This Coles shopper’s secret saves her over $1,000 every year—could it work for you?
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Grocery bills have become one of the biggest strains on the household budget, with many Australians feeling the pinch at the checkout.
But one shopper’s unexpected discovery has revealed a surprising way to slash costs without sacrificing quality.
What she uncovered has since turned into a game-changing strategy that’s saving families thousands each year.
Rising grocery prices continued to pressure household budgets, but one Melbourne mum found a clever workaround that saved her thousands.
Enrica Centorame, a 57-year-old company director, became known as the ‘Queen of Markdowns’ among her family after uncovering a reliable way to cut costs at the supermarket.
She said the discovery came during the final years of her marriage, a time when money was tight and she was looking for ways to stretch every dollar.
‘I had to find lots of ways of saving money, and one of them was through the grocery bill,’ she said.
‘At that stage, there were five of us adults at home. So it was really, really amazingly high.’
What initially seemed like a one-off discount turned out to be a pattern that Centorame used to her advantage every week.
‘The first time I thought it was just a fluke that it was happening that day, but then I realised it was a weekly, daily thing,’ she said.
By shifting her shopping routine to specific times of the day—usually 7pm on Fridays or 5pm on Saturdays—Centorame consistently found heavily discounted items.
‘If you shop towards the final hour of the day, there are things that they cannot sell the next day. I’ve been at the checkout where they say, “We can’t sell you this, it’s past the use-by date”,’ she explained.
‘They heavily discount it on the day, and that can be up to 70 per cent off. The final hour of the day on Saturday is a great day for markdowns.’
She said she rarely left without a bargain, with marked-down prices slashing her monthly grocery spend by as much as $130.
Her regular grocery budget ranged from $280 to $320 a week, with her 20-year-old son still living at home and grandkids staying over every second weekend.
Discounts applied across the board, with some of her biggest savings found in the fresh food section.
‘The fruit and vegetable section is the starting place where a large bag of spinach is $5, and the yellow ticket with Quick Sale can be $1.50. The products are good for a couple of days,’ she said.
‘Bread is another one—4 bagels are usually $6, marked down to $2. Potatoes were a recent purchase from $4.80 to $2.20 a bag.’
While shoppers on social media often shared their markdown wins, major supermarkets made clear there were no set times for discounts.
Both Coles and Woolworths confirmed that markdowns happened to reduce food waste, but timing varied based on stock levels, deliveries and staffing.
A Coles spokesperson shared: ‘We know our customers love good value, so when a product is near its Best Before date, we often mark it down so it can be enjoyed for a cheaper price, instead of being wasted.’
‘Food safety is paramount, and we encourage customers to be mindful of Use By and Best Before dates, which determine the shelf life of food products, how long food can be kept before the quality deteriorates or when the item is unsafe to eat.’
Markdowns could be found across every department, including meat, bakery, fresh produce and pantry staples.
Centorame didn’t just rely on markdowns—she also kept to a grocery list and prioritised fruit and vegetables that were in season.
New research by ING revealed that 86 per cent of Australians shopped the same way, snapping up near-expiry products to cut down costs.
On average, shoppers reported saving $315 a year using this strategy, which translated to a nationwide saving of $5.3 billion.
Matt Bowen, head of consumer and market insights at ING, said: ‘There are still more opportunities to save though, and with two in five (46 per cent) Aussies admitting they’ve had to leave an item behind at the supermarket checkout because they didn’t have enough budget for it, now is a great time to explore more bargains and smart shopping strategies.’
With consistent habits and good timing, Centorame proved that big savings were possible—even in the face of rising prices.
In a previous story, we explored how supermarkets are introducing new tools to make shopping quicker and easier.
This latest feature from Coles aims to help shoppers avoid missing out on great deals.
Check it out to discover how it could change your shopping experience.
With savings like these, could changing when you shop transform your grocery budget too? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
But one shopper’s unexpected discovery has revealed a surprising way to slash costs without sacrificing quality.
What she uncovered has since turned into a game-changing strategy that’s saving families thousands each year.
Rising grocery prices continued to pressure household budgets, but one Melbourne mum found a clever workaround that saved her thousands.
Enrica Centorame, a 57-year-old company director, became known as the ‘Queen of Markdowns’ among her family after uncovering a reliable way to cut costs at the supermarket.
She said the discovery came during the final years of her marriage, a time when money was tight and she was looking for ways to stretch every dollar.
Melbourne mum saves thousands with clever shopping hack. Image source: Facebook/Markdown Addicts
‘I had to find lots of ways of saving money, and one of them was through the grocery bill,’ she said.
‘At that stage, there were five of us adults at home. So it was really, really amazingly high.’
What initially seemed like a one-off discount turned out to be a pattern that Centorame used to her advantage every week.
‘The first time I thought it was just a fluke that it was happening that day, but then I realised it was a weekly, daily thing,’ she said.
By shifting her shopping routine to specific times of the day—usually 7pm on Fridays or 5pm on Saturdays—Centorame consistently found heavily discounted items.
‘If you shop towards the final hour of the day, there are things that they cannot sell the next day. I’ve been at the checkout where they say, “We can’t sell you this, it’s past the use-by date”,’ she explained.
‘They heavily discount it on the day, and that can be up to 70 per cent off. The final hour of the day on Saturday is a great day for markdowns.’
She said she rarely left without a bargain, with marked-down prices slashing her monthly grocery spend by as much as $130.
Her regular grocery budget ranged from $280 to $320 a week, with her 20-year-old son still living at home and grandkids staying over every second weekend.
Discounts applied across the board, with some of her biggest savings found in the fresh food section.
‘The fruit and vegetable section is the starting place where a large bag of spinach is $5, and the yellow ticket with Quick Sale can be $1.50. The products are good for a couple of days,’ she said.
‘Bread is another one—4 bagels are usually $6, marked down to $2. Potatoes were a recent purchase from $4.80 to $2.20 a bag.’
While shoppers on social media often shared their markdown wins, major supermarkets made clear there were no set times for discounts.
Both Coles and Woolworths confirmed that markdowns happened to reduce food waste, but timing varied based on stock levels, deliveries and staffing.
A Coles spokesperson shared: ‘We know our customers love good value, so when a product is near its Best Before date, we often mark it down so it can be enjoyed for a cheaper price, instead of being wasted.’
‘Food safety is paramount, and we encourage customers to be mindful of Use By and Best Before dates, which determine the shelf life of food products, how long food can be kept before the quality deteriorates or when the item is unsafe to eat.’
Markdowns could be found across every department, including meat, bakery, fresh produce and pantry staples.
Centorame didn’t just rely on markdowns—she also kept to a grocery list and prioritised fruit and vegetables that were in season.
New research by ING revealed that 86 per cent of Australians shopped the same way, snapping up near-expiry products to cut down costs.
On average, shoppers reported saving $315 a year using this strategy, which translated to a nationwide saving of $5.3 billion.
Matt Bowen, head of consumer and market insights at ING, said: ‘There are still more opportunities to save though, and with two in five (46 per cent) Aussies admitting they’ve had to leave an item behind at the supermarket checkout because they didn’t have enough budget for it, now is a great time to explore more bargains and smart shopping strategies.’
With consistent habits and good timing, Centorame proved that big savings were possible—even in the face of rising prices.
In a previous story, we explored how supermarkets are introducing new tools to make shopping quicker and easier.
This latest feature from Coles aims to help shoppers avoid missing out on great deals.
Check it out to discover how it could change your shopping experience.
With savings like these, could changing when you shop transform your grocery budget too? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
