Need ideas for the inside purchase

Need ideas for the inside purchase - gas stations

@bgriffin wrote:

I don't understand why you don't purchase things you would just normally purchase in a gas station? Or do you never do that? I just stock up on the same snacks and drinks I would buy anyway.

Ummmm...since the gastric bypass, I don't drink Arizona Iced Teas anymore (that *used* to be my go-to!), and a small bag of chips takes me a couple of days to get through...nuts are good, and they are definitely on the list, but most "snacky" things are not on my list anymore

I wonder if gas stations sell individual cups of yogurt for a reasonable amount? I mean, I get them at Kroger for .40...
This group is always full of great ideas though, so I thought I'd ask -- and I do need a tire gauge!

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When I was doing routes of gas audits that required a $1 inside purchase I would just buy a bag of chips or a drink of some kind. I wasn't concerned about it sticking under $1. I would bring them home and drop them in a big basket and then when I left for a route of non-gas shops I would put enough for the route in the car. If I didn't do that I would stop and get snacks anyway, so it was money that would eventually get spent. That way I wasn't using up the $1 reimbursement for something I didn't really want or need. Focusing on keeping it around $1 isn't as effective as using it as replacement cost for something you would buy anyway, even if it's significantly more than $1.

There are reasons that a body stays in motion
At the moment only demons come to mind

As a real world example. I like Monster Energy Drinks. I don't drink more than 1 or 2 a week because they're so bad for you, but I love them. In a normal store they're gonna run ~$2.75. If I'm doing a route of 12 gas stations that have a $1 reimbursement then I could get 12 Monsters or I could find something worth about $1.

12 Monsters scenario:
I would spend $33
I would get reimbursed $12.
The 12 Monsters would cost me a net of $21.

Something else scenario:
I would spend about $12
I would get reimbursed $12
I would later buy 12 Monsters for $33

In the first scenario I have gotten $33 in value for a net cost of $21.
In the second scenario I have gotten $33 in value plus something less than $12 in value because I bought something less valuable to me for a net cost of $33.
I'll take 1 over 2 any day.

The only way #1 wouldn't be the best option is if you do not purchase things at gas stations normally. I do, so it works for me.

Edit to add:
Long story short, focus on getting $1 in value and not something costing $1 reimbursed. There is a significant difference in value and cost.

There are reasons that a body stays in motion
At the moment only demons come to mind

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/03/2020 05:16PM by bgriffin.

For those of us who do these on routes with lots of shops, time is of the essence. So, the longer I sit and think about what I am going to purchase or have to hunt through the store to find it, the more time I needlessly lose. I can walk into a store, go directly to the cold beverages case and grab a water or diet soda very quickly, making the observations I need on the way. The extra few cents I might end up spending is irrelevant when compared to the time I save inside the store.

Hard work builds character and homework is good for your soul.

@MFJohnston wrote:

For those of us who do these on routes with lots of shops, time is of the essence. So, the longer I sit and think about what I am going to purchase or have to hunt through the store to find it, the more time I needlessly lose. I can walk into a store, go directly to the cold beverages case and grab a water or diet soda very quickly, making the observations I need on the way. The extra few cents I might end up spending is irrelevant when compared to the time I save inside the store.

...and coincidentally you are behaving 100% as many normal customers would coming through the store. Grab that one thing and on the way. Invisible to the clerks.

Cup of Ice. .15 to .25. You can pour it out and recycle the cup or power water in.

you can keep tea bags in the car and get a cup of hot water.

@myst4au wrote:

For starters, the water that goes into the fountain drink comes out fo the local water supply. It does not need to be packaged, no plastic bottle, no need to pay for shipping, no need to pay someone to load it on to a truck or to bring it into the store.
@sestrahelena wrote:

BTW, how does a humungous fountain soda cost 79c but a bottle of water which has no sugar, dyes, chemicals or carbonation cost 2 or more dollars?!! Zero ingredients for 3x the price? What is wrong with this picture?

I did a NFL game once and the reimbursement was (I think $20). I thought no problem, I can get something cheap to eat and a couple of bottled waters to drink. I get there and a bottles of water were $8.00 each. That (for many other reasons) was a one and done.

Yes I learned quickly when doing routes like gas stations that time is of the essence. The less time I take wandering the store to find something for a $1 the quicker I can finish the route and likely won't have to worry about not completing. Route shoppers know that time delays out of our control happen like traffic jams, roadwork ,etc and good route shoppers build in extra time for these unexpected delays.
In Bgriffin's earlier example with the monster lets look at time.

Scenario #1 12 shops take 2 minutes to go to cooler and grab Monster energy drink so 24 minutes total.

Scenario #2 12 shops take 7 minutes wandering around to fins something for close to a $1 or 84 minutes total.

Scenario 2 added an unnecessary hour which means my day now takes an hour more and thus cuts into my pay. It may also mean I don't make that last station by daylight or before they close.

I will take Scenario 1.

Shopping Western NY, Northeast and Central PA, and parts of Ohio and West Virginia. Have car will travel anywhere if the monies right.

This brings up some points I like to make even though I do not do gas stations. But I do airport gift shops that reimburse $5. i hate buying those drinks for $5 when i know they cost only $1.39 or so outside even though I will be totally reimbursed. So I sometimes spend a lot of time browsing the store for something else for under $5. keychains, no, little spoons that say lax or magnets for the fridge, no. From now on i will just go to the fridge and get me an overpriced bottled juice. Thanks for that nudge in the right direction.
But the other irksome thing is when shoppers praise the fact that they had $x,xxx in reimbursements and made good this year. I generally would look at $4,000 in reimbursements as perhaps $2,000 I am saving as I would probably never pay the prices for many of the things I buy on shops if I was buying them out of pocket. I see this as akin to not considering time to read rules or find jobs to apply for in your overall earnings per hour. Since I am able to purchase these things with money that is not taxed though perhaps it all works out in the end to being a decent deal, especially if I ate those little bags of chips regularly.
Sorry for going off topic as i do not shop gas stations but it seems related to me.

I always buy the little bag of pistachios. Healthy and unprocessed! Sometimes I buy toilet paper and sponges.

I waste no time finding my <$1 items. They're always in the same places.

@mystery2me wrote:

I never buy anything that isn't priced. What costs 99 cents at most places often ends up costing $2-$3 at the types of stores where they don't display prices.

I also do not buy things in a retail store that are not priced. "No price, no sale," I always say. If they are too ashamed of the price to post it, then it is probably overpriced anyway.

Water, Brisk Ice Tea, small bags of chips, small packages of Oreo Cookies (7-11 are good for those), nuts, granola bars, popcorn

Today, I saw nail kits, small totes, and... toys! These are the fun, vintage ones that keep kids busy and offline. They were inexpensive but more than one dollar. Your shop fee might be a discount for the price of these unusual items.

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu

Most of my shops have a $3 reimbursement. My work bestie and I like Diet. Dr. Pepper so when they are 2 for $3 that is my go-to purchase. I throw in the little fridge in my office for us to share. I also buy nuts to set aside for snacks.

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Need ideas for the inside purchase - gas stations

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