Utilitarian Purchases

The following idea is, in a sense, an extension to the idea of bulk sale grocery shopping.  Essentially, the same concept can be applied to the rest of your budget if you organize it in a way that allows you to maximize savings potential.  To make more sense of it, first make a list of categories that you can place all your purchases in.  As soon as you get a general idea of the type of stuff you buy, separate your purchases within each category into two categories: those that are purely utilitarian, and purchases you buy for pleasure (or in other words, things you need and things you want, respectively).

As soon as you have separated all of your purchases into these categories and subcategories, the savings can commence.  Whenever you go shopping, whether it’s for groceries or for other essential items like clothing, take what you put under “utility” and look for great deals on those items.  Clothing that can go under utility can be thought of your everyday items like socks and perhaps underwear.  When you see a great deal of any of these things, force yourself to make a massive bulk purchase.  You will always need socks, and you will most likely have the same style for a very long time.

The great thing about this tactic is that even if it is not super essential for your to save a ton of money, it will free up a large quantity of money that you can end up using for more fun purchases that you would have felt guilty about making at some other time. You can even go further, if you are so inclined, and buy fashion (which tends to be a “want”) in bulk.  For example, if you see a style of polo that you really like, and it comes in 5 different colors, you can make a bulk purchase of this item and still have several different looks.  Think about it, you most likely already have a very specific distinct style, so who cares if you have a rainbow selection of the same polo shirt.  So you wear polo shirts, no one will second guess you.

Happy utilitarian purchasing!