Stopped reading at "cheugy". Born near Seattle and now lives in Portland - like two of the biggest non-conformist regions out there..
I want to live like Costco people
131–140 of 760 posts
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#132Earlier quoted context omitted.
Also the reason that small specialty shops, and mom-and-pop grocery, fruit, dairy, bakeries and butcher shops are largely gone. They just cannot compete with Costco and Sam's Club/Walmart's buying power.
99% of the reason for the mom-and-pop groceries dying out is that "our" Federal Gov't decided that it would stop bothering to enforce the law - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robinson%E2%80%93Patman_Act And note how the modern Democratic Party - the originators of that law back in 1936 - utterly failed to give a crap about the issue.
Robinson-Patman is a bad law. Even if it were a good law, it would be effectively impossible to enforce equitably and not capriciously, which is probably why it hasn’t been.
The government telling competitive buyers and sellers which kinds of price negotiation are legal and which are not is terrible economics because it attenuates price signals.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#133Costco's gimmick is relieving you of choice and price shopping. They find the best stuff and don't mark it up. If Consumer is your identity yet you fear executing its labors, let Costco step in and become your denomination of consumerism, complete with tithe, proscribed usury, and communion hot dog.
Identifying as a rabid consumer is not a requirement of appreciating Costco. The end result of that gimmick is that it feels like they're looking out for their customers and offering them a valuable service as opposed to trying to suck them dry. Buy this blender; don't buy this blender; they don't care, just know that this is probably the one that will best meet your needs, it's the best deal you're going to find on…
It's a gimmick only for those who get sucked into buying things that they don't need. I've been a Costco shopper for decades, and sure have succumbed to some useless stuff, but my Costco list is 90% the same month to month. I get appalled when I see the same items on my list, that are smaller and in a pack of 1 instead of 2-4, for more money at other stores. If electronics were just like food, it would be like seeing a Macbook Pro for $2000 everywhere but it was $799 at Costco.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#134I like Costco, but it also helps there's one around the corner from my house. That said, I prefer the shopping experience at Sam's, with their mobile checkout. Of course, they're currently building one just a mile from my house. :-)
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#135Earlier quoted context omitted.
> where the commodity store brand is significantly worse than alternatives (batteries). Kirkland batteries actually last longer than Duracell. They're some of the best alkaline batteries you can get, especially considering the price. Sure, lithium batteries will last longer, but the mAh per dollar is lower, so they'll still cost more. https://youtu.be/8VumAfhdhAI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ_tGjXm0Ng
That has not been my experience at all. I think Kirkland batteries have less capacity than the premium brands. Also the point of lithium batteries is that they don't leak, not that they last longer.
> Also the point of lithium batteries is that they don't leak, not that they last longer.
Not leaking is part of the point, but it's definitely not the only point. Alkaline batteries have half the capacity (roughly) compared to lithium cells. They also have lower voltages over time vs. lithium cells and are capable of less current. For certain applications (high current draw intermittent, or long life low current) they excel, and leaking isn't really part of that conversation.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#136I think the most extreme hoi polloi, kings and paupers experience I've had in the U.S is at the DMV. No matter how rich you are, you have to show up in person with everyone else, from the poorest mentally ill welfare/SSDI recipient who has to get someone to help them because they can't read the forms in any language, to the extremely wealthy. Everyone has to sit there and wait on those generic plastic chairs.
In many southern states the job is outsourced to private tag agents so there might be only a few actual DMV offices in big cities.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#137I get the allure, but it's not for me and my partner.
We live in a small apartment. We drive a small car. The pantry has a good amount of dry bulk & canned food, but we largely shop one week at a time.
Sure, we could "lock in" on two or three foods, buy weeks worth of them at a time, and save some money. But like most people we like a bit of verity. It's just not possible to buy such massive quantities of things with nowhere to store them.
What I want is an anti-costco. More like a bodega. Still curated, maybe a larger mark-up, but smaller quantities of everything. Half loaves of bread, small bags of frozen veg, enough sugar or flour to bake just a couple batches.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#138Earlier quoted context omitted.
The yearly fee is $65. If you save $5/month on what you buy you break even. Personally I save over $5/month just buying butter there vs buying from my local supermarket.
Most people can do even better with the executive membership if you spend ~$550 a month you'll get the $130 fee back in your rebate. That may seem like a lot but not if you buy most of your groceries there, or things like tires or book a vacation.
We get like 4-5x our exec. membership fee back in rewards cost every year - and I stopped buying tires/car batteries there (takes too long / quality no longer as good) and usually go to best buy for electronics (their return policy is no longer as good, and they often stock sub-par models, etc). Even with that, Costo is essentially paying us to save money.
Re: I want to live like Costco people
#139I grew up in a post soviet country. To me Costco, has perfected the soviet ideal of shopping more than any soviet economy ever could. In a Costco, we are all equal. I could be shopping for the same set of beige slacks right next to the CEO of a multi-million dollar company and never know it. We'll own the same Waterpik. Identical towels. Our lawn furniture will look the same. Everything is purchased at a fair price.…
Good comment, but IMHO the main reason to not love it so much is the annual membership fee. It sits well with cult cultivation. Other stores don't require it and they don't form a cult around them.
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Re: I want to live like Costco people
#140Earlier quoted context omitted.
Good comment, but IMHO the main reason to not love it so much is the annual membership fee. It sits well with cult cultivation. Other stores don't require it and they don't form a cult around them.
The annual membership fee is about customer selection, for me. What it buys for me is, "not Walmart People". Totally worth the investment.
right, it buys Costco people. my local Haggens is a veritable paradise by comparison to the overcrowded warehouse that's too far away and closes too early to shop at after work. don't get me started on Fred Meyer clientele