We, DS and I, set out at 13:00 not for Morrisons just three minutes walk away but to our nearest 'parade' of shops, which includes a green grocer and pet shop. A bus ride there (£2.20) and to our first failure - the pet shop doesn't sell sachets of cat food, which our finicky pussy cat will only eat. It also highlighted another challenge of non-supermarket shopping - small shops are difficult to get a buggy around! Still undeterred we went to the green grocer and we seemed to spend a fortune on a few items to tide us over until the weekend, when we plan to go strawberry picking and to visit the shop at Stanhill Farm.
While we were out we also supported our local cafe, which pleased a hungry DS, who, managed to woo two old ladies with waves and air kisses.
We also do a weekly shop for my partner's mum and we haven't subjected her to our experiment (yet ;-)). So I tried to get the items that she wanted that were unavailable at Ocado this week in the Co-op, figuring they have the best ethics of the supermarkets, but was thwarted when it came to the 5" cheese and tomato pizzas on her list. So reluctantly on the long walk home, I popped into Morrisons to get those. I did, however, take the opportunity to compare the prices of what I had purchased at the green grocer with those in Morrisons and apart from paying 10 pence more for a cucumber and getting two less nectarines for my £1.00 (though the ones I picked looked much juicier), there was little difference in cost.
So at the end of day one, we've not spent much more than normal, but I've managed to incorporate more exercise (walking) and have engaged more with my local community (people serving in small shops without queues are much more willing to engage in a chatter) than I would have during my normal trip to Morrisons. I did also relent on the cat food front and buy this from the Co-op ... though an alternative source is high on my list for research!
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