It's really interesting and if you were very brand loyal it would be a great thing to watch to change your mind. The families spend a LOT of money, ok if you can afford it, but they can't! The first family were putting lots of money on their credit cards and had no idea how much money was going out each month.
It was quite shocking to see how much people spend on things such as perfume and aftershave - they buy such expensive ones but they don't just have one, they have about 10 different ones!
I personally have two perfumes - one cheap one for day to day (was given to me by my sister in law when she was having a clear out) and one for special occasions (it was a birthday present). The aftershave came to around £1000 for one man, and they swapped it for a different one which was £37 cheaper per bottle and he couldn't tell the difference.
It was interesting as well to see the techniques that shops use to entice shoppers to spend.
They use certain music to slow people down so they spend longer in the shop.
Brand owners pay money for specific spots in the shop. The most coveted spot is eye level because that's obviously where our eyes are drawn to! That's why at big supermarkets you have to crouch right down to the bottom shelf to find the cheapest things!
They do a lot of blind tests on this programme like they did on the food version of this, and it is funny to see people say their usual product is rubbish and generally choose the cheapest version as the best. They did a shine shampoo test with hairdressers judging the results. They actually chose the most expensive one as the best, but at £54 per 220ml bottle I would expect to be blinding people with my shiny hair if I bought that one! The second best one that they voted for however was Aldi 89p per 400ml bottle.
The most important things to get out of the programme I think are not to be brand loyal - shop around, test different products and find the best, cheap option.
Also to go shopping with a list, leaving your card at home and just taking cash if you don't think you can trust yourself not to get enticed by something. It's the shops job to try their best to persuade us to part with our cash so being aware of that and questioning if we really need something is the best way to go about it.
That's why I love shopping in Lidl - the difference between Lidl and my old shop Sainsburys is mad, they don't have as many products so there's less opportunity to go mad buying a load of random things. Don't get me wrong there are things in Lidl that they want you to buy but I just avert my eyes! xx
I feel sure that these families are just out spending willy-nilly for the cameras. You can't tell me that they have no idea how much they were spending, simply going from store to store and buying the first things that caught their eyes. Surely no one could be that stupid? No this was for the cameras, I'm sure, so that the two presenters could then go and say, "Do you know how much you've spent?" Then shock, horror, they realize that they've spent oodles of dosh, feel guilty and are then instructed in how to be more careful with their £s.
ReplyDeleteBuying brands, buying labels is not so much about money but being members of a club. You are either in the Primark/Lidl club or you are in the Barber/Boden club (or similar). I didn't hear it mentioned that this family were actually in debt, and they wanted the money they were ostensibly going to save not to pay off debt, or pay of a chunk of mortgage, as sensible people would. No, they were going to go to Disneyland.
Shops have always done their best to keep us in a store for as long as possible. It happened back in the 1930s when my young mother was a shop assistant and was instructed "never to let a customer go without their having bought something." We just have to wise up to their tricks and when we shop, take a list, and keep focussed. It's not that difficult.
Margaret P
Very true Margaret, although I know a few people who aren't really aware how much they are spending, they kind of put their head in the sand and their wardrobes are bursting! I'm sure it was encouraged for the cameras though! They said they had a lot of credit cards but not if they were paying them off?
DeleteI agree, I don't actually go to the shops unless I have to! Recreational shopping is the problem xx