How one mum saves thousands on her shopping

Young mum Holly Smith, who can't work due to a rare stomach condition, has revealed how she manages to save thousands of pounds a year on her shopping.

A year ago, we reported on Holly's 'comping' success, which brought her in £10,000 a year. By entering as many as 800 competitions a day, she'd snagged herself prizes including a £2,500 trip to Gran Canaria, along with fridge freezers, washing machines, three TVs, several games consoles and a trip to the Isle of Man.

But Holly's money-saving doesn't end there. Two years ago, she founded a Facebook page and website sharing tips on how to cut your shopping bills to the bone.

The biggest savings, she says, come through 'extreme couponing', which she says can easily knock a third off a grocery bill. Sign up to all the supermarket loyalty schemes, she says - and look for discarded receipts and coupons on supermarket floors and in trolleys.

"Make sure you check out magazines, loyalty statements, flyers, apps and company websites," she says.

Similarly, Holly recommends doing your shopping late in the day, when stores mark down the price of fresh food by up to 90%.

And watch out for the stores' mistakes.

"When shopping I highly recommend using the store's handheld scanners. This is because you can find glitches and mis-prices easily," she tells the Daily Mirror. "I spent £100 to buy items worth £1,500 that I actually needed through using these handheld scanners."
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As a mum of two, Holly also has some clever tricks when it comes to providing for her children. She reckons she saved over £600 on the cost of one birthday party, for example, by hiring a venue and ordering in pizza, rather than allowing the venue to cater.

Meanwhile, car boot sales and Facebook swapping groups are excellent places to pick up children's clothes, she says.

Holly is one of a growing number of 'extreme couponers' who share their tips on websites such as HotUKDeals.

It's often possible, for example, to use two coupons at a time to maximise discounts, for example by using a manufacturer's money-off coupon alongside a store's buy one, get one free (BOGOF) offer.

And one way to find these coupons is to click on the word 'deals' near the top of this page: you'll find vouchers offering significant savings on everything from fresh flowers to bathroom suites.