A couple from Staffordshire has revealed how they saved more than £20,000 in just 12 months by focusing on their financial goals. Callie O'Grady, 23, and her partner Karl, 28, challenged each other to save over £10,000 each in 2020 and succeeded.
Callie, a marketing manager, managed to save over £600 each month by making small changes to her spending habits. She swapped shop-bought treats for homemade alternatives, switched to own-brand products, and set a strict monthly budget. 'I would budget at the start of every month how much I could save from my salary and then put this into a locked savings account,' she explained.
The couple also reduced their weekly food bill from £70 to £55 by choosing own-brand items over branded ones. They cooked more at home, saving £1,000 a year on takeaways and meals out. Callie said, 'The own-brand products taste just as good as the branded ones.'
Further savings came from making coffee at home instead of visiting cafés three times a week, saving £550 over the year. With gyms closed during the pandemic, Callie used free YouTube workout videos, saving £400. She also saved £1,000 on fuel by working from home and used an app called IFTTT's 1p Savings Challenge to automate savings, adding over £650.
The couple's total savings of £20,000 will be used as a deposit on a home. Callie advised, 'I calculated my outgoings per month and added budgets to my bank account to keep on top of spending.'
