An Analysis on Family Beverage Spend
THE FACTS
Our family beverages.loves
However, it appeared that too much money was being spent on drinks – money that could be better spent
elsewhere!
I decided to conduct an analysis on our family’s 2010 spend on beverages
to determine if there were cost savings that might be easily achieved.
THE NUMBERS
I listed the different types of beverages our family purchased and
consumed in 2010.
What do you think the total was?
93
Now you might think that number seems high – but how many total drinks
would you guess our family purchased in 2010?
5,011
Now this number may appear very large, but it is more important to understand the cost.
I then calculated the total spend on beverages purchased in 2010.
$4,475
THE LIFESTYLE
The family’s drinking habits
Mom Dad Jane JohnBottled water addict
Often purchases a bottle of wine for the weekend
Occasional bottle of expensive champagne for soirees
Purchases an occasional bottle of imported Irish whiskey
Always purchases a beer with dinner at a restaurant
A late night at the office always warrants multiple energy drinks
Study sessions always involve tasty coffees & lattes
Diet soda addict
Bottled water addict
Energy drink addict
Drinks a glass of orange juice every morning
Often purchases sodas at school
THE ANALYSIS
Next, I determined the total number and cost of beverages purchased
Number of beverages purchased in 2010
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
Mom Dad Jane John
Next, I determined the total number and cost of beverages purchased
Cost of beverages purchased in 2010
Mom Dad Jane John
$-
$200
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
The Troublemaker
THE SOLUTION
Instead of asking Dad to cut back on his beverage spend, I decided to ask each family member to cut back on one
of their own drink expenditures.
Mom
Number of Beverages Spend on Beverages
Will cut back on six bottles of wine to
save:
$128 in 2011
Focuses on Wine
31 bottles per year
$354 per year
Dad
Will order less expensive beer at
restaurants to save:
$196 in 2011
Focuses on Beer
209 bottles per year
$462 per year
Number of Beverages Spend on Beverages
Jane
Will cut back on the lattes, and order less expensive coffees to
save:
$104 in 2011
Focuses on Coffee
391 coffees per year
$342 per year
Number of Beverages Spend on Beverages
John
Will substitute energy drinks with
iced tea to save:
$128 in 2011
Focuses on Energy Drinks
184 per year
$486 per year
Number of Beverages Spend on Beverages
THE OUTCOME
We started a “Beverage Savings Fund”
with the money saved.
By the end of the year, we expect to have saved a total of: $556!
Enough to save for a new video game console for the family!
We hope that this analysis can serve as an example of the types of small changes that can lead to
big savings!