Looking at Your Spending Map

My shopping tendencies are a little bit...sporadic, to say the least. Although my purchases have essentially flatlined in the past year (no more random clothing purchases for this girl), I still have my favourite stores that I gravitate to when necessary. The process of looking at your "spending map" (as I like to call it) is interesting - you can stop and review the value of your purchases and consumer loyalties; essentially, what are you getting out of shopping at a specific store?

Like many things in life, there is value in stopping to think about why you do the things you do - the more questions you ask, the more valuable information you will receive about your patterns of behaviour and the reasoning behind your actions. Looking at your spending map can force you to ask "why do I shop here? What value do I get from this location? Why do I choose to spend my money at this store?"; if you can't find a good reason for yourself, you might find yourself with new criteria for your shopping list (closer to home, more sales, rewards points, supporting local economy, etc.)

So, what about my Spending Map? Here's where I spend my money:

Groceries and Home Essentials (cleaning supplies, etc):

• Loblaws.
  Pros: Easily accessible (close to my home). Earn PC points (have PC bank account and credit card) that can be used for free products. Decent selection of organic, healthy or environmentally-friendly products.
  Cons: Expensive. Always, always busy.
  
  
• Sobeys.
  Pros: Marketing ploys suck me in. Really nice layout. Store-brand products are the ones I grew up with; comfort with the brand. Doesn't seem to be as busy as Loblaws.
  Cons: Completely out of my way.
  
  
• Shoppers Drugmart.
  Pros: Earn Optimum points that can be used for free products. Method cleaning products available.
  Cons: Almost always more expensive than other stores. I never remember to bring my points card as it is separate from my bank/credit card.
  
  
• Bulk Barn.
  Pros: Good selection of sundries. Not paying extra for packaging/advertising. Could be using "student" discount from my expired student card. Lots of candy (not going to lie here).
  Cons: Lots of candy.
  
  
• Local Farmers' Markets.
  Pros: Supporting local economy. Good selection of seasonal produce. Neat heirloom products.
  Cons: Seasonal markets. Often fairly expensive.
  

Clothing and Footwear:

• Payless Shoe Source.
  Pros: Shoes fit my giant feet. Decent price for decent quality product.
  Cons: Completely out of my way and often in malls. Falling victim to BOGO, which isn't as good as it actually sounds.
  
  
• Target.
  Pros: Clean store. Really well-made products. Good value for dollar.
  Cons: Not even in my country (sigh).
  
  
• Wal*Mart.
  Pros: Cheap. Easy to find basics.
  Cons: Store is always busy. Supporting giant evil Wal*Mart.
  
  
• Loblaws (Joe Fresh).
  Pros: Basic styles, good for layering and simplistic look. Good price. Easy shopping as it is in the grocery store. Extra rewards points!
  Cons: Trying on clothes in the grocery store is really strange.
  

• Winners.
  Pros: Good value on expensive things. Nice selection of unique products.
  Cons: Difficult to sift through crap at times. Often completely incompetent staff. Bargain hunting can be addictive.
  

Miscellaneous (Dogs, Home, Car, etc):

• Local Pet Food Co-op.
  Pros: Paying the little guy. Personal service. Discount for repeat purchases.
  Cons: Absolutely none.
  
  
• HomeSense.
  Pros: Good random selection (sister store of Winners). Unique home decor ideas.
  Cons: Still somewhat expensive. Difficult to sift through crap. A little bit out of the way.
  

• Amazon.ca.
  Pros: Cheap price on books. Shipping is quick and decent.
  Cons: My boyfriend likes to spend all of his money here.
  
  
• Chapters/Indigo.
  Pros: Nice selection of products. Easy to access as the stores are virtually everywhere. Nice personal gift ideas. Good bargain section.
  Cons: Expensive. Subliminal pull of in-store Starbucks. Boyfriend spends all of his money here, too.

In looking at my spending map, I can see a few advantages and disadvantages to my patterns. On the plus side, I do a lot of shopping in the same place - which cuts back on wasted transportation costs and helps to streamline my chores. I also use my rewards cards - this customer loyalty bought me $70 in free groceries last week. Unfortunately, I fall victim to advertising and impulse purchases a lot, which makes it hard for me to go to the Big Box Stores.

What about you - where are your favourite places to shop, and why do you pick them?

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