Will Northern Ireland be worth it?

darc

UK budget today will probably see large increases on booze, cigs & fuel and possibly a return of 17.5% VAT.

When the increases are taken into account and you add up the costs of going north & the inevitable additional purchases you make when you're up there, & the much welcomed drop in prices down here, will it be worth it for everyday shopping?

mickoneill30

Yep. People aren't going up to save a couple of quid. They're going up to save hundreds. Have a look at the Bargain Alerts thread.

Argos is frequently 50% cheaper up there.
There are sites that compare Tesco up North to down here. I've seen stuff down here for €4 that costs less than €2 up north. ASDA are meant to be cheaper again.
My other half has bought shirts for £5 that were on sale at €50 down here (this was in the factory outlet admittedly).

For me it's not worth going up every week or month but we go up 2 or 3 times a year and stock up.

A couple of percent in VAT won't make a huge difference.

Caoimhín

There HAS to be a distance limit factored in though.

It simply would not make sense to drive from, lets say, Clare to Newry to save €200 in shopping costs if fuel cost you €300 to make that trip. That is a very simple way of looking at it and doesnt include costs like your own time or the cost of eating out.

Excluding the novelty factor and the big day out, there simply has to be a cut off point where it makes sense to do this.

i71jskz5xu42pb

Caoimhín wrote: »

It simply would not make sense to drive from, lets say, Clare to Newry to save €200 in shopping costs if fuel cost you €300 to make that trip. That is a very simple way of looking at it and doesnt include costs like your own time or the cost of eating out.

What do you drive that would eat up €300 in a Clare to Newry trip?

Eating out - no surprises here, but that's cheaper up there as well. You can eat in the IKEA in Belfast for buttons.

Granted the time is an issue, but I don't think you'd be going to do your weekly shop.

Caoimhín wrote: »

there simply has to be a cut off point where it makes sense to do this.

Logically yes, there is a point where it stops making sense. Based on all accounts that point is a long way away yet.

omahaid

Caoimhín wrote: »

There HAS to be a distance limit factored in though.

It simply would not make sense to drive from, lets say, Clare to Newry to save €200 in shopping costs if fuel cost you €300 to make that trip. That is a very simple way of looking at it and doesnt include costs like your own time or the cost of eating out.

Excluding the novelty factor and the big day out, there simply has to be a cut off point where it makes sense to do this.

Clare to Enniskillen is €30 diesel return on a 2.0l avensis. Fill up the car from Asda and we save hundreds (xmas trip saved us €500, I worked it out when we got back) so its still going to be worth it. As other posters have said its worth doing the trip a couple of times a year to stock up on items that have massive differences in price and I suspect it will still be worth it.

the_syco

Caoimhín wrote: »

It simply would not make sense to drive from, lets say, Clare to Newry to save €200 in shopping costs if fuel cost you €300 to make that trip.

What litre engine do you have? :eek:

Caoimhín

Im only using it as an example lads, i have never driven from Clare to Newry and back so i wouldnt know.

My point still stands.

Caoimhín

the_syco wrote: »

What litre engine do you have? :eek:

3.0

mickoneill30

Caoimhín wrote: »

Im only using it as an example lads, i have never driven from Clare to Newry and back so i wouldnt know.

My point still stands.

For me in my crappy punto, from Swords (North Dublin)-> Lisburn return it uses just over half a tank. I fill a tank with €50.

It'll be a looooong time before that €30 doesn't make it worthwhile.

I was in Next in Blanch yesterday. Jeans there are €54. In Next in the UK the exact same pair is £35 (€39). So when I next go up there's my petrol money saved when I buy two pairs. Anything else is just a bonus. I won't be going up especially to buy two pairs of jeans but I don't need them urgently so they're on the list.

I know there's the time factor too (which is more important to me). That's why I only wander up a few times a year. If it was up to my missus we'd be up there every weekend :rolleyes:

i71jskz5xu42pb

Caoimhín wrote: »

Im only using it as an example lads, i have never driven from Clare to Newry and back so i wouldnt know.

My point still stands.

Well if you don't know what you're talking about and everybody here is in agreement that the €300 figure is pretty ridiculous then I'd say the main thrust of your point does not stand

Caoimhín

Pablo Tangy Washboard wrote: »

Well if you don't know what you're talking about and everybody here is in agreement that the €300 figure is pretty ridiculous then I'd say the main thrust of your point does not stand

Sorry, let me make this as simple as I can for you then;

At some point, the costs of traveling to the north will be more than the savings made. I could travel to Spain to buy even cheaper groceries, but my costs would be more than my savings.

Now, i know that may be a difficult concept for you to wrap your head around, and if by using a round figure of €300 in costs as an example confused you, then i am sorry for that, but my point still stands.

darc

The OP is about regular shopping - which if you were buying beer / cigs / wine / vodka + a a range of groceries, would recently would have saved you about €100 on a €300 shop.

With the exchange rate now at about 1.16 (bank customer rate), combined with the long awaited lowering of prices down here and the expected substantial duty increases due up North, it probably will only make sense for those very close to the border to do normal shopping up north.

On top of that, when I went north last year, I found I bought more than normal, thus consumed more than normal & it ended up not worth it unless a visit to Bushmills & a weekend away was included!:D

As for Argos - They are expensive in the UK - & extreemly expensive here. i would NEVER buy from them in any case. Local retailers in both markets beat them hands down.

And as for shirts / clothes, the Kildare outlets is superb. Currently the reebok store offer buy one get one free on EVERYHTHING in store at the outlet price. Levis have 501's at 2 for €85 & others at buy 1 get 50% off the other, Nike, Karen Millen, Pepe, nike oasis etc etc all have offers every week too.

dlambirl

i understand what your saying OP that if the costs of getting there exceeds the saving then its not worth it........

but MY point is that - with the excellent savings that is to be got from shopping up north, the saving you get on a large grocery shop or buying a few electrical items, etc will almost definitely exceed the price to fuel to get there.....
unless your stupid enough to drive from Cork for a tube of toothpaste...

Nody

Pablo Tangy Washboard wrote: »

Well if you don't know what you're talking about and everybody here is in agreement that the €300 figure is pretty ridiculous then I'd say the main thrust of your point does not stand

No his point still stands though it is unlikely to be reached. His point was, if you want a McD meal and it costs 7 Euro in Dublin, 5 in Newry and 1 Euro in Tokyo it don't make sense to travel to either place to buy a burger even if it is cheaper because the total price with over heads is higher.

darc

dlambirl wrote: »

i understand what your saying OP that if the costs of getting there exceeds the saving then its not worth it........

but MY point is that - with the excellent savings that is to be got from shopping up north, the saving you get on a large grocery shop or buying a few electrical items, etc will almost definitely exceed the price to fuel to get there.....
unless your stupid enough to drive from Cork for a tube of toothpaste...

The OP is more about what happens in the British budget today that will even out the market. Most commentators say the vat reduction did not work and the chancellor is on record saying that duties will rise significantly. - If the saving on a large shopping bill drop to about 15%, then it won't be worth it for many.

btw - in my business we are fixed at a 1.07 exchange for the rest of the year AND its been passed on in full to customers. - and we're reasonably busy.

dlambirl

Nody wrote: »

No his point still stands though it is unlikely to be reached. His point was, if you want a McD meal and it costs 7 Euro in Dublin, 5 in Newry and 1 Euro in Tokyo it don't make sense to travel to either place to buy a burger even if it is cheaper because the total price with over heads is higher.

I know but i dont think there are many people travelling to Newry and buying something that only saves them a couple of quid?! If there are people like that then someone should call them a taxi!! The only way you actually SAVE anything is if your buying in bulk and only buying what you would of bought anyway in your local shop. People are buying things they dont need or what they wouldnt of normally bought and thats not saving!!

i71jskz5xu42pb

Nody wrote: »

No his point still stands though it is unlikely to be reached. His point was, if you want a McD meal and it costs 7 Euro in Dublin, 5 in Newry and 1 Euro in Tokyo it don't make sense to travel to either place to buy a burger even if it is cheaper because the total price with over heads is higher.

Theoretically the point is correct. Big fat "So what", when was this ever not the case?

In practice however it's rubbish. In practice, bar the Hummer drivers, it's still a lot cheaper to head to the North for any decent sized shop.

Nody

Budget is out, no VAT increase, 2% increase on alcohol (~1 pence on a pint) and tobacco (~7 pence increase on a 20 pack of cigs); 2 pence increase on fuel from September and future increases every April. More details available at the BBC quick glance sheet.