Are You a Brand Kind of Person for Your Groceries?

I'm picky about meats, we usally shop at whole foods for that but if we can't I refuse to get that roll of meat! Yucky! Same with chicken and fish can't do frozen, even though my hubby doesn't see a difference.

Sometimes... Some brands are just better quality than others... but I often buy no name brand. Costco's Kirkland products are great, and so is Target's Up 'n Up brands...

I try it once and if I don't like it I switch back to the name brands.

But, at the same time I look at prices, and often find myself taking the cheapest.. like Canned food and cereals...

Deli meats, bread, and orange juice all have to be a certain brand for me, but otherwise I shop the cheapest.

I buy the healthier and more sustainable brands of any given product, whether it be food or personal "beauty" products, and I am willing to pay more for them, especially if they are environmentally-conscious companies or companies that treat their animals more humanely (and yes, I've been known to research this). That being said, the grocery stores that I shop at are not the conventional stores (Vons, Ralphs, etc.), so if I do buy say, the Henry's (Sprouts) store brand, I have a reasonable expectation that the product will be made in a manner more in line with my consumer morals (and yes, I've actually phoned Henry's corporate office for info on their brand name items) :)

Added: my husband, on the other hand, will buy whatever. This is why he is not allowed to do the grocery shopping!

I shop sales, with certain preferred brands. We only eat expensive sandwich bread, though ($2 is a good sale).

I am pretty picky about alot of things, but that does include a preference for some store brand items as well, namely Target brand things (Up and Up..and their Archer Farms food items..they have a pasta sauce we absolutely LOVE..and its NOT cheaper than buying something like Prego in the giant double pack at Sams Club, etc). When it comes to food especially I am super picky. But things like paper plates, pape towels, fever reducers and allergy meds, etc...I always buy store brands.

I am always trying new things...but usually because I want to try a new flavor or a healthier version, etc. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

Like you said, there are a few things that only name brands will work for us. Laundry detergent is one, batteries is another. Almost all food will be store brand, unless the name brand is on sale.
A sidenote, my sister will ONLY buy named brand. When her boys come over, my nephews, and I break out the store brand pop-tarts they won't eat them, lol. I guess bottom line it's about the deal.

I looooove Target brand dry foods, and some of their cleaning products. I must buy a certain beef and chicken. I also only buy Dawn dishsoap and Gain detergent. Other than that, I'll test out store brands, and if i like them after the first try, I'll keep getting the cheaper ones :-)

ooh Rachel!! I feel for you!! My husband knows better than to buy something that I normally don't carry in the house!!! :) YEAH! It was on sale! Great but it tastes horrible!!!

For the most part - I buy brand name things. There are a couple of things I will TRY store brand - like Harris Teeter has pepperocini's that ROCK!! And their cream cheese is good too. They also have a guarantee that if I try it and don't like it? I can bring it back and they will replace it with the "brand name".

I do sales and coupons! But like you - there are some things I won't compromise on - Hillshire Farm Keilbasa...got it!! Tried others - yuck.

I believe that you often get what you pay for.

What savings is it when you buy cheap trash bags then when you pull it out of the can it busts open, or half way to the curb it is spilled everywhere...so you double bag and it still happens so you triple bad...ummmm, you just spent more money buying more cheap bags and had to clean up a mess along the way.

I also believe there are many products out there that are just as good and if you buy them all the time they are what you will prefer. For instance, the cheap mac and cheese. If you eat Kraft all the time you won't like the cheap, but to say a dollar a box I will only buy the cheap Walmart brand. The kids don't like Kraft anymore.

Soap? I buy name brands, not Tide or Era but I will buy Arm and Hammer or some other that is not a generic. I find I keep adding and adding the cheap stuff and my clothes just don't feel or smell clean.

It depends on the item. I have to be a label reader due to some serious dietary restrictions in our house and more often than not the store brand and generic brands have additives in them or other ingredients that are harmful my middle daughter. She also has Sensory Processing Disorder, so that means there are flavor, texture, odor issues that are very often specific to a particular brand and if I try to fake it with something else that's cheaper (even if it's safe for her) she can tell the difference. She's lactose intolerant, and you'd be shocked at what they put milk, powdered milk, lactose, casein, whey, and other dairy biproducts in. My children are also sensitive to HFCS and artificial food colorings, and cheap processed foods and generic foods tend to have far more of those things in them as fillers. We also have to reduce corn products thanks to a higher frequency of UTIs and yeast infections, and of course cheaper products tend to use corn as a filler.

So it's not so much a matter of brand loyalty, but brand necessity for health reasons. And I cook a lot from scratch so as to eat as naturally as possible. Mostly-homemade is my motto.

Brand. I do take the free items and donate them to the shelter, but I like what I like and food is my one splurge.

I try to get the store brand for the majority of my purchases. But there are some things that I prefer the brand and will spend the extra. Like coffee, I cannot stand to drink off brand coffee, we buy Maxwell House. Oh, and my husband absolutely loves Swiss Rolls, and he wont eat the off brand ones, they have to be the name brand ones. Usually there isnt really a difference between the brand or generic, but sometimes there is and we'll go for the brand. and toilet paper, I hate store brand toilet paper, I dont mind paying the extra for good toilet paper..LOL

For certain things, I have to buy name brand such as:

Jif Peanut Butter (no other brand tastes this good)
Hellman's Mayonnaise
Tim Horton's coffee
Dawn dish soap
Huggies Diapers (only for this kid, the others used the store brands)
Quaker Oatmeal
Name Brand laundry soap

Other than those things, it's the store brands.

Detergent! I will not buy the cheapest brand. It just doesn't work and you use double! Tide or gain only, with downy softner. Shampoo is another one. V05 maybe 75 cents but it ruins my hair. Herbal essence or pantene only! Bath and body foamy soap is the only thing on my sinks too! Man, im a lil high maintenance huh ????

I also believe that you get what you pay for.

There is a reason a store brand is cheaper.....

That said, there are some store brands I will purchase (Kirkland paper towels and Kirkland tp for example) but very few.

I am a very brand loyal person. It has to be Hellman's mayo, Heinz ketchup, Jiff peanut butter, Downy, All etc. you get my point.

IF I see my brands on sale for a good deal, I stock up. I probably have 8 bottles of All HE detergent right now.

It varies. Many times I go with the store brand, but there are things that I buy brand-name. It also depends on what's on sale and whether or not I have a coupon. If Starbucks coffee is less per pound than another brand that week, that's what we get. I have preferences with shampoo and conditioner because it's what works for my hair, so I look for coupons and try to buy on sale. DD has sensitive skin so I also don't go generic for her or I end up with a rashy kid. But things like pasta or beans or mac and cheese? Store brand. My SD got fancy olives from an olive bar that she didn't like. She prefers the store brand in a can. I'm good with that.

I will buy the store brand in most things! BUT...like you said, some things can no be substituted! My husband is the opposite...if I send him to the store, he comes home w/ all the name brand things! O well...I'm usually grateful that he stopped for me!

And for those things that NEED to be name brand...yes, worth the extra money!! It's always nice to find our name brand things ON SALE or have a coupon though! :)

I do prefer brand names, but to save money I will buy some things generic (sugar in the raw, milk, cheese).