Could you downshift your brand choices?
When it comes to supermarket shopping, is it true that you get what you pay for, or are some of us missing a trick if we are choosing premium brands rather than budget options?
We all know supermarkets can be very crafty when it comes to persuading us to spend more with them. From pumping the smell of fresh bread from the back to the front of the store, to dangling those ‘3 for 2’ offers in front of shoppers, we are being influenced from the moment we step through the doors. ‘Premium’ brands are packaged to look more expensive, giving an impression of quality and luxury, and the wording used often lures us into thinking that this must be a better product to buy.
The scale then moves to ‘branded’ e.g. Heinz, Persil or Walkers; then ‘own brand’ (e.g. Tesco or Morrisons), and finally the last tier is ‘budget’ - the no frills options offered by most supermarkets e.g. Sainsbury’s ‘basics’.
Here’s a table to show what various supermarkets call their different ranges and how they stack up against each other:
What we are challenging you to do is to make a move from one 'brand level’ down to the next. So if you are currently buying Heinz beans, for example (you’re at the ‘branded’ level), could you move down to buying e.g. Sainsbury’s own brand of baked beans? Or if you’re already buying those, could you shift down to the basics range for your beans?
If the prospect of moving from your normal choices is making you feel nervous, why not take it one step at a time? Begin by moving down just one brand level for just a few products, or try mixing in a ‘basics’ item with your higher-end items and do a ‘taste test’ at home to find out if there really is a difference once the packaging is removed.
Items that you will use as ingredients in home-cooked food are the easiest to downshift as it is highly unlikely you’ll be able to taste the difference in e.g. a tin of tomatoes once cooked into a sauce.
Cleaning brands and toiletries are other areas ripe for ‘downshifting’ - often the ingredients in own-brand versions can be almost identical to those in higher-end ‘premium’ ranges, so it's worth doing your research! Savings can be substantial here, so don’t forget to check out comparisons for these items too.
The Money Saving Expert team have calculated that the average shopper could save up to 30% a year on their supermarket bill if they swapped from high-end brands to the basics / everyday range of items at a supermarket such as Tesco, Sainsburys or Asda.
And don’t forget the possibility of a money-saving swap to one of the budget giants, Lidl or Aldi (if you don’t shop there already). Stocking all the everyday grocery items, toiletries and cleaning products you would expect, these supermarkets offer their own brands which are almost always cheaper than their counterparts in the regular supermarkets we’ve mentioned in this article – so doing your weekly shop there could bring significant savings!
To inspire you, watch a video of Martin Lewis from Money Saving Expert challenging some members of the public to the downshifting challenge, with powerful results!
