December 27, 2012
I think I have a problem. Not that this is my only problem, or even in the top ten of my most pressing problems. I think I have a shopping problem. At Costco. Normally I hate / loathe / despise shopping (am I being too critical here? OK, I just don't like doing it). But lately, I have actually been enjoying it. My dad had been recommending for probably years that I get either a Sam's Club or a Costco membership. I am not sure why he was particularly enamored with this suggestion. The closest warehouse club is an hour and a half drive away from his house in Burlington.
The thing with these warehouse stores is that you have to buy in bulk. They make their business model such that they typically only have one or two choices available of a particular product. They then purchase so much of this one brand from a single company that they get a huge discount. The savings get mostly passed on to the consumer. So, I get nice low per unit costs, but in return I have to buy a huge amount. I've been using the savings in two ways. First, do as the prices suggest and buy a huge amount of regular quality stuff at lower prices than I would see at Target, Hy-Vee, etc. This is what I usually do. For example, I got a 50 pound bag of Scooby's dog food for only about two dollars more than I usually pay for a 40 pound bag elsewhere. -- Benefit to having a small dog is this will last for months -- Another time I needed envelopes. A 100 count box probably would have worked, but Costco was offering a 500 count box for about the same price as I estimated I could find for a 300 count box. I think I am now fully stocked with envelopes for the next decade. Do you need any of my envelopes?
I think I have a problem. Not that this is my only problem, or even in the top ten of my most pressing problems. I think I have a shopping problem. At Costco. Normally I hate / loathe / despise shopping (am I being too critical here? OK, I just don't like doing it). But lately, I have actually been enjoying it. My dad had been recommending for probably years that I get either a Sam's Club or a Costco membership. I am not sure why he was particularly enamored with this suggestion. The closest warehouse club is an hour and a half drive away from his house in Burlington.
The thing with these warehouse stores is that you have to buy in bulk. They make their business model such that they typically only have one or two choices available of a particular product. They then purchase so much of this one brand from a single company that they get a huge discount. The savings get mostly passed on to the consumer. So, I get nice low per unit costs, but in return I have to buy a huge amount. I've been using the savings in two ways. First, do as the prices suggest and buy a huge amount of regular quality stuff at lower prices than I would see at Target, Hy-Vee, etc. This is what I usually do. For example, I got a 50 pound bag of Scooby's dog food for only about two dollars more than I usually pay for a 40 pound bag elsewhere. -- Benefit to having a small dog is this will last for months -- Another time I needed envelopes. A 100 count box probably would have worked, but Costco was offering a 500 count box for about the same price as I estimated I could find for a 300 count box. I think I am now fully stocked with envelopes for the next decade. Do you need any of my envelopes?
Second, I can use the lower unit prices to usher in better
quality items. I got this awesome set of 12 tortilla-crusted tilapia
filets for about the same price as it would take to buy regular fish at Hy-Vee.
This is the kind of high quality food I am not used to purchasing as a
bachelor, living alone, who does not have a very refined palate or taste buds,
and also is not a good cook. I can follow directions on a box or recipe
card, but that's about it.
I got my Costco membership card in the middle of November. I have been there 6 times already in the month and a half that has elapsed. I even wanted to go out to Costco yesterday as soon as I dropped Scooby off and unloaded the car after a 3 hour drive from my parents’ house. The membership fee was probably the biggest obstacle that kept me from signing up for the longest time. You mean you want me to pay $55 a year just for the privilege of being able to shop in your store? Really? Only once have I spent an amount significantly less than $100. I estimate I have already saved enough to pay back the membership fee already. The rest of the year will just be savings.
I'm sure many of you have heard the adage not to go grocery shopping when you are hungry. That adage should be bent when it comes to Costco. There are so many food demonstrations that you can get half a meal if you just make sure to hit them all. I've had wild Alaskan salmon, frozen Greek yogurt, the tortilla-crusted tilapia mentioned earlier - it inspired me to buy the box, all sorts of strange cheeses I had heard of but never tried before (I don't think I'll ever try gruyere again, that was terrible), bacon wrapped little smokies, and much more. I never go to a food station twice because that would be greedy and against the spirit of the demonstration. I do, however, make sure to hit all of the stations that interest me. I feel a little guilty when I go to a station with no intention of purchasing the product, but eat the food anyway. Sometimes my willpower doesn't hold out long enough though and I'll end up getting the item. Darn! I can't even avoid the consumerism of free samples.
I got my Costco membership card in the middle of November. I have been there 6 times already in the month and a half that has elapsed. I even wanted to go out to Costco yesterday as soon as I dropped Scooby off and unloaded the car after a 3 hour drive from my parents’ house. The membership fee was probably the biggest obstacle that kept me from signing up for the longest time. You mean you want me to pay $55 a year just for the privilege of being able to shop in your store? Really? Only once have I spent an amount significantly less than $100. I estimate I have already saved enough to pay back the membership fee already. The rest of the year will just be savings.
I'm sure many of you have heard the adage not to go grocery shopping when you are hungry. That adage should be bent when it comes to Costco. There are so many food demonstrations that you can get half a meal if you just make sure to hit them all. I've had wild Alaskan salmon, frozen Greek yogurt, the tortilla-crusted tilapia mentioned earlier - it inspired me to buy the box, all sorts of strange cheeses I had heard of but never tried before (I don't think I'll ever try gruyere again, that was terrible), bacon wrapped little smokies, and much more. I never go to a food station twice because that would be greedy and against the spirit of the demonstration. I do, however, make sure to hit all of the stations that interest me. I feel a little guilty when I go to a station with no intention of purchasing the product, but eat the food anyway. Sometimes my willpower doesn't hold out long enough though and I'll end up getting the item. Darn! I can't even avoid the consumerism of free samples.
Thanks for reading about my new obsession. Next time I promise to write about triathlons and my big plans. I might even start typing it up now. See you later.
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