I was shopping at Hy-Vee today for a few items. My husband and oldest son are both home sick with the flu. I made a short list based on their requests. One of the things Jenn tells me over and over is that when saving at the grocery store, you should put aside brand loyalty.

So, today, that was my goal. With several in-store coupons in hand, I shopped the aisles looking for savings, not brands. For each item on my list, I checked prices instead of choosing my usual brand.

Now, it did take me longer to shop (and I’m still not used to HyVee’s redesign), but it was definitely worth it. Some items garnered me a savings of 10 percent to 15 percent and this was with minimal effort.

I know some of you may be saying you do this every time you go grocery shopping — what’s the big deal? But for someone like me, who constantly feels hurried, taking the few extra minutes to do this, made a difference.

I can’t wait to apply the next couponing lesson to my shopping experience. I’ll let you know how it goes.

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