The Daily Record's Rachel Williams took on a challenge to see how many home essentials she could buy at Poundland for £10, and managed to secure nine items for £9.50, with only one product exceeding the £1 price point.
Williams visited her local Poundland in Aberdeen's Berryden Retail Park with a reusable shopping bag, a list of items, and a tenner. She noted that this was the only store she visited, so stock levels and deals may vary at different locations.
Most Items Priced at £1
Williams was initially surprised to find that most items on her list were indeed priced at a single pound. There were also a few 'dump bins' where shoppers could buy home essentials or clearance stock at the lower pricing point.
To keep things budget-friendly, she mostly opted for more affordable brands compared to the likes of Fairy, Flash, or Bold. For laundry, she picked up Easy 3-in-1 Bio Laundry Powder, which provides 13 washes for £1 and also acts as a softener and makes items easy iron.
Cleaning and Bathroom Essentials
For surfaces, she found a Multi-Purpose Bleach Cleaner and Toilet Cleaning Gel from the Astonish brand, both at £1. Toilet roll was another essential, with Williams opting for Quantum Quilted rolls at £1 for a pack of four, working out at 25p per roll.
Other staples for £1 included a large 'magnum' roll of kitchen towel, 12m of kitchen foil, and a large 600ml of handwash. She almost made it to a bang on 10 items for £10, but sponges prevented a clean sweep.
Sponges Break the £1 Rule
Every single pack of sponges available came in at £1.50, 50p higher than everything else. Williams said she could have technically left them out, but sponges are an absolute must for every home, so she added them to the basket.
This brought her entire total to £9.50 for nine items. She later realised she missed out dish soap, although there was a large 675ml of Easy Neroli or smaller 320ml bottle of Fairy both costing £1, which would have taken the total to just over at £10.50.
Williams concluded that if you shop smart and don't mind getting the really budget brands, then a £10 budget on home essentials can be stretched quite far at Poundland. She recognised that as a single person household, this may differ for families who need larger sizes and quantities, but with most items costing £1, it's definitely still a bargain.
