by Colette Georgii

Created on: August 06, 2008   Last Updated: March 05, 2009

How to Buy in Bulk: Some Great Tips

In order to save money it is a good idea to buy in bulk. Larger quantities are usually cheaper than smaller quantities. Often when buying in bulk we are buying at a wholesale price and cutting out the middleman.

Food is the most popular item bought in bulk. And often when people buy food in bulk they form buying clubs or cooperatives with friends, relatives, or neighbors. They purchase their bulk items and then divide them up. This way they save money. So that is the first tip to buying in bulk:

1) Form a buying club or cooperative with friends, relatives, or neighbors.

2) Decide where you are going to purchase your bulk items.

3) You can purchase in bulk from wholesale produce houses or through wholesale catalogs.

4) Once you have decided on where to purchase your items, you can start making purchases or begin placing orders.

5) Foods that are best bought in bulk are your staples such as rice, potatoes, flour, spices, meats, and vegetables; or the foods that are absolutely necessary for your everyday meals.

6) Try to find out where your best restaurants purchase food. Restaurants purchase food from restaurant brokers and suppliers. Brokers are excellent for getting top quality meats and they will only sell in bulk.

7) Large farm markets or produce houses are best for potatoes or vegetables.

8) Catalogs are great for spices. Spices bought in bulk are bought at a fraction of the normal retail cost. But you wouldn't want to buy a pound of oregano just for one small family. However it is still better than buying those little highly expensive bottles of spices. And spices last a long time. You can keep them almost forever.

9) You can also buy soy oil (vegetable oil) and molasses in bulk.

10) Once you have received your orders from your new buying club or cooperative members, you can place your food order with the supplier or suppliers you have chosen. When the order is delivered, members can begin dividing up their food.

A buying club can be made up of only a few people.

A family of four can easily go through 20 pounds of potatoes in short order. So if you are buying 100 lbs of potatoes and dividing it up into 20-pound portions that would only be divided among five families. A family of four could easily go through a hundred pounds of potatoes quickly depending on how much they like potatoes.

You will need to decide if you can purchase in bulk for just your family or if you need to join up with another family or two or more to purchase your

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