It's hard to beat a 50% off store-wide sale, so the boys and I headed to the Food Lion on Quiocassin this morning. We arrived just after 8 am (when the store opened) and had to wait for someone to find us a basket. I expected to see bare shelves, but it took me more than a half-hour just took search the condiment/juice idle! Of course I was hoping to use coupons for most of my purchases. (The store is accepting Manufacturer coupons, however Food Lion coupons cannot be used.) We stopped shopping when more items were falling off our basket than staying in it and our little handheld basket was getting too crammed to carry.
The cashier was super and we had a great bagger, but we had stuffed the cart so full, they had to create huge piles of scanned and bagged items long before we had even taken everything out of the basket! Once the cashier had rung 188 items, the register totally locked up. (I've NEVER had that happen before.) I couldn't even handover my coupons because the register would not cooperate at all, so I was forced to pay the bill. The cashier then began to ring my additional 41 items and manually enter each and every coupon (including those for the items I had already paid for), which gave me a negative total of $36.52. I was handed this in cash.
All-in-all, we lugged home over $600 worth of items (mostly groceries, a few paper products and a few cleaners). After the 50% discount, my total was $303.97. I used $88.52 in coupons and walked out having spent only $215.45. (An average of less than $1 for each of my 229 items....we're talking some inexpensive items like pasta, but also some pricey things like Hefty Bags, Finish Detergent, Coffee, Frozen Pizzas, Tea Bags, Canned Meats, Honey, Juice, Cooking Oil and lots more.)
If you're planning a trip, the shelves still had lots to pick from, but I expect the inventory to move rather quickly. Keep these tips in mind:
- Store hours are only 8 am - 6 pm.
- There are not enough baskets, if you see someone unloading one in the parking lot, it may be helpful to ask if you can wait for him/her to finish so you can get the basket.
- Take your coupons! If you are well organized, it will be easy to find matches while you shop.
- Check Expiration Dates. (We found a few things that had already expired. Other items were near expiration, so I reached behind and pulled out items with a longer shelf life.)
- Don't expect to do all your grocery shopping at a closing Food Lion. There is virtually no meat (except ham, shrimp and some processed meats.) Be content with whatever you get.
- Don't assume everything is the best deal. I skimmed the beauty section and purchased nothing when comparing prices to those I normally get by combining other sales, ECBs, RR, +UP, MIRs etc.
- Be patient. Lines are long, but staff is super nice. (The manager even took one of my 2 full carts to the van and helped unload everything. I don't think I've ever had a cashier take items to my vehicle at Food Lion before.)
- Keep your cool. Most of the folks who are helping you will be unemployed when these stores close. They are working hard, but are under a lot of stress. Those working at the store I shopped at were met by a long line waiting to enter the store this morning. Corporate gave employees the opportunity to shop before 8am, so they would be able to work during a full shift. At least one shopper became irate as they exited the store with their meager purchases. He took photos of them and threatened to call the media. NOT cool!
- Don't forget to snag some great deals for the Lamb's Basket. (Grape jelly, Canned Pasta, Food Lion Tuna, etc. were all good deals.)
- Both stores will go to 75% off next week, but don't count on any particular item being on the shelf.
Have fun getting some super savings! Now if I can just figure out where to put all this stuff and how to get to the store on Ridgefield sometime this week!
