Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Money for Candy

Apparently sugar can sweeten even the sour taste of insolvency: When Economy Sours, Tootsie Rolls Soothe Souls

At the Candy Store in San Francisco, the owner, Diane Campbell, has tripled her orders for nostalgic candies like Necco Wafers and Mallo Cups in recent months. Many of her customers tell her that even though they are living on less, they’re setting aside cash for candy.

“They put candy in their actual budget,” she said.

Of my approximately $600 a month food budget, very little ever goes to candy. But I confess that I've been raiding a candy bowl in the office a little more frequently these days! How much do you budget for candy?

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nothing! I was surprised when I read that article. It's bad enough for my waistline eating the snacks that my coworkers bring into the office. Every once in awhile I'll treat myself to a little something, but it's not a regular thing. I know if I buy a lot of junk I'll just eat it, and then I'll feel worse in the long run. When I'm feeling down I usually go for a run or give myself a home pedicure.

Mel said...

I don't but I will admit I had some whoppers last week.

I also love butterscotch and those candies I have no idea what they are called with the blocks of pink white and brown. I don't eat the brown part though.

Hmmm... maybe I should budget for candy this month.

Anonymous said...

Madame X,

Are you still "30-something"?

Anonymous said...

I assume Madame X is not still "30-something", as she has changed her info to "and I (crossed out am) was recently a 30-something single woman". Unless she has gotten a sex change or been married and not mentioned the budget for either, I have to assume it is her age that has changed.
I have a male friend about 30 years old who has a candy budget. He budgets for both calories and his waistline. He eats some candy every day. I should ask him the ballpark on his candy budget. It might be smaller now than it was, since he was laid off from his old job and there were a few weeks before he got his new job.

Anonymous said...

Wow! Seriously? That's just crazy. We purchase plenty of candy ourselves. Arrrghh... we really shouldn't! It's not good for your physical or financial well-being.

Anonymous said...

I don't eat that much candy but I did get my SO to get me mini pastries today. It cost $9 for 6 tiny little pies, felt like a huge luxury and totally made my evening.

Anonymous said...

I don't budget specifically for candy, but it is something I buy occasionally within my food budget at a movie theatre, or the vending machine, or just a random Tuesday after a long day... ;) I have such a sweet tooth!

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frugal zeitgeist said...

I wrote about this just the other day. I'm off refined sugar (11 weeks now if I get through today), so my candy budget is a big, fat zero.

My pretzel budget, however, has increased. . .

Thrifty Gal said...

Let's face it: it is a cheap thrill, cheaper than, say, an expensive mocha-latte-frappuccino at your local java haunt. I would guess that people are downsizing their treat/entertainment budgets; that's why candy sales are up.

I don't budget for candy, but I have a candy/snack budget suggestion. If you eat candy or other treats, admit it and buy it by the bag in the grocery store or drug store or big box store. It's much cheaper than buying it one at a time in the vending machines at work. In our workplace, the vending machine charges 75c for a candy bar! Maybe this is obvious, but I need to take my own advice!