If you used to buy a six-pack of soda and drink six cans a week but now buy a 12-pack because that’s the current standard size, you’re probably going to start drinking 12 cans a week. Be mindful when buying larger sizes to make sure your habits don’t change as a result. —Jeff Weidauer, former supermarket executive and vice president of marketing for Vestcom, a retail services company. <br />Milk, bread, bananas, and eggs. Ninety-five percent of shoppers have no idea what all the other items cost and don’t know if they’re getting a good deal when they buy them. —Martin Lindstrom <br /> <br /> <br />So supermarkets started making checkout lanes narrower, with less shelf space, which means it’s harder to ditch goods at the last minute. —Martin Lindstrom <br />We let you linger … and it’s good for business. <br /> <br />We let you linger … and it’s good for business.Joshua Scott for Reader's Digest <br />Customers would tell me as they went through the checkout, “I just stopped in to get eggs,” and they would have $250 worth of stuff. —Jason Swett, former bagger and cashier at a grocery store in Kalamazoo, Michigan <br />To save money, wear headphones and listen to upbeat music as you shop. <br /> <br />To save money, wear headphones and listen to upbeat music as you shop. iStock/Thinkstock <br />Many stores play music with a rhythm that’s much slower than the average heartbeat, which makes you spend more time in the store—and buy 29 percent more. —Martin Lindstrom <br /> <br />Supermarkets aren’t out to steal from you. <br /> <br />Supermarkets aren’t out to steal from you. iStock/Thinkstock <br />The average supermarket makes about 1.5 percent net profit a year. To give you some idea of how low that is, the profit margin for clothing stores can be several times that. —Phil Lempert <br />Kroger uses heat sensors... <br /> <br />Kroger uses heat sensors...Creatas/Thinkstock <br />...to track where people are in the store to determine when there’s likely to be a rush of shoppers to the checkout counters so that they can get cashiers to the front in advance. —Jeff Weidauer <br />Please have your money or credit card ready at checkout. <br /> <br />Please have your money or credit card ready at checkout.iStock/Thinkstock <br />Some stores time each transaction. If you take too long, we get in trouble. —Aimee Brittain, former grocery cashier, prettyfrugaldiva.com
