This week marks the end of the joyous Purim festival. Costumes and masks will be stored away, and preparations will begin for the most complex holiday of the year – Passover. It is the time for many households across the country to focus not only on cleaning and organizing, but also on planning the significant financial expenses that await us just around the corner. In preparation for the upcoming challenges, we’ve prepared for you, at Ma'ariv Business, the complete guide to minimizing – as much as possible – your shopping expenses at retail chains.
Planning is worth money. The shopping for Passover presents two "peaks" of sensitivity: The initial preparation phase and the main consumption phase – with necessary additions just before the holiday. The ultimate solution is to prepare as comprehensive a shopping list as possible, search for the cheapest basket, and maybe even discover that splitting your shopping between several chains could lead to significant savings.
Studies show that those who start their preparations as early as possible and take advantage of sales, which disappear during peak moments, can save more than 25% of their total holiday expenses. A shopping list is a simple yet powerful tool that can help us achieve the desired savings.
Identifying the Manipulation. Consumer experience experts, both in physical stores and on online shopping sites, invest enormous resources in understanding consumer psychology. The arrangement of shelves, sales, smells in supermarkets, and even music – all are carefully planned to increase the amount we spend.
In the online world, the techniques become even more sophisticated: Personalized recommendations, suggestions for complementary products, countdowns for sales, and notifications about "last items in stock" – all create a sense of urgency and encourage spontaneous purchases.
Behavioral economics studies teach us that we buy not only to meet physical needs but also to satisfy emotional needs. Just as there is emotional eating, there is also emotional consumption.
Many of us find shopping an escape from stress, boredom, or even anxiety. The dopamine released in the brain during a new purchase creates immediate satisfaction – but temporary. Thus, like emotional eating, emotional consumption can lead to compulsive behavior and unnecessary spending.
Evidence of this phenomenon can be found everywhere: In malls, supermarkets, endless browsing between stores, and even on online shopping sites. There we buy products we don’t truly need, and sometimes even forget what we bought until the package arrives at home.
Investing in Lists. Despite the potential for significant savings, a surprising statistic reveals that most consumers don’t use a structured shopping list, and more than half of shoppers only note a few items they need to remember – turning the list into a "don't forget" list rather than a real planning tool. In reality, the connection between this list and what ultimately ends up in the shopping cart is entirely random.
Studies in consumer behavior show that without prior planning, our decisions are dramatically influenced by marketing stimuli in the store, our mood, and even our level of hunger during shopping, often without us even noticing. A structured shopping list may prevent this.
An effective shopping list is much more than a list of items. It’s an economic planning tool that allows us to make deliberate decisions, far from the temptations and pressure of the shopping environment; to avoid duplicate purchases of items we later realize we already have at home; to save time; and to track consumption patterns and identify areas where we can save money.
Household financial advisors recommend: "Track your purchases for two months. Write down what you bought, how much you paid, and how much of it was eventually thrown away. The insights will surprise you."
The secret to an effective shopping list lies in checking what you already have at home and planning meals for the coming days. Here are some guiding principles:
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Categories Instead of Single Items
Arrange your list by categories (vegetables, dairy products, etc.) rather than in a random order. -
Set a Defined Budget
Set an amount you are willing to spend on shopping for the home, and track it regularly. -
Use Technology
Shopping list apps can store purchase history, track prices, and even suggest recipes. -
Be Flexible – But With Caution
If there’s a real sale on a product you regularly consume, it may be a wise decision to buy it even if it’s not on the list. Caution: Many sales deceive us and don’t show the true price of the product! -
At the End of the Day, the Question is Not Just How Much We Spent, But Also What We Received for Our Money
Did the products we bought truly improve the quality of our lives? Were they fully consumed, or did some of them get thrown away? Did we feel that the purchase was calculated and planned, or was it the result of a spontaneous urge?
Ma'ariv Business Survey. Even this year, with the start of Passover shopping, we compiled a typical and common basket of various holiday products, all kosher for Passover, ranging from cleaning supplies to cuts of meat. We conducted a comprehensive price comparison among leading retail chains to discover where significant savings could be made. The basket included 64 basic and typical Passover products, including cleaning supplies, kosher for Passover essentials, vegetables, fruits, dairy products, and meat. The shopping was done on the same day at eight large retail chains, focusing on identical products.
The survey revealed significant price differences – the gap between the cheapest and most expensive chain was 31%. Kosher for Passover products were, on average, 35% more expensive than their regular counterparts. The difference was especially significant in products like cookies, pasta, and breakfast cereals. We also found misleading promotions – 40% of the promotions published were not truly worthwhile compared to the regular price of the products or their price in other chains.
And if you need further proof that a shopping list is the recipe for savings, here’s a statistic: When we sent shoppers with a prepared list compared to those asked to buy "what seems reasonable for the family," we found that the group without the list spent an average of 32% more. Food for thought.
The Winning Basket. As mentioned, the data shows a difference of nearly NIS 300 between the cheapest and most expensive baskets. The winner of the survey this week was the Hazi Hinam chain, with a basket priced at NIS 965. Right behind it, with a slight gap of NIS four, was the Rami Levy chain (NIS 969). The Yohananof chain opened the "1,000 Club" list, with a shopping basket costing NIS 1,009. Carrefour Hyper (NIS 1,063) and Victory (NIS 1,101) rounded out the top five, while Shufersal Deal (NIS 1,191), Fresh Market (NIS 1,211), and Tiv Ta'am (NIS 1,261) closed the list, bearing the unflattering title of the most expensive chains in the sample of products.
*** The survey was conducted via the Prices website and is accurate as of March 11, 2025.
