- The chef pays R1,000 rent, sends R2,500 for groceries to her mother who cares for her two children, and contributes R3,000 monthly to a stokvel.
- She has stopped buying red meat, eggs, biscuits, and perfume, and bakes cakes at home instead of taking her children out.
A 38-year-old chef from Cape Town used to love perfumes and going out with friends once a month. She enjoyed taking her family out too. But she has had to cut all of that to survive.
She lives next to her workplace, paying R1,000 for rent. Every month, she pays R1,500 for her own groceries, R100 for electricity, R280 for a Nedbank funeral policy, R150 for a Capitec policy, and R500 for an investment.
“I am also sending my mom R2,500 for groceries and R300 for electricity. Additionally, I have a stokvel of R3,000 monthly,” she said.
Her mother lives with her two children in Cape Town.
For her own groceries, she doesn’t buy combos but checks for specials in supermarkets.
“At home, they buy combos. But they also buy from supermarkets that have specials. I used to buy red meat, but I had to cut that off,” she said.
At home, they buy chicken for R500, sausages, and chicken feet.
“The meat, sausages, and chicken feet last them for a month because they don’t cook them every day. On some days, they eat rice with pilchards and cabbage,” she said.
She doesn’t buy eggs or biscuits anymore.
“I buy a vegetable combo, chicken, and tins. We had to cut a lot of things to survive because I am the only one working. I used to take my kids out, but now I buy ingredients and bake them cakes. By doing that, I am saving money,” she said.
She takes R10,000 from her stokvel money and gives it to her mother for their annual trip to the Eastern Cape.
“The money is for them to buy groceries and transport. They only go home during Christmas because I don’t have money for them to go during the year, so I save for December. I also take some money from the stokvel to buy them clothes,” she said.
She only goes home in July.
“If we all go home during the year, we won’t have money for Christmas. So we have to stay in Cape Town almost the whole year. Each person pays R900 for transport from Cape Town to Ngcobo in the Eastern Cape,” she said.
Pictured above: A chef.
Image source: Pexels
