Stockpiling – bargain shopping taken to another level

Women believe that there is no therapy like retail therapy but a concept called begs to differ and is fast gaining momentum. Why? Because women are shopping for bargains and sharing them with others on social media.

The highly pressurised economic times we live in beg that we become more conscious of how we spend our money and where we spend it, hence the concept of stockpiling has taken off, now more than ever. The result of such groups is that women are able to save money, allowing them to settle their home and car loans, faster than they would.

Not only is stockpiling a thing in our country but growing world over. “Let’s get this straight, stockpiling is not hoarding or buying stuff just because you can, it’s creating a system that will serve you and your family while saving you money,” says Ncumisa Ndelu, founder of one of the mushrooming stockpiling groups on social media called 1 Family, 1 Stockpile.

With a community of 270 000 in South Africa, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, United Emirates, the UK to name a few, Ncumisa explains that stockpiling is not a new concept.

“My friend Beverley, who is a member of this group, often reminds me that we all grew up in families that believed in buying in bulk to save money which is a level of stockpiling,” she says.

“I honestly believe many members of this group have been stockpiling but did not have a name for what they’ve been doing.”

Ncumisa Ndelu is at the forefront of stockpiling with a community of over 270 000 people locally and abroad following her bargain deals. Picture: Facebook

Exactly what is stockpiling and how does it work? A stockpile, according to Ncumisa is your supply of household items that you would normally buy in order to take care of your family but only you buy more than usual at the lowest possible price.

With many people complaining that their grocery bill is suffocating them every month, Ncumisa highlights that stockpiling reduces your monthly grocery bill over time and saves you a lot of money. For example, if you buy fabric softener for R30 every month and you find a deal that gives you the item for R20 and you buy 12 you have saved R120 over 12-18 months because one bottle of fabric softener can last five to six weeks.

“Repeat this with many items on your grocery list and watch your monthly bill shrink,” she says, adding that you stockpile anything with a long shelf life like detergents, canned and dried foods, paper products.

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Ncumisa says building a stockpile is a process, it takes time and patience. “It’s impossible to find everything at once so learn to buy what you can and be disciplined enough to walk away if the deal is not good enough,” she says, adding that you must know your prices in order to be able to spot a good deal.

“This means when you walk those isles, be present, look at prices and remember what you see. Technology has also made it easy by putting a lot of information in our hands, use those smart phones wisely,” she says.

But she says mistakes that stockpilers make is overbuying, not using their loot and not rotating their stock, which refers to the use of older stock first and packing new stock in the back for later use.

Ncumisa warns that stockpilers must treat shopping like a sport.  “Be mindful of the fact that retailers care about their bottom line, your bottom line is your responsibility. Remember no sense, no cents,” she says.

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