Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Yaya]

Skyrocketing inflation has made life tough for consumers, especially housewives who feel the effects of rising prices daily at grocery stores. Furthermore, the soaring price of gasoline, which now exceeds 2,000 won per liter at most gas stations nationwide, has made drivers cringe every time the price inches up.

People, however, cannot stop spending even with the high oil and consumer prices. To guide inflation-weary consumers, three �frugality masters� have offered tips on saving in these tough times.

○ Use a calculator

Housewife Ahn Yeong-jin, who has two sons in elementary school, is an acclaimed �master of frugal shopping.� She won this year�s Shopping Queen Competition held by the online community Economic School for Frugal Shoppers on Daum, a major Web portal site. The community has 610,000 members.

Whenever she goes shopping at large discount stores, she always takes a pen, backpack, two shopping bags and a calculator together with flyers distributed by the store. When consumers bring their own backpacks and shopping bags, stores offer discount of 50 won to 150 won per bag.

Ahn uses a calculator to compare prices. She said, �Though private brands are often the cheapest bargain, consumers must thoroughly compare prices by working out how much the product is for a given unit � 100 grams or liters. If extra quantity is added for promotion, you need to think about that, too. It is like an afterschool math class for your children if you take them to large discount stores.�

It is also important for consumers to work out the optimal shopping path in stores, considering the section they visit most often. This prevents impulsive shopping because a shopper goes mainly to sections on his or list together with those offering bargains.

Ahn also has her own unique way of keeping her housekeeping book, in which she keeps track not only of names and prices but also places of purchase. By keeping such a record, she makes sure she knows which store offers the best price by item.

○ Save energy at home

Kang Hyeon-jeong, who lives with her husband and six-year-old daughter, spends about 100,000 won a month except for telecommunication and transportation fees. She is well known for her cost-saving savvy, something which landed her a radio program on thrifty living.

The gas bill for her 86-square meter apartment is only around 35,000 won, even during the coldest spell of winter.

�People get high gas bills even during summer because they turn on their boiler all day for hot water when they take a shower,� Kang said. �They can reduce their gas bills if they turn off their boilers immediately after they take a shower.�

Her tips do not end here. Kang has two 10-liter water buckets, one for cold water and the other for hot water. She said people could save water if they use it out of the bucket instead of using the shower.

Her frugality has also cut her family�s electricity bills. �We turn the air conditioner in the living room for about 15 minutes with all the doors closed,� she said. �After that, we open the doors and turn on the fan facing the room, which moves the hot air from the room to the living room and vice versa. This eventually cools down all the rooms. You can get much cooler air if you place a bucket of ice or a wet towel in front of the fan.�

Another useful tip is receiving free samples from the Web. Kang got her daughter`s diapers and baby formulas by participating in promotional events thrown by baby product companies online. Sometimes, simply joining one of these sites gave her many baby product samples free.

○ Ease up on the gas pedal

Investment expert Lee Dae-pyo runs the online community Economic School for Frugal Shoppers. His tips on cheaper car maintenance boil down to a single message: maintain regular speed.

He urges drivers to run their cars at 2,000 RPM in the city and below 2,500 RPM on expressways, saying, �When conscious of keeping this rule, you can prevent yourself from suddenly hitting the brakes or accelerator. You cannot speed up, either. If you take it easy on the road, you can reduce your gas bills tremendously.�

Lee also advises drivers to keep a diary of when they fill up and how many miles driven. Another tip is to become a regular at the gas station offering the lowest price on the way to work and using credit cards that offer discounts. He adds that going to a gas station faraway just because it offers cheaper gas is never wise.

Of course, drivers must behave well on the road to avoid tickets. Lee said, �Just observing basic rules such as wearing seatbelts and abiding by traffic lights and parking areas is enough to avoid getting tickets.�

http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2008060227928

[Bibbitybop]

The energy one is common-sense and valid, so is comparing prices.

Think the "bring your own" bag idea is good for the environment, but with places charging 50 won a bag, are you really going to care if you save 1,000 won every 3 months or more?

The gas pedal idea is good, but what about a better idea: Use public transportation and carpool when possible.

[PRagic]

Rather than Guiness all the way, try and have a Cass every third beer or so.

Also, if you drink on the rocks, order doubles. Conserve water.

In all seriousness, though, the article is good, but not much use for short termers here. Yes, you need to read lables at stores, and yes, you should eat home more often than not. Not many drive here, though, and even those that do could probably easily cut that out of their expenses. Heating and cooling should be a no brainer in a resource poor country, and even young newbies realize very quickly that if they want to live warm in the winter and cool in the summer, it's going to cost them.

Think before you spend. Pay yourself first. Don't splurge spontaneously. Words to bank by.

[tzechuk]

I normally buy things when they are on sale... but I don't go to different stores to buy them because it takes too much time and normally requires driving to these other stores, thus defeating the purpose of actually trying to save money.

The shopping thing is OK if you're not a working woman.. but if you are.. forget it.

[mrsquirrel]

1. Save a fortune on laundry bills. Give your dirty shirts to a local charity shop. They'll wash and iron them and you can buy them back for 50 cents.

2. Create instant designer stubble by sucking a magnet and dipping your chin into a bowl of iron filings.

3. A hedgehog, trained to scuttle up and down the table from guest to guest, makes an unusual and cheap mobile appetizer dispenser at cocktail parties.

4. Foil pick-pockets by placing a freshly toasted "pop tart" in each pocket. Would-be thieves will quickly rupture the fragile pastry and receive nasty finger burns from the steaming hot jam inside.

5. A length of plastic drainpipe with a roller skate at each end makes an ideal home-made "car" for snakes.

6. Can�t afford contact lenses? Simply cut out small circles of clingwrap and press them into your eyes.

7. Stop bread from drying out by keeping it in a bucket of water.

8. Don't waste money buying expensive binoculars. Simply stand closer to the object you wish to view.

9. Avoid jet lag by simply taking an earlier flight, thus arriving fully refreshed and on time.

10. Put a stop to car thieves by siphoning off all your gas whenever you park your car, and carrying it round with you in one or two plastic buckets.

11. Why pay for expensive jigsaws? Just take a bag of frozen fries from the freezer and try piercing together potatoes.

12. Smell gas? Locate the suspected leak by striking an ordinary match in every room in the house until a loud explosion reveals the source of the escaping gas.

13. Always keep a stick of butter in your pocket so that if you get your head stuck in railings you'll be able to grease your ears and slide out.

14. Exterior wood stain is a cheap, long-lasting and attractive alternative to sun-bed treatments.

15. Office workers. Avoid distractions from your important paperwork by making "blinkers" out of two post-it note stickers, one stuck to each temple.

16. Save electricity by turning off all the lights in your house and walking around wearing a miner's hat.

17. Avoid parking tickets by leaving your windscreen wipers turned to 'fast wipe' whenever you leave your car parked illegally.

18. Old telephone directories make ideal, free personal address books. Simply cross out the names and addresses of people you don't know.

19. When reading a book try tearing out the pages as you read them. This saves the expense of buying a bookmark.

20. Save on gas by pushing your car to your destination. Invariably passers-by will think you've broken down and help.

21. Avoid being wheel-clamped by jacking up your car, removing the wheels and locking them safely in the trunk until you return.

22. No time for a bath? Wrap yourself in duct tape and remove the dirt by simply peeling it off.

23. Expensive hair gels are expensive. Jelly is a much cheaper alternative, but beware of bees in the summer.

24. Save on alochol by drinking cold tea instead of scotch. The following morning you can create the effects of a hangover by drinking a tablespoon of dish soap and banging your head repeatedly on the wall.

25. International master criminals. It is possible to make your fortune. Simply tell your guards to shoot James Bond in the head at the first opportunity. Under no circumstances give him a guided tour of your base, or leave him in the custody of attractive women in bikinis.

[chriswylson]

You know you really have now life when your obsession is about saving 3 bucks at the grocery store. Pathetic.

[JustJohn]

I like that list.

[tzechuk]

[Zutronius]

[aka Dave]

When I was 16 and I got my first car (76 Chevy Malibu Classic with a 420 engine, huge beast of a gas guzzler), I would never stop at stop signs and I'd drive very slow. I mean, I'd stop at stop lights cause you have to. But I'd just very, very slowly cruise through stop signs (unless there were other cars coming), because if you dead stop a car you have a huge gas expense acclerating from a dead stop.

Now, before you say that's insane. I was 16 and insane. But i'd make a tank of gas last a month.

[agoodmouse]

[chriswylson]

tzechuk, you're so full of it. Based on your posts, your husband is well off, you have a graduate degree and you (used to?) teach at a university, so don't pretend to be a poor housewife. There's a big difference between being careful with your money and saving money by using your hand instead of toilet paper. Now you go save 50 won on shopping bags... Retards.

[justaguy]

Sell the car and take the bus.

Move near where you work. Then you can walk there.

And my favorite, stop drinking expensive stuff and get back on the soju.

You don't have to do without, just do it differently.

[ryouga013]

shop after eating. impulse buying great for the business and even better when you buy a lot more because you keep thinking "that would taste good right about now". (<------ this is for Plus99)

If you are trying to get more exercise, I know it's a hassle but if you are within an hour walking/jogging distance from work to your house and you don't mind washing your clothes a little more often you can jog home. Cuts' the transportation expenses, and removes the need for a gym membership. Added expense, laundry expenses (unless you're one of those lucky people that don't sweat much at all).

[ultra]