Saving on 376 School Lunches with Flipp!

Our kids started grade 1 and grade 3 today – they’re super excited and I’m pleased as punch to get back to the blog! First up: how to save time & money on lunchboxes with the Flipp mobile app!

I have 376 school lunchboxes to pack between now and next summer – YIKES!  In addition to saving on all of the fruit, vegetables, bakery and deli items that I’ll pack, pre-packaged lunchbox items are another easy category for savings at the grocery store by using the Flipp app! I commonly stock up on 100% juice boxes, granola bars, pots of fruit sauce, and yogurt tubes (they freeze well!). Before filling our pantries and fridges with lunchbox items that “seem” like a good deal, though, there are a few things to be mindful of:

Know your needs

What are you permitted to take to school when it comes to nutritional ingredients, allergens, and packaging?

Know your limits

How many lunchbox items will you need by the end of the school year and/or the product expires?

• I have 160 lunchboxes to pack before Christmas (80 days x 2 kids)
• 96 lunchboxes between New Years and March Break (48 days x 2 kids)
• 120 lunchboxes between March Break and the end of the school year (60 days x 2 kids)

Know your prices

Keep an eye on sale prices and stock up on your favourite items when they’re on sale. Try to match the sale price with other layers of savings such as coupons, store perks, specially marked packaging with coupons or useful offers, cash back rebates, etc.

The absolute EASIEST way to keep an eye on prices and be ready to stock up on back to school lunchbox items is with the Flipp app! I’ve been an avid Flipp user for over a year now and have been able to save hundreds of dollars and a WACK of time. Here’s how!

How to Use Flipp to SAVE time & money on groceries:

Step 1. Find out if an item you want is on sale this week by typing it into the search bar of the Flipp app

Step 2. Based on the search results, choose the flyer that has your item for the lowest price this week, regardless of where the store is located

Tap the screen to add an item to your Clippings list

Step 3. Add that best price to your Clippings List by tapping on the item

Step 4. Buy the items on your Clippings List and enjoy your savings, knowing that you bought your items at the lowest price offered this week without having to scour the paper flyers on your own!

Tip: Put items on the conveyor belt in the same order as your Clippings list for fast & easy price-matching!

Yah … but …..

How can Flipp help me save money if the best price is at a store that’s far away?  

No prob! Simply flash the Flipp app at the cashier of your local store that price-matches! Walmart, Giant Tiger, and Real Canadian Superstore are my three favourite stores to price-match in my neighbourhood.

It doesn’t make sense to pay for an app that will save us money.

Apparently the folks at Flipp agree – it’s a FREE app available for iOS and Android!

• Download Flipp for iOS
• Download Flipp for Android

I don’t buy processed or packaged foods for our lunchboxes.

Try searching for the best prices on fruit, veggies, dairy, meat, etc. Then price-match them and save on ALL of your grocery needs! One of my many saving mantras is “Grapes are always on sale, somewhere!” Here’s my blog post with 4 Ways to Save on Fresh Produce.

I don’t have a data package on my mobile device.

Even though many stores offer free WiFi access now, there is the odd “dead zone”. To remedy this, the Flipp app has a great cache system. Simply open any flyers that you might want from home or wherever you’re connected to the internet. Then when you’re out shopping, anything you’ve previously opened and/or clipped will be accessible without internet connection when you open the app next!

I get embarrassed about holding up the line when I’m trying to price-match and/or use coupons.

Fumbling through paper flyers while trying to organize our items on the conveyor belt can trip up even the most seasoned couponer or price-matcher. Flipp makes checking out while price-matching SO much easier! I put all of my regular items on the belt first and put a divider bar down before placing my items to price-match in order as I scroll through my clippings list on my phone or iPad.

• Me: “I’ve got a few items to price-match after the divider bar”
• Me: “Grapes are on sale for $.99/lb at FreshCo. this week”
• Show the cashier the sale price on your Clippings list
• If the cashier needs to scrutinize the date, size, brand, etc., simply tap the clipped item and it leads directly to the online flyer with all of those details.
• Cashier: “My oh my, you’re a smart shopper.” *
• Me: “Why yes, yes I am!”

Hmmm … I really must shoot a quick video to show how fast and simple it is to save time and money at the grocery store with Flipp. Stay tuned! *some parts of the example transaction may be exaggerated!