crisps and chocolate by the box then sold them at a profit in halls of residence!

I'm looking forward to reading what everyone else has to say!

Elizabeth

With the VAT going up I am planning to stock up on cat litter and Felix pouches

I find toiletries the best thing to buy in bulk. I always buy the same items when I see an offer, and as such have a stockpile and never pay full price

I think for the individual, bulk buying doesn't save much. You only have to lose/damage/give away a couple of items to wipe out the savings. Of course there will be the odd exception, but you have to figure in storage costs, transport and so on as well. I'm sure that buying wisely when you need it probably trumps having cupboards stuffed with catering packs of coffee, 100's of toilet rolls and so on

spikedouglas wrote: »

I think for the individual, bulk buying doesn't save much. You only have to lose/damage/give away a couple of items to wipe out the savings. Of course there will be the odd exception, but you have to figure in storage costs, transport and so on as well. I'm sure that buying wisely when you need it probably trumps having cupboards stuffed with catering packs of coffee, 100's of toilet rolls and so on

Tend to agree from experience, plus I've found that I may have to give something up e.g. for health reasons or otherwise no longer can or want to use something. It can be easy to go overboard on this.

Some examples - being a smoker/drinker, bulk buying cigarettes/alcohol but then quitting, finding out you have an allergy or are intolerant to a food, deciding to do a diet that cuts out food e.g. GI cuts out refined and processed foods, etc.

Although I do bulk buying of, say, up to 10 rather than 100. Toilet paper, tins of tuna, tins of plum tomatoes, anti-perspirant, toothpaste, coffee and tea are the main ones. Basically, stuff that has a long shelf life.