Finding Deals at Grocery Stores

The manager special section at your local grocery store is the best kept secret in there. I recommend finding out where the manager special section is located at the grocery stores you shop at, and visit it every time you go there. Even if you are just popping in for a couple of things, take 5 min to run by the section. You never know what you are going to find.
If you look, you are likely to find this wonderful place at the back of the store or sometimes at the side hiding near a back room entrance. It's usually a shelving unit or a couple of long tables. In the manager's special, you will find mostly items with a long shelf life, like cans, jars, and boxes. These items will be items that did not sell well in the store, items that are slightly damaged (but still perfectly fine!), or just items that are being retired. Additionally, there is a manager special section located within the meat section and sometimes within the frozen foods and wine isles too. Learn where those are and peruse them as well.
I know, I know... most people will say something like, this actually makes you spend more because you are spending money that you never intended to spend. I must disagree. You see, I operate by a system that I have named "Shoppertunistic". I basically eat based on deals. It's a double whammy when I get something super cheap from manager special and also have a coupon! But, I'll save that for another post. So, I stock up on things when they are on sale (like from the managers special or store sales, combined with coupons). I stock up my pantry (or my freezer, if its meat) and I replenish fresh items weekly like fruits, veggies, milk, yogurt, cheese, bread and eggs as needed. Using this method, I rarely purchase items from the inner isles of the grocery store without getting a sale or using a coupon. And to all you haters, I manage to eat very well.
Now for a show and tell on manager special finds:


Superb Tomato Sauce -
Organic sauce made with fresh tomatoes (not Tomato Puree as many other brands)
Regular price is over $10 a jar at Kroger... similarly priced at Walmart
My price was $5.29



Yes folks, that's like a 50% discount



Who doesn't keep a can or 2 of chicken noodle soup around for when you're sick?
Mine was 59 cents... and it's 25% less sodium. Who says you can't be budget and diet friendly?
Oh yeah, there's a dent in the can. So what?

I like to give to my local school's food pantry.
At 50 cents a jar for organic peanut butter, it's really quite affordable.

Here is my best score EVER. I was high on this for days.
Amy's frozen meals for 99 CENTS! 99 CENTS!! Man, I'm still excited about it.
These are usually at least 3 bucks, even at Walmart.



Organic, gluten free goodness.

 In addition to all of these wonderful finds, here is a list of some other gems:
Wine discounted 75% off. The catch? The label was on upside down!
Salon brand hairspray 90% off. Perfectly fine hairspray.
Organic vanilla bean extract for baking. The catch? The box was dented... Once I take the bottle out of the box, it goes in the trash anyways!

So folks, get out there and shop those manager specials! Let me know what you find!