A few years ago, Annemarie Gregory would splurge around £400 on presents every Christmas.
But now, after discovering ways to save money, Annemarie has managed to get all her gifts for free – saving the money for special trips with her daughter Isabella, 12, instead.
The 40-year-old single mum picks up heavily discounted gifts throughout the year and uses loyalty points and cashback websites to effectively get things for free.
The civil servant, of Blackpool, Lancashire, said: ‘I think I’ve saved hundreds, if not thousands of pounds over the years. I would normally spend about £400 at Christmas on gifts for my family, but now I spend nothing.
‘I use cashback websites, where you can make money back on things you buy, for anything and everything – even takeaways.
‘Even if I only save a couple of pence, I think it is worth it. Every penny saved will go towards something else, and it soon adds up.
‘I get a real buzz from it because it’s money I normally wouldn’t be saving.’
Annemarie said she always liked getting a bargain but she started taking couponing more seriously around five years ago, using sites like Martin Lewis Money Saving Expert and Facebook groups like Ashleigh Money Saver to find the best deals.
She also started to maximise her loyalty cards so she could use her points to buy extra things.
By Christmas time, she realised she could use her skills to ease the cost of the festive season and she had her first free Christmas in December 2015.
And for the past four years, she has scored all her Christmas presents for free.
She explained: ‘I do a lot of shopping in the January sales, then stick everything in the attic ready for the following Christmas.
‘I also have a Boots advantage card, which I save points up on throughout the year, then use them to buy gift sets for presents.
‘Then I will look at supermarkets that have deals on, make a note and make sure to go there, and I also use websites like vouchercloud.com, which offers discounts on loads of things, to try and pick up bargains.
‘Amazon also post lightning deals early in the morning, so you have to be quick. I once got a gaming keyboard for £7 down from £35.’
She adds that one of the best things she uses is a cashback website, meaning she will receive money back from everything she buys.
She then either puts this money aside, or converts it to vouchers, which she will give as gifts in themselves, or use them to buy her Christmas presents.
She explained: ‘I’ve saved all this money basically for free, just doing what I would normally do, but buying through cashback websites instead of going direct.
‘I’ve been able to save up throughout the year so I can spend the money on Christmas.’
Last year, Annemarie managed to get £150 through TopCashback alone.
She continued: ‘I withdrew this via the TopCashback reward wallet, which gave me an extra 10 per cent bonus on a gift card, which I could then give to my daughter.
‘The rest I withdrew as Love2Shop vouchers, which can be used at loads of different high street stores. I got a six per cent bonus from the site for doing it this way rather than withdrawing the cash.
‘This year, my daughter has asked for a Fitbit, which would normally cost over £100.
‘I can use my cashback saving of £10, and then I found a discount code to get another £10 off.
‘I’ll then spend the money I’ve saved throughout the year on the rest of it, so I’m essentially getting it for free.’
Once Christmas is over, Annemarie picks up some things in the sales to keep for next year.
Last January, she bagged a beauty product gift set worth £50 for just £11.50, plus a Nintendo Switch games console, a New Look gift card, baby clothes and a Yankee candle – all paid for with loyalty card points.
‘I also pick up little reduced gift sets to make hampers for the homeless collection at the local food bank,’ she added.
Annemarie's top tips to get discounts on Christmas presents
Annemarie’s top tips
1) Sign up to the Top Cashback website and remember to go through it whenever you are planning to shop
2) Use voucher code websites and check newspapers offering codes
3) Follow discount groups on social media and check them first thing in the morning
4) Hit the January sales and stock up.
5) Don’t be afraid to ask sales assistants if you see things on the shop floor – they might be in the process of discounting them
‘I have a Debenhams card, so I will always look there for a dress for my Christmas do. This year I found one for £36 discounted from £45. I used £23 I’d saved in vouchers so got it for £13.
‘Now, the only thing I have to buy is the Christmas dinner. It makes a huge difference.’
Describing herself as ‘savvy rather than tight,’ she joked that her family love her bargain-hunting obsession, because she will sniff out deals for them, too.
She spends about an hour a day looking for discounts but explained that you need to be smart.
‘Sometimes I will see something has gone down from £50 to £25, but then I know it will go down again so I’ll wait,’ she said.
‘If I buy something at full price, and the following week it’s in the sale, I will take it back and get it refunded at the original cost price then buy it reduced.
‘A lot of it is being in the right place at the right time.’
Do you have some tips on how to get a bargain? Get in touch at metrolifestyleteam@metro.co.uk
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source https://metro.co.uk/2019/12/18/mum-gets-christmas-presents-free-using-vouchers-loyalty-points-11925564/
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