Extreme Couponing, from Martin Lewis

Extreme couponing. Tricks to save £100s on groceries


Forumites LOVE American TV show Extreme Couponing, where people go hardcore to stockpile £1,000s of freebies. Sadly, US stores are more generous than here, but many of their techniques can be used to boost the deals in Blighty. To celebrate the new series (starts Monday on Discovery Real Time - see exclusive clips), here's a basket of new coupons, and a plea for your top tips.

£1 off yogurts, pesto & more. Download instant click 'n' print coupons, eg, £1 off Plum yogurts, £1 off Sacla pesto, 50p off Blue Dragon curry paste. Then redeem them at Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons etc. See a full, updated list in the Supermarket Coupons deals note.

 Max your coupons. Even though our stores are less generous, you can still take inspiration from stateside coupon addicts. For example, look for coupons on already-discounted products, as they'll work out uber-cheap (search comparison site mySupermarket* to identify top bargains). Draw up a coupon battle plan before hitting the store, and systematically file coupons in a concertina folder, splitting into sections such as meat or veggies.

We want your tips and tales. We'd love to hear MoneySavers' (legal) Extreme Couponing UK tips and stories. Please tell us what you've saved on and what's been a waste, and how you grab maximum value from couponing. Add yours to the Great 'Extreme Couponing UK' Hunt.

Forum: Great 'Extreme Couponing UK' Hunt Deals: Supermarket Coupons Related: Supermarket Shopping

Quiz Trippers 2

   Won 6 cans of Strongbow in a quiz night last night. Spent more over the bar though. Bloody £3 a pint!

Best stat of the week 13.8.11

   A wee while back I said that I reckoned you could make money by identifying what you thought were the five Killer stats of the week and then backing the one with the best odds. Here are my 5 stats on the first day of the new EPL season:

Liverpool are unbeaten at home against Sunderland in the last ten years. Lay Sunderland 8.6.

Man Utd have won their last seven games against West Brom. Lay West Brom 7.4.

Newly promoted teams have a terrible record away against top half teams. Lay Swansea (v Man C) 15

Celtic are on a 15 game unbeaten run at home. Lay Dundee U 16

Rangers are the senior club on the longest unbeaten run. Lay Inverness 9.44.

Ok then, going by the above our bet this week will be to lay West Brom. £5 stake. Will report back.

Selling Regional Foods on Ebay by Avril Harper

How to Sell Regional Foods on eBay


When people travel to areas they’ve never visited before, many find one of the best ways to learn about the people and culture of those areas is by sampling the regional cuisine. So in their appropriate regions you’ll find travelers preferring regional dishes like New York style pizza, Chicago style hot dogs, Maine lobster, over more common foods and menus.

You probably know that already, especially if you travel extensively yourself, but what you may not expect is that you can sell certain foods on eBay and in other online marketplaces, especially items that are non-perishable and travel well.

There’s a great business opportunity awaiting you here, namely one of selling regional dishes to people who don’t travel or who prefer staying home while still enjoying flavors and smells from faraway places. The other major market to consider here is expatriates and others living away from home long term and missing foods they can not obtain in their current environment.

Food is something everyone buys and, properly done, it can also grow you a full time business and a very tidy income from eBay.

Get started in this business by searching current and past completed sales on eBay for foods from specific locations in your own country or from overseas and check out prices paid and number of items sold by specialist food sellers. Check out their most popular dishes, see if those dishes sell from one eBay listing as multiple products, for example, and study how goods are delivered and how long delivery takes.

If you live in an area that’s famous for its own famous dishes, such as Haggis in Scotland, oranges in Florida, lobster in Maine, and so on, look around for ideas from local restaurants and other food outlets. Don’t copy ideas too closely, just use them as the basis for your own food ideas. If you’re not a good cook or you don’t have space or facilities available, make friends with local hotel and restaurant owners, also food specialists with shops and market stalls, and offer to promote their goods on eBay for a share of the profits.

These are only a few suggestions, but only those who have lived in a city or town can truly know the regional food items that would sell best.

Next, you should list your food item under the ‘home’ category in the ‘food & wine’ section. Make sure to put the state and city in the title of your listing, along with the name of the food item. This will increase exposure since anyone looking for ‘chili’ can pull up your listing, but also someone doing a search for ‘Texas’ can find it as well and it just might spark his or her taste buds. Your description must create the same effect for the bidder as walking into a grocery store on an empty stomach. Tempt them. Tell them about the flavors. It's okay to use superlatives like ‘sumptuous’ or ‘delectable’, but that doesn't really make the experience real for the bidder. Describe the flavor by relaying an anecdote about serving the item, to your guests, and what they thought of it. Such as my guest said, “It was creamy and left a pleasant aftertaste of nutmeg’ or ‘my boss tried it at our event and said the nutty flavor of the coffee reminded him of the Kona blends he enjoyed in Hawaii.’ Personal anecdotes give the food personality and make the seller seem like a regular Joe that is easy to like.

Finally, photos are essential. Without a photo of the food, the sale will likely not happen. People like to see exactly what they are getting. Saying the size of the portion in the description is important, but it is hard to visualize how much six ounces of chili mix really is. Plus, your photograph will show the bidder how the food will be packaged - in a can, in cellophane, in a jar, etc. Make sure the resolution is good and the lighting is warm and inviting. You might even want to show food prepared with the item, such as a bowl of chili or a cup of steaming coffee.

Tempting bidders to bite into a purchase can be rewarding if you know how to drive traffic to your listing. By properly headlining your item, describing your food, and showing what the food looks like, you can turn your chow into Cha-Ching.

Skipraker Developments

   Whilst I was out on a walk last night I had an idea which could be seen as a development on the Skipraker thoughts I have put down before here. I was thinking, if I had a stock of half a dozen or so skips which I rented out, every now and again I could leave them full in my yard and open the doors to the public as a sort of open-day skip rake, everything free that you can tow away.

   By doing this you may be able to qualify for some sort of recycling grant as well as keeping your landfill fees down.

The Jean Genie

   I was watching Storage Wars the other day when Jarrod Schulz struck gold with a box of old jeans. It turns out that the Japanese will pay a fortune for old pairs of Levi's - especially those with red internal stitching.

  The very next day I went to a car boot sale where I counted at least 50 pairs of second hand jeans up for sale.

   Could there be money in opening an online Jean store? Buy at Car Boots etc, cleaning them up and then selling via Ebay or some other online presence. The aim would be to wash your face with the regular stuff and hope you hit a diamond occasionally.

   I like it - although I'm more of a trackies man than jean in my own personal life.

Small Wonders consignment store under new ownership

Small Wonders consignment store under new ownership