With inflation hitting a three-year high of 5.2% many consumers are having to batten down the hatches and curb their spending – if they haven't done so already.
Some have been switching high street allegiances, with Morrisons (Britain's fourth-largest grocer behind Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's) attracting an extra 400,000 cash-conscious shoppers a week during the first half of 2011. According to its boss, consumers are also increasingly cooking from scratch.
In August, discount retailer Poundworld announced it had opened 27 stores in just four months to match growing demand from bargain hunters; while discount chains such as Wilkinsons, Shoe Zone, Peacocks, Card Factory and Greggs are among those showing the fastest growth in tenancies since 2008, according to a report from retail consultancy Trevor Wood Associates.
After years of buying lunch in cafes and our staff canteen, I have finally switched to packed lunches. It may be boring, but I'll be saving up to £1,000 a year by buying bread and fillings in bulk at the weekend rather than spending £5 a day on my lunchtime meal. My wife, who calculated I can save more than £100 a year simply by buying multi-packs of crisps instead of individual packs, is also keen to explore Aldi instead of Tesco, although the petrol used to get there might detract from the savings made in-store.
So have you changed your shopping habits? If so, tell us how – have you swapped stores, or just what things you buy? Are you buying in bulk or switching from branded goods to store brands?
