If you live in Central London and don't have a car...

[homeedregret]

How do you do a big shop? What about going to Home Bargains or B & M? (I always end up buying loads of stuff and can't imagine lugging it on public transport). Do you travel out to a Lidl or Aldi?
Or do you just shop in your local Tesco Express?
Sorry for the sort of TAAT, but I wondered this on my latest trip to London and the thread reminded me.

Zone 2 here. I do a big monthly shop for the heavy things - tins, big rice and pasta etc and a weekly shop for fresh stuff. Have 3 decent sized supermarkets within 5 mins walk, plus 4 metro type smaller shops. Pound shops for toiletries. There are numerous cheapy shops near me as well as Poundland where you can get some bargains if you don't fall for their cheaper sizes. I also like all the cheap fruit and veg stalls as long as you eat the fruit quickly

London although not central here and have used Ocado for the weekly shop for over 10 years now. The monthly delivery pass is £8.99 for unlimited deliveries (minimum order £40).

Home Bargains and B&M do have branches a short bus ride away but I don't go there, they seem to be full of plastic tat and sugary snacks. The local high street has pound shops and independent discount shops for when I need a new broom or Halloween decorations...

For any large stuff for the house I order for delivery. Argos offers same day delivery here for example if you suddenly need a new kettle.

But most people who live in Central London will be better off and the answers here reflect that.

This isn’t true, though. Yes, your average MNetter is probably quite well off, but there are thousands of people living in central London on low incomes. Places like Camden, Southwark and Tower Hamlets have some of the highest rates of poverty in the country, and the majority of those households don’t have access to a car either. They still manage with a combination of walking, public transport, Uber. And not all delivery services are unaffordable (e.g Iceland).

You’re right that our public transport is a bargain though!

Before I had a car I would do an Ocado delivery and would also pick up bits in the way home from work. There was an Aldi and a Tesco that were on the way to the bus stop.

For IKEA, we rented a van.

But most people who live in Central London will be better off and the answers here reflect that.
London has the highest rate of poverty in the UK. Central London tends to be poorer than the leafier outer suburbs. Poverty rates are just under 40% in central areas like Tower Hamlets.

I lived in Zone 1/2 borders until fairly recently. The weekly shop plus any heavy stuff came from Ocado. For too-ups, I was in easy walking/bus/cab distance from multiple big Waitroses and a massive Sainsburys. There’s also now a small Aldi near where I used to live.

Even Westminster has poverty rates of 30%, the tenth worst in London (out of 33).

Every month or two, online delivery to stock up on household items, non-perishable stuff, things that are too heavy to carry.

Beyond that, there's usually a big Sainsbury's or equivalent within 15 minutes walk. A hiking rucksack each and cloth bags that won't break - DP and I can carry a huge amount between us in those.

Then a lot of ingredients require different shops anyway because either they're crap value in supermarkets (spices) or a bit more obscure (the wealth of ingredients from different cuisines on your doorstep is a reason to live in London itself).

Hate shopping at Sainsbury's locals or Tesco expresses but use them for the basic necessities as and when they run out.

For stuff like furniture - delivery all the way where possible, but using Freecycle/Gumtree does end up entailing some very awkward journeys carting full-length mirrors and nested table sets around on buses. I believe there are apps that are like Ubers but for a man with a van these days?

How do you manage in Central London without a car if you've got an income of a quarter of a million and can easily afford to spend fifty grand a year on taxis and Ocado deliveries? is not really an interesting question though. Those people won't feel the need to stock up at B&M and avoid Tesco Metro anyway.

The significant minority of very hard-up central Londoners are the people who'll be taking shopping trolleys to the large Asda half an hour's walk away, or budgeting carefully for an Uber back once a month with the cat litter. And they won't be doing recreational trips to IKEA.

When I had young children I found that the most expensive part of central London life was not having access to supermarket clothes for them. There are a fair few decent size supermarkets near me, and some of them sell school uniform once a year , but to get to one that sells cheap coats for toddlers would be a real expedition. Thank heavens for Tooting Primark.

Morning Fresh washing up liquid, Crest toothpaste, Carex hand wash,, Lynx shower gel (don’t judge I have a teen boy), Nivea shower gel, Simple soap, generic paracetamol & antihistamines, branded mouthwash, Fairy washing powder. Viakal.

The thing is, are these things so much cheaper in these bargain shops? I don't think they are. I just looked up Carex hand wash for example and it's a very similar price in Sainsbury's which isn't billing itself as super cheap (some of the scents are cheaper). Even Waitrose has plenty of options at a similar price (not Carex though). So I can't see how not being near one of these shops is likely to mean missing out in any way.

www.bmstores.co.uk/brands/carex

www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/SearchResults/carex

www.waitrose.com/ecom/shop/browse/groceries/toiletries_health_and_beauty/bath_shower_and_soap/hand_wash_and_soap

I live in Streatham. Buses/ trains and underground to Tooting, Balham, Brixton for mooching about.

Croydon for IKEA, Hobbycraft, TK Maxx Colliers Wood (for the big M&S which is always strangely deserted). Uber home with the big stuff.

Online for tins, loo roll, heavy stuff that gets delivered maybe once a month.

Everyday bits courtesy of all the shops in the high street where I work.

I mean, short of living super rurally, isn't this how most people who live/ work in cities and towns operate without cars? I don't think it's unique to London.

I don't live in London anymore and have access to car but I still get all my supermarket shopping delivered! It's much easier. Once when we wanted tons of stuff from IKEA we actually rented a 7 ton truck for the day. But obviously a taxi or delivery for a more sensible amount.

@Ifailed

We have Home Bargains and B & M in the town I live in and agree once you get through the aisles of sugary snacks and tat there are a few cheaper items to be found, the question is how much money are you really saving if you factor in the driving/parking and time spent to get there and back?

Well in places like that you wouldn't be. But where I live within walking distance I have Sainsbury's, Aldi, B & M & Home Bargains. There is free parking. There are another 4 branches I can think of off the top of my head within 5 miles.

@BattledoreAndShuttlecock

How do you manage in Central London without a car if you've got an income of a quarter of a million and can easily afford to spend fifty grand a year on taxis and Ocado deliveries? is not really an interesting question though. Those people won't feel the need to stock up at B&M and avoid Tesco Metro anyway.

The significant minority of very hard-up central Londoners are the people who'll be taking shopping trolleys to the large Asda half an hour's walk away, or budgeting carefully for an Uber back once a month with the cat litter. And they won't be doing recreational trips to IKEA.

When I had young children I found that the most expensive part of central London life was not having access to supermarket clothes for them. There are a fair few decent size supermarkets near me, and some of them sell school uniform once a year , but to get to one that sells cheap coats for toddlers would be a real expedition. Thank heavens for Tooting Primark.

Well, precisely. My daughter's food budget is approximately £30 per week. Online delivery charges send her over budget. She hasn't the space in her room in a shared house to keep bulk buy stuff. She certainly can't afford Ubers.

[quote BonjourCrisette]Morning Fresh washing up liquid, Crest toothpaste, Carex hand wash,, Lynx shower gel (don’t judge I have a teen boy), Nivea shower gel, Simple soap, generic paracetamol & antihistamines, branded mouthwash, Fairy washing powder. Viakal.

The thing is, are these things so much cheaper in these bargain shops? I don't think they are. I just looked up Carex hand wash for example and it's a very similar price in Sainsbury's which isn't billing itself as super cheap (some of the scents are cheaper). Even Waitrose has plenty of options at a similar price (not Carex though). So I can't see how not being near one of these shops is likely to mean missing out in any way.

www.bmstores.co.uk/brands/carex

www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/SearchResults/carex

www.waitrose.com/ecom/shop/browse/groceries/toiletries_health_and_beauty/bath_shower_and_soap/hand_wash_and_soap[/quote]
Sainsbury's is £1 for 250 ml

Home Bargains is £1.79 for 500 ml. That's a saving of 21p for just the one item.

There is a saving of 25p per same sized bottle on my son's shower gel.

Flavoured water is £1 for 1.5 litres although last year it was 0.89. (I buy about 5 bottles per week) In the supermarket it is £1.25

I price I reckon I save about £5-10 per week from getting all my household items from B & M.

The butter we used to get from HB was £1.29 or £2.58 for 500 g. The next cheapest equivalent (pure spreadable butter) is £3.80 in M&S.

We also buy the proper Spanish Alioli in the yellow tub. 89 p in HB, £1.50 in Morrisons.

The Elbow Grease sprays are a few pence cheaper and they also have the washing up liquid which is excellent and very cheap. We need bags for used cat litter now you can't reuse old basic supermarket carrier bags, a roll is 80 p.

There's also interesting things that you don't see in other shops. Bottles of tonic that are £1 on Ocado for 19 p, Fever Tree dupes at half the price, the only place I've found in the UK for Tayto crisps.

Yes you have to be careful what you buy, and the savings work out best if you can go every few weeks and buy a few of the things that are cheaper or that you like. But that's how I shop anyway. Rotate round and cherry pick, because it's much cheaper and I get the things I like from different shops.

The refill pack in Sainsbury's is £3.20 for a litre. That's cheaper than B&M and more environmentally friendly.

I don't know about the other stuff but the prices are honestly not massively different if we are talking 25p per item. How much of this stuff do you get through at £10 savings a week? I would say I don't buy shower gel more often than monthly. I guess teenage boys may require extra!!

Ikea delivery for non furniture, regular parcel delivery is £4, all over Uk, not just London. It’s cheaper than driving for most people.

There are full sized supermarkets even in central. From our old flat in zone 1/2 edge we could easily walk to a large full size Tesco, sainsburys and Waitrose. Plus lots of metro shops.

Usually online delivery is free over x amount, so most people on a tight budget we know would do an online shop once every 2 weeks or monthly to buy all basic store cupboard and essentials, and that way the delivery was always free. Then just buy fresh bits easily in between and just a bags worth to carry.

I reckon I save about £5-10 per week from getting all my household items from B & M.

Blimey, I'd be surprised if I spent that a month, let alone save that much!

Shower gel I buy 2 bottles a week, one each for ds and dh. It's a combined hair and body wash and they shower daily (sometimes twice a daty)

Ds is autistic and only drinks Volvic strawberry flavoured water. He gets through a large 1.5 litre bottle a day.

When I had young children I found that the most expensive part of central London life was not having access to supermarket clothes for them. There are a fair few decent size supermarkets near me, and some of them sell school uniform once a year , but to get to one that sells cheap coats for toddlers would be a real expedition.

This is true. Supermarkets don’t sell any clothes, apart from bits of generic school uniform in late summer.

I'll point out that the carless life isn't exclusively for those living in London. It may take a bit more effort, but it is possible to live without a car in metro areas outside of greater London, too. And our solutions are quite similar. Grocery delivery for super big shops, online shopping and the occasional taxi for the one-off big items or shop without a delivery option. It's not difficult, even in the public transport wasteland that i live in in (East Anglia) I mean, how often is one buying big items of furniture from Ikea??

@Comefromaway

Shower gel I buy 2 bottles a week, one each for ds and dh. It's a combined hair and body wash and they shower daily (sometimes twice a daty)

Well to be fair, with that usage, the biggest moneysaving would come from cutting down to sensible levels, instead of sloshing gallons of it uselessly down the drain. A bottle a week? Insanity.

Seeing as all my friends are complaining that their teens stink and have poor personal hygeine I am not going to stop him.