All great deals aren’t necessarily found in the store

All great deals aren’t necessarily found in the store. Where else are they to be found you ask…well let me outline a few. Look around you and what do you see? Well, I live in a small town and I see farms, a food factory and a window factory. Within 45 miles from me there is a plastic company, a paper company, a diaper company, a pizza company, cheese factories, a meat factory and on and on and on. Are you still looking around you? Well I see my aunt that works at a meat factory, my mom that works at a plastic factory, friends of friends that work at the food factory. Knowing your environment opens up a whole new world of savings.

• Many factories have outlets open to the public.
•  I buy beef & pork by the ½ of beefer or pig not by the package. I can get beef this way for $2.20-2.50/lb. And pork for $1.25-$1.50/lb. This includes the price of the animal itself and the custom packaging. You can barely get ground beef or pork for this price. We are eating porterhouse steaks for this price. You can ask the butcher to package the hamburger in 1 ½ lb packages, and 3 lb roast or what ever fits your families needs. Contact me if you are interested in this and you are from the Waupaca County area. I have some contacts for you.
• Cheese factories often have a store attached to the factory. Since they don’t have to pay the “middle man” the prices are lower, not to mention the fresh curds. Many times they also have a “cooking cheese” for about $2-2.25/lb. Which is just a soft cheese that didn’t process correctly so it can’t be considered cheddar, colby, etc.
• Employees at window places, lumber, and other building supply places often receive hefty discounts on their company’s products. It might be possible for them to order needed items for you.

Here is where your bartering and shopping skills come in handy.

•  Many employees have the opportunity to take the quality control samples home with them.
• Many employees are given product as rewards, gifts, etc…
• Companies sometimes offer “seconds” to there employees at very low prices.

Now think about all of those people around you that might work at one of these places or maybe a friend of a friend. Friends of friends are great resources. They have access to these free or inexpensive items that their families don’t always need. You have a stock pile of free toothpaste, toothbrushes, medicine, razors and more that your family doesn’t really need or can be replaced easily. Make a trade. You get stocked up on some “garbage bags” and they get “necessities” that they would have had to otherwise buy. It is a win-win situation for the both of you.

I hope that you take some time to think about the resources found around you. Talking to others will open up new opportunities to share information, trade products and save money in the process.