Tonight

EMBARGOED UNTIL TUESDAY 3rd of March, 2009

The Masters family from Dunstable love their brands. Everything in their kitchen is top of the range, including their groceries. Elaine and her husband Tom, and their two children, 12-year-old Charlie and 10-year-old Luke, are keen cooks and have discerning palates.

“I do tend to go for Taste the Difference ranges and the slightly better brands, the well known brands. I don’t know whether it’s habit or we've been pre-conditioned to buy the things that look prettier,” Elaine admits, adding that her husband will only eat certain brands.

They spend £10,000 a year on food shopping but, with everyone wanting to save money in these tough economic times, mum Elaine is keen to cut back.

Tom, however, thinks that would mean eating lesser quality food and he is not prepared to change their eating habits.

Last year, Tonight reported on Moneysaving expert Martin Lewis’ downshifting concept, which helped families save money on their weekly supermarket shopping by dropping down a cost category.

Supermarket products typically fall into four categories: luxury, brand, own brand and value. And Martin proved that if shoppers chose one level down on every product purchased, in many cases, they wouldn’t taste or feel the difference in quality and still generate big savings.

In this programme, Martin takes it one step further and secretly challenges the Masters family to double downshift, trading their premium tastes for the cheapest ranges. Elaine and her son Charlie are enlisted to carry out the shopping and cook for the other half of the family - Dad Tom and ten-year-old son Luke, who are not told about the “secret double downshift challenge” and believe they are still eating their regular brands.

Will Tom and wannabe chef Luke be able to notice the difference and how much could the Masters family save if they gave up their brand obsession?

The same test is applied to other luxury addicts, such as a woman who spends £300 a month on designer cosmetics and a group of wine and spirits connoisseurs.

Last edited: Wednesday, 25 February 2009