Your Money

‘I haggled over my apartment but I’m hardly going to do that at my local Lidl’

Me & My Money: Joseph Musgrave, chief executive at Home and Community Care Ireland

Joseph Musgrave: “I do like to shop local but the reality is I rely on online shopping for the convenience and the time it saves me.”

Tony Clayton-Lea's face
Tony Clayton-Lea
Mon Jun 14 2021 - 00:00

Are you a saver or a spender?
I save around 15-20 per cent of my income. To be honest, I have no idea where that puts me on the spend/save spectrum. That said, I would consider myself more a natural spender than a saver.

Do you shop around for better value?
I tend to compare the costs of things a lot but less to find value than to determine if I'm getting a good deal. I might end up buying something expensive, but I want to make sure it's right for me and I'm not being ripped off.

What has been your most extravagant purchase and how much did it cost?
My new (and first) apartment in south Dublin is the easy answer. I also love to ski and they are not cheap holidays!

What purchase have you made that you consider the best value for money?
Sleep is so important, and I recently bought a diffuser for my bedroom for around €14. Whack a little lavender oil or something in there and it puts me out like a light. Best money I've spent in a long, long time.

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How do you prefer to shop during the Covid-19 restrictions – online or local?
I do like to shop local but, between work and doing a part-time Master's course in the evenings, the reality is I rely on online shopping for the convenience and the time it saves me.

Do you haggle over prices?
In general, yes I do. I did over my recent apartment purchase. Equally, I'm hardly going to haggle with the checkout person at my local Lidl. They'd laugh me out of the store.

How has the Covid-19 crisis changed your spending habits?
Obviously, I'm not spending on certain things like travel and socialising. Like many people, I'm investing more time and money in home fitness equipment. Lord knows what I'll do with it when this is all over.

Do you invest in shares?
Yep, passively through my pension and actively through small investments I make on my own behalf. I tend to buy things I know more about, or niche companies that I like.

Cash or card?
Card all the time. Unless I'm in the United States – where I lived for a time and used to visit often, during which points I morphed into a wannabe movie character carrying around copious amounts of $1 and $5 notes to tip people with.

What was the last thing you bought and was it good value for money?
I bought an incense candle for my mother. At €20, I'm not sure it counts as a bargain but she'll appreciate it, so in that sense it's the best of value.

Have you ever successfully saved up for a relatively big purchase?
Saving for my first property purchase was quite the undertaking but I'm shortly moving in so there has been success!

Have you ever lost money?
A little on shares but the most annoying thing for me is when you misplace a €10 note and it never turns up.

Are you a gambler and if so have you ever had a big win?
Not routinely. Occasionally I would bet on a horse race but I've never won big on any gamble.

Is money important to you?
Only insofar as it facilitates the things I want to achieve for what I consider a good life. I have no desire to accumulate a vast fortune.

How much money do you have on you now?
Ten cent . How does anyone use five cent coins these days because I have two floating around.

In conversation with Tony Clayton-Lea