Times are tough at the moment and while every little may help, it seems it's getting harder to make a pound stretch in the current cost of living crisis. Many Nottingham shoppers are still flocking to Poundland to pick up the essentials and save a little in the process.
Some shoppers on Twitter had raised concerns that the prices in Poundland have been rising especially now there is a cost of living crisis and that very little is available for under £1 in the bargain store. This is mind, we visited the branch on Lower Parliament Street to see for ourselves what we could pick up for under a tenner.
There were still clearly a lot of bargains to be had in store for £1 although it was also clear to see that earlier shoppers had got there before us. Many of the shelves, especially those with cupboard essentials had been picked clean. Shelves containing essentials such as soup, sauces, ketchup and mayo were empty.
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Poundland has got rid of its everything for £1 slogan as far back as 2019 and prices have increased in the store as there were quite a few items for £1.25 or £1.50 including household items such as glasses or bowls. Some of the food prices had increased too such as ketchup which was on sale for £2.75 or would have been if it hadn't been sold out. The new slogan, thousands of items are still £1 or less is, in fairness, accurate.
Refreshingly, there were quite a few brand-name items still available for a pound including Coke, Campbells Soup and also Tampax. Period Poverty in the UK is on the rise so it was good to see that Poundland had a number of options available for £1 each.
The clear shelves weren't just confined to the cupboard essentials though as the toy aisle had a number of empty places where £1 toys should have been stocked. Families desperate to keep kids on summer holidays entertained had snapped up the cheaper items leaving the £3 plastic dart games and £4 kickboxing stands behind.
The cost of living crisis has forced some brands to put their prices up for the first time in years including McDonald's, Coke and KitKats. However, anyone worried about the cost of their favourite teatime snack need not worry too much as Poundland still has a four packet of KitKats for £1. If you need a box of teabags to create a cuppa for dunking Kitkats in, then Poundland also has a wide stock of tea and coffee still under £1.25.
Nottingham customers shopping in Poundland were adamant that were still bargains to be had although they had noticed the prices creeping up a little. Many said that the brand names kept them coming back as other stores were far more expensive.
Pete Taylor from the Meadows said: "It's more expensive but everything has sneaked up a little bit. There is still a good selection of £1 items available but then the packet sizes have shrunk."
He added: "If you look at the chocolate bars, they have got a lot smaller but that's a good thing for our health. If you want a bit of chocolate then you can get a small taste and it's done."
"I think things are still a fair price. I just got some Colgate for £1.50 which is normally £3 which is great," said Summer Collishaw who lives in the city centre.
Jayson Parker from Wilford came into the city centre to visit a few shops and stopped in Poundland to pick up a few bits. He finds it cheaper than Boots when it comes to the essentials.
"I tend to go to Poundland for toiletries like shampoos, conditioner, toothpaste and so on. It’s cheaper than Boots across the road and the products are full-sized so I’m definitely saving money here.”
A lot of the items for sale in Poundland are cupboard essentials but there is a small selection of vegetables, dairy and fruit at the front of the shop. A lot of the items are over £1 in the fridge including milk, strawberries and cream. However, some of the vegetables are still only .75p each including summer salad-ready tomatoes and cucumbers.
With only a tenner to spend, we were still able to pick up a few essentials such as KitKats, two Pot Noodles, coffee sachets, cheese triangles, Carex soap, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, honey and Diet Coke. All of the items purchased were £1 each excluding the two vegetables at .75p each. Although we did guilty pay .30p for a bag after realising we had forgotten to bring one.
To make it work, we did have to forgo some of the brand names so I chose not to buy Starbucks coffee and opted for Mokate instead. We also had to pick items off a shopping list rather than pick up everything we needed and certain flavours of things like Pot Noodle were down to whatever was in stock rather than a full selection of what the brand offers. But if you are willing to work on it then a tenner can get you a lot.
While there are plenty of items that have soared over the £1.25 price in store, there are still thousands of items available for £1. It may prove to be a bit impossible to do a week's shop at Poundland but it's still a great spot to save a few pennies on brand names or pick up a treat or two.
