A shopper has revealed how she completed her weekly food shop at M&S for £45.43, using the store's Remarksable value range, multi-buy deals and the Sparks app for recipe inspiration.
Rachel Williams, a writer for the Daily Record, set out to test whether a budget food shop at the premium retailer was possible, inspired by TikTok videos of people doing the same. She planned her purchases and was surprised to fill two large bags of groceries for under £45.
Using the Remarksable range
Williams focused on M&S's Remarksable range, which offers "everyday low prices" on staples such as meat, milk, bread and tinned food. She bought a 500g bag of fusilli pasta for 75p, a box of six free range mixed size eggs for £1.40 and a 400g loaf of wholemeal bread for 65p. A single salmon fillet cost £2.28, which she said was ideal for a single household.
The value range spans most aisles, especially after M&S cut the cost of up to a further 65 items in July, helping households save more on grocery staples.
Taking advantage of multi-buy deals
Williams also used multi-buy promotions, including the £8 stir-fry deal. Unlike other supermarkets, it included a choice of protein, noodles, vegetables and sauce, which she batch cooked into two portions.
She highlighted the importance of including promotions such as the stir-fry meal deal in a food haul.
Using the Sparks app for budget meal inspiration
Williams used the free Sparks app's 'Great Value Recipes' section to plan her shop, creating a shopping list of ingredients for a tuna pasta bake and a pot roast, both of which could be batch cooked into multiple meals.
She also picked up premium items under the value line, including white wine, garlic and herb stock pots for £1.70 and a Caramelised Red Onion Chutney for £2.65.
The total cost
The entire haul came to £45.43, including two paper bags at 80p, or £44.63 without them. Williams said the total was lower than what she had spent at Tesco, Sainsbury's and even Aldi.
She bought tins of soup for 60p each and a 1kg bag of oats for £1.25, enough for breakfasts including overnight oats and porridge. The most expensive item was the £8 stir-fry meal deal, which worked out at £4 per portion.
Williams concluded that she felt she got a good haul spanning cupboard staples and fancy yet affordable meals for the week ahead, without the matching price tag.
