Costco

[pontifex]

So I went to Costco for the first time ever today. Had to get my picture printed on my membership card first.

The main reason I went there was to get a new pair of glasses. Ordered a pair with transitions lenses for $199.97. The people at the eye care center were very helpful and friendly. Hell, I don't think I ever got that kind of treatment at my previous eye doctors. The guy that helped me actually helped me pick out a frame that would be good for my head/face shape because I told him I had issues with my current glasses as they kept slipping down.

Although I guess it varies by who is working because my dad went for some awhile back and he said they just told him to go look at the frames and pick one out. no personal attention/service.

I wasn't really sure what to expect as far as the other stuff when I got there and I have to say I wasn't too impressed. I guess its more of a warehouse type deal than a regular store, so that would explain it a bit.

They didn't seem to have much of a selection of stuff. Seems like their big thing is food items and large items, like furniture.

I'm also a bit pissed they only accept American Express for credit cards. WTF?

 

[imported_Devine]

Its the place to go for bulk, sometimes alternator sized meat , food. They have other things like electronics, clothes, furniture, etc. that is just a plus. I wouldnt get a membership there unless it was to buy bulk food, everything else is just extra. It is nice to walk in there hungry and walk out full because of all the free samples.

 

[IGBT]

..they're variety had dimished over the years. When Price Club was around they had competition. Over the years they've boiled their inventory down to just the fast movers. Many are complaining.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

You sure he wasn't giving you personal attention and checking out your ass?

 

[MixMasterTang]

It's not exactly a place you can go and say I need "X" item, but they have awesome pricing on the stuff they do have. So my wife and I usually go there once every other week or so and pick up grocery type stuff and look at all of the other stuff, and when I find something I like or clothes in my size I usually pick that up too.

 

[Gibson486]

I have also noticed that the selection has kind dropped since I first got the card.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: pontifex
So I went to Costco for the first time ever today. Had to get my picture printed on my membership card first.

The main reason I went there was to get a new pair of glasses. Ordered a pair with transitions lenses for $199.97. The people at the eye care center were very helpful and friendly. Hell, I don't think I ever got that kind of treatment at my previous eye doctors. The guy that helped me actually helped me pick out a frame that would be good for my head/face shape because I told him I had issues with my current glasses as they kept slipping down.

Although I guess it varies by who is working because my dad went for some awhile back and he said they just told him to go look at the frames and pick one out. no personal attention/service.

I wasn't really sure what to expect as far as the other stuff when I got there and I have to say I wasn't too impressed. I guess its more of a warehouse type deal than a regular store, so that would explain it a bit.

They didn't seem to have much of a selection of stuff. Seems like their big thing is food items and large items, like furniture.

I'm also a bit pissed they only accept American Express for credit cards. WTF?

they're not supposed to have a large selection. they choose a few high quality products and buy SHITLOADS of it.

you can usually find things cheaper if you look elsewhere...

but I've gotten to the point where it's just more convenient for me to pay the extra couple of cents/dollars and buy it at Costco. Their food is of very high quality, and if you say buy a foodsaver from the appliances aisle, get some extra foodsaver bags (from their appliances aisle), then go to the meat section, pick up some smoked salmon, EXCELLENT short ribs, etc, go home use and vacuum seal the rest, the cost savings starts to add up.

Also stock up on TP, dishwashing detergent, disposable goods, trash bags, cleaning supplies...the list goes ON AND ON

I think I've consolidated 90% of my shopping to amazon and costco, with target getting another 7%

 

[PingSpike]

Costco isn't really for one stop shopping. Its more like a money saver for purchasing your staples, in large quantities. Frankly, I prefer it since I hate making multiple trips.

 

[Deeko]

I just signed up a couple of months ago, and i'm canceling my membership. The prices aren't THAT good - barely better than a regular grocery store. I like buying in bulk, but it's such a hassel - the one around here is WAY TOO crowded, you can't get a parking spot, they never have enough checkouts open....the benefits don't outweigh the hassel + annual membership.

 

[mugs]

Originally posted by: Gibson486
I have also noticed that the selection has kind dropped since I first got the card.

What do you mean by selection? Varieties of the same product, or quantity of different products? Costco doesn't really sell multiple varieties of the same product unless one is generic (Kirkland) and one is brand name. Their selection of different products is limited only by the size of the store, which doesn't change. So I'm not sure how their selection could have decreased. What you WILL see though is that a product that is there one week won't be there the next. They frequently replace products with other products.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Deeko
I just signed up a couple of months ago, and i'm canceling my membership. The prices aren't THAT good - barely better than a regular grocery store. I like buying in bulk, but it's such a hassel - the one around here is WAY TOO crowded, you can't get a parking spot, they never have enough checkouts open....the benefits don't outweigh the hassel + annual membership.

I got 10 brita replacement filters for 3.5 each. A novaform mattress at $150 savings. 35 pack of redbull for 25 bucks! Those 3 items alone paid for the membership.

Hell, if you just use HALF of one coupon book that they send you, the membership pays for itself


Rockband was 159 when everybody else had them for 169-189, their xbox bundle is a reliable deal, etc etc etc.

 

[Deeko]

I've never been sent a coupon book *shrug* And I don't buy any of the things you mentioned anyway. Nor do those things do anything to defray the situation of the store being overcrowded and understaffed.

 

[ranmaniac]

You can save a lot of money at Costco / Sam's Club, which is why they are popular with families especially. Bulk toilet paper, paper towels, garbage bags, laundry detergent etc mean less trips to the regular grocery store.

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Deeko
I've never been sent a coupon book *shrug* And I don't buy any of the things you mentioned anyway. Nor do those things do anything to defray the situation of the store being overcrowded and understaffed.

meh, I don't think they're understaffed. definitely overcrowded, you just gotta pick the right times to go

an ex) coupon book; if you didn't get one you should ask for one from the customer service center. i didn't think this particular one was that good, but I usually use 4-5 coupons per book.

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[Hammerhead]

I've made the jump from Costco to Sam's simply because of the return policy

 

[Dr. Detroit]

I've been a Costco memeber since around '96.

Since then I 've watched their selection decrease and pricing structure rapidly increase. The employees used to be of quality, not anymore. They no longer use spare boxes to box up your small items either.

Service is down, pricing is way up, and selection is down.

Still a member but I go less and less these days.

 

[dbk]

GET THE PIZZA!

 

[everman]

Originally posted by: Fmr12B
I've been a Costco memeber since around '96.
They no longer use spare boxes to box up your small items either.

Really? At mine they just ask you if you want the stuff boxed, or will do it if you ask for one. Do they not box stuff at all at yours anymore?

Overall Costo is great for some items like steaks and other meat products in bulk Mine sometimes has T-Bones at a really good price and I'll get them when available. It's also good for stuff you're going to use so you might as well buy in bulk, like paper towels or toilet paper, soap, toothpaste, etc. They carry Vizio TVs which are nice, sometimes there's even a nice Mercedes for sale by the door.

 

[Auric]

Their prices are good on most items but prolly only in line with the bulkitude. I mean, look at the disparate pricing per volume at typical grocery chains: smaller packages are exponentially more expensive than the larger. Costco offers the next step up with either larger still, or multi-packs of same. So, if you've got the ability to lug and store and the moolah upfront (and no intention of investing the difference instead) then you can save a lot o' time and hassle longer term.

Just beware the high-margin impulse items or for that matter buying crap you did not already intend to. Then again, do not necessarily be put off by giganto packages thinking you "can never use/eat all that" because chances are if you use/eat half of it then you break even versus regular sizes and then the rest is gravy (quite possibly literally).

My only lament is that they do not offer bulk alternators -roughly in the shape of a steer.

 

[xochi]

Originally posted by: Hammerhead
I've made the jump from Costco to Sam's simply because of the return policy

They have made some changes to their policy to combat abuse.

Dallas News on Return Policies

Stores clamp down on chronic returners

Abuse of the system can cause losses in the millions for a company


08:41 AM CST on Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Los Angeles Times

Memo to serial returners: They're on to you.

Liberal rules that allowed customers to return just about anything just about any time are no more at many retail chains across the country. It's a classic case of abuses by a few spoiling the fun for everyone.

Costco Wholesale Corp., for instance, had one of the most generous policies around until it wised up to the occasional scoundrel who used it to "upgrade" a consumer electronic purchase, said Richard Galanti, chief financial officer for the warehouse chain.

For a chain with hundreds of stores, occasional can add up. Mr. Galanti said the no-questions-asked policy was responsible for losses of more than $100 million a year ? and noted that besides computers and MP3 players, people had been known to bring back containers of coleslaw pulled from their refrigerators and half-eaten bags of potato chips.

Now customers can't get their money back on electronic products if more than three months have passed since the purchase.

"We went from infinity to 90 days," Mr. Galanti said.

Kmart, Lowe's and Wal-Mart stores installed computer systems that monitor how often individual customers return things and, as Consumer Reports magazine recently warned, might stop accepting returns from buy-and-bring-back addicts.

Amazon.com will not accept returns of items that are missing the serial number or UPC square on the box, Consumer Reports noted, and Best Buy and Circuit City charge a 15 percent restocking fees on some electronic items if the box has been opened, while Toys "R" Us has begun requiring a dated sales or gift receipt for all refunds and exchanges.

For Costco, the introduction of the video iPod in 2004 brought the returns problem to a head. The chain sold more than 25,000 in the product's first week ? and customers returned more than 12,000 during the same period, most of them older models. "For the same price or better, they got a better iPod with a screen," Mr. Galanti recalled.

Theft, particularly of clothing, has pushed some retailers to clamp down. Stolen items are fenced over the Internet or on the street at a deep discount, said Joe LaRocca, vice president of loss prevention for the National Retail Federation, and the most brazen crooks bring merchandise back to the store demanding cash.

The overwhelming majority of returners are sincere, he said, simply having changed their minds. Most stores will gladly fix or replace a defective product. And some ? Nordstrom, for example ? still accept most items with few explicit limits. Others have loosened their usual return policies for the holiday season. Best Buy, for example, normally allows returns within 30 days, but customers have until Jan. 31, 2008, to return things purchased between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24.

About 9 percent of all merchandise sold is returned, according to the retail federation. This year, that will total more than $10 billion, with clothing and electronic items accounting for most of that amount.

For all the honest people who just didn't like the way those jeans fit when they got them home, there are still too many exploiters. In extreme cases, stores reluctantly "fire the customer," said David Ng, the service manager at Best Buy in West Los Angeles. He recalled telling a chronically dissatisfied customer when he worked for another chain that the store didn't want his business anymore. "But that's rare," he said.

 

[DT4K]

Originally posted by: Hammerhead
I've made the jump from Costco to Sam's simply because of the return policy

I know Costco's return policy is now slightly less liberal, but I was still under the impression that it was the best around.

In what way is Sam's return policy better?

I'm a member of both and IMO, Sam's is a ghetto version of Costco. Slightly cheaper prices, much lower quality products, and far worse customer service. Although I will say that Costco's customer service varies. We liked the Oregon store we went to much better than the one we go to in Charlotte, NC.

 

[xochi]

I have never returned anything from Costco, but me and the family mainly go for the food.

and my dog loves the kirkland brand premium dog food, about half what we paid at petco/petsmart.

 

[alkemyst]

We don't really buy in bulk, but the difference in gas prices along with the better meats that they have (their boneless/skinless breasts come in individually wrapped packets and are very clean)...we make up more than the cost of the membership.

We also use their optical dept and they have the best prices on compress air cans, laundry detergent, bounce, and downy. Their vitamins are very high quality as well.

 

[HannibalX]

I tend to avoid the big box stores. I like to go to small chains or privately owned stores that specialize in whatever product/service I am looking for. If it costs a little more thats ok.

 

[JEDI]

Originally posted by: pontifex
So I went to Costco for the first time ever today. Had to get my picture printed on my membership card first.

The main reason I went there was to get a new pair of glasses. Ordered a pair with transitions lenses for $199.97. The people at the eye care center were very helpful and friendly. Hell, I don't think I ever got that kind of treatment at my previous eye doctors. The guy that helped me actually helped me pick out a frame that would be good for my head/face shape because I told him I had issues with my current glasses as they kept slipping down.

Although I guess it varies by who is working because my dad went for some awhile back and he said they just told him to go look at the frames and pick one out. no personal attention/service.

I wasn't really sure what to expect as far as the other stuff when I got there and I have to say I wasn't too impressed. I guess its more of a warehouse type deal than a regular store, so that would explain it a bit.

They didn't seem to have much of a selection of stuff. Seems like their big thing is food items and large items, like furniture.

I'm also a bit pissed they only accept American Express for credit cards. WTF?

get their costco amex card.. duh

i have costco and went to walmart for my glasses.. bigger selection