Muse
Lifer
- Jul 11, 2001
- 41,067
- 10,311
- 136
I live in a single adult household and I've been a Costco member since the 1990's and haven't considered not being a member. The dues now are I think around $60/year, and I figure I make that up in savings easily just shopping there. There's lots to like:
1. They don't stock much in the way of competing brands. You go into a supermarket and they have maybe 4 kinds of something. At Costco they don't do that, they have buyers who try to pick a brand that people will prefer. Otherwise it's a waste of their shelf space and that brings down their profits.
2. They do a lot of deals to get their own brand on items, usually Kirkland. Those tend to be decent to high quality and at a discount to regular brands.
3. Although I'm single, I like quantity over convenience for many things, and there's savings in that. I'll buy a 15lb bag of rice instead of a 12oz box at some supermarket, saves me money. I'll buy a 13lb box of navel oranges that'll last me at least until my next trip. I'll buy a 10lb bag of organic sweet potatoes that last months unrefrigerated. I buy a lot of nuts there and freeze them. I never used to eat tomatoes off season (I grow my own) but this winter bought 2lb containers of organic cherry tomatoes there every two weeks (once I was vaccinated I started going every other week again). They keep OK for a couple of weeks. I buy bags of 6 organic Romaine lettuce for under $4, been eating a fresh salad every day for months. The selection of cheese is in my eyes terrific and the prices exceptional. I buy a 3lb bag of organic frozen blueberries at a great price and put them in my smoothies. I think their dozen bagels, baked right there, for $6.99 are a great deal and I always get that.
4. I have 2 TVs I bought at Costco, discounted and they have an automatic additional IIRC 2 years warranty.
5. For most items they have a no questions asked return policy that's robust. IIRC I don't even have to have the receipt, the record of my purchase is in their data.
6. The drive is 5 miles from my house. Farther than my favorite indy supermarket (a 1/4 mile bicycle ride), but perfect for an every other week jaunt over there.
7. Nowadays they have real good usually pretty fresh produce. I tend to buy organic produce and they have a fair amount of that. You're never sure what they're going to be stocking but I usually have a pretty good idea. If I require something they don't have I'll drop into Trader Joe's or my fave indy market.
8. Cheapest gas around. And the Visa Costco credit card has 3% back on gas elsewhere, 3% back on restaurants, 3% back on approved travel expenses (e.g. flights). Good place to get tires. They don't carry ones for my old car though nowadays.
9. I've gotten some online deals but principally shop Costco B&M.
10. They issue me a rebate coupon once a year (comes in the mail) that I bring to my next B&M trip that pays most of my yearly membership fee.
11. They have a coupon book they send you with deals. Most of that stuff doesn't interest me, but I look it through and pick out items I bookmark to pick up because I'd get them anyway, so I get them at a discount. I sometimes stock up on things like that. Used to be you had to present the coupon at checkout but they stopped doing that... it gets marked down automatically now if it's on sale.
12. The staff there tend to be pretty helpful. I like that it's not a standard business model. It really is the opposite of a 7-11 or convenience store, and I never go into those places.
13. The clientele is on average pretty OK compared to elsewhere, I think. For instance, the local Safeway super markets drive me nuts. Seriously, the people in there gross me out. At Costco I may get irritated at times but never get intense reactions.
14. Yeah, the free food samples all over the food areas are fun. They stopped doing it during the pandemic, but I got one a week ago, so they're evidently starting to do that again. I usually feel like I just ate 1/2 a meal by the time I leave!
1. They don't stock much in the way of competing brands. You go into a supermarket and they have maybe 4 kinds of something. At Costco they don't do that, they have buyers who try to pick a brand that people will prefer. Otherwise it's a waste of their shelf space and that brings down their profits.
2. They do a lot of deals to get their own brand on items, usually Kirkland. Those tend to be decent to high quality and at a discount to regular brands.
3. Although I'm single, I like quantity over convenience for many things, and there's savings in that. I'll buy a 15lb bag of rice instead of a 12oz box at some supermarket, saves me money. I'll buy a 13lb box of navel oranges that'll last me at least until my next trip. I'll buy a 10lb bag of organic sweet potatoes that last months unrefrigerated. I buy a lot of nuts there and freeze them. I never used to eat tomatoes off season (I grow my own) but this winter bought 2lb containers of organic cherry tomatoes there every two weeks (once I was vaccinated I started going every other week again). They keep OK for a couple of weeks. I buy bags of 6 organic Romaine lettuce for under $4, been eating a fresh salad every day for months. The selection of cheese is in my eyes terrific and the prices exceptional. I buy a 3lb bag of organic frozen blueberries at a great price and put them in my smoothies. I think their dozen bagels, baked right there, for $6.99 are a great deal and I always get that.
4. I have 2 TVs I bought at Costco, discounted and they have an automatic additional IIRC 2 years warranty.
5. For most items they have a no questions asked return policy that's robust. IIRC I don't even have to have the receipt, the record of my purchase is in their data.
6. The drive is 5 miles from my house. Farther than my favorite indy supermarket (a 1/4 mile bicycle ride), but perfect for an every other week jaunt over there.
7. Nowadays they have real good usually pretty fresh produce. I tend to buy organic produce and they have a fair amount of that. You're never sure what they're going to be stocking but I usually have a pretty good idea. If I require something they don't have I'll drop into Trader Joe's or my fave indy market.
8. Cheapest gas around. And the Visa Costco credit card has 3% back on gas elsewhere, 3% back on restaurants, 3% back on approved travel expenses (e.g. flights). Good place to get tires. They don't carry ones for my old car though nowadays.
9. I've gotten some online deals but principally shop Costco B&M.
10. They issue me a rebate coupon once a year (comes in the mail) that I bring to my next B&M trip that pays most of my yearly membership fee.
11. They have a coupon book they send you with deals. Most of that stuff doesn't interest me, but I look it through and pick out items I bookmark to pick up because I'd get them anyway, so I get them at a discount. I sometimes stock up on things like that. Used to be you had to present the coupon at checkout but they stopped doing that... it gets marked down automatically now if it's on sale.
12. The staff there tend to be pretty helpful. I like that it's not a standard business model. It really is the opposite of a 7-11 or convenience store, and I never go into those places.
13. The clientele is on average pretty OK compared to elsewhere, I think. For instance, the local Safeway super markets drive me nuts. Seriously, the people in there gross me out. At Costco I may get irritated at times but never get intense reactions.
14. Yeah, the free food samples all over the food areas are fun. They stopped doing it during the pandemic, but I got one a week ago, so they're evidently starting to do that again. I usually feel like I just ate 1/2 a meal by the time I leave!
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