Worst Stuff to Buy at BJ's Club and Costco
Personal finance gurus Ken and Daria Dolan weigh in on what you really shouldn't buy at warehouse clubs like BJ's and Costco.
Their list, from a WalletPop post, includes gasoline (which they say is quicker to increase prices than other gas stations), fresh produce (which probably costs or less the same at a local grocery store if we're talking about in-season fruits and veggies), toilet paper and paper towels (just not that cheap at these stores), and jewelry and designer clothes (the poor quality often doesn't justify the "discounted" price).
Frankly, I question the gas thing. We belong to BJ's, and at least in my experience, the gasoline prices there are always substantially cheaper than stations down the highway. I've always assumed the store uses a cheap gas price as a ploy to get shoppers to come in—and it works. It's the same reason that eggs and milk are cheaper at these stores. BJ's attracts shoppers to come in and buy these items for less than they'd pay at a standard grocery store. It's no coincidence that the items being discounted are things that people need regularly. Therefore BJ's gets these shoppers in the door regularly, hoping that they'll look around and buy more stuff that they probably don't need. You're already there, right? Why not browse a few aisles? That's exactly what stores want you to do.
The Dolans also bring up the question of big versus many: What's the better deal?
Just because an item is three times the size of the one you'd find in the supermarket, doesn't necessarily mean it's a bargain at the warehouse. In fact, many times that massive one gallon container of ketchup costs more than the shrink-wrapped bundle of six smaller ketchup bottles.
Not only can the multi-packs be the real bargain, they can also be much more convenient. Those smaller containers can be much easier to use, to store and to finish before they go bad.
Very true. One thing not on their list: stuff you really don't need. Go to the store with a shopping list—and stick to the list. Otherwise, you'll come home with an odd assortment of items you had no intention or need to buy. And that is the worst stuff to buy at BJ's, Costco, or anywhere else for that matter.
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I not just a matter of price; there's also an issue of quality. Paper products aren't always cheaper at Sam's or Costco, but very often you're comparing apples to oranges. If I get a better quality toilet paper or paper towel for the same price I'd pay elsewhere for lower quality, that seems like a good trade-off.
We do buy produce at Sam's; in the summer we get more of our produce from farmers markets (which are cheaper and better than either the warehouse stores or supermarkets), but Sam's is pretty much always cheaper than grocery stores--and very often the quality is better. We do comparison shop, and we found long ago that buying in bulk was cheaper and ultimately easier than spending a fortune at our local grocery store.
Do we buy stuff we didn't plan to buy? Sure...sometimes we do, and sometimes we don't depending on our needs and our budget. It's called "shopping." I'm not sure I see the problem there.
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to Mr. Jim Sinegal, CEO of Costco:
1. 2 years ago you sold an aluminum ladder called WEBER i think it was (clone of $300/$400 little giant at a midget of a price $80 then 3 months later jacked it up to $100 and the last time i saw twas $120 then disappeared. you then replaced it with guess what, little giants at $300+ each. you could have just bumped up your profit margin a little and helped your customers and the original ladder company along instead of the greedy little giant company;
2. i just opened a kirkland dish detergent in it's new white container but lo and behold it's viscosity was reduced to better than 2:1. i put it on a dish sponge and it doesn't stay half as long. what's up with that. it would have been better if you had reduced the volume or increased the price. i feel cheated. that's a nasty way of running a company. SACRIFICING QUALITY, the head of kirkland must be proud of himself doing that cheap trick. please do your company and the public a favor and fire the head of kirkland.
very truly yours,
bloggovic (25 year costco customer)
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So, the bottom line here is shop with a list? What not to buy is what's not on list?
Wow... Insightful...
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I'm no math major, however shopping at Costco last night I paid about $1.40 per gallon of milk. Hmmm....? Where I live, that's a steal. On the way out of the parking lot I thought about this ridiculous article so I checked the gas prices. All around Costco on various streets the prices were $2.39 - $2.52 per gallon.... A little further out I noted gas prices exceeding $2.60. Costco's regular unleaded was $2.26. You do that math. With a 20 gallon tank, that's quite a nice savings. Thanks Jim Sinegal, CEO of Costco!
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I took the time to read the Dolans' WalletPop blog linked here. They used a bad title for their article, which conveyed an inaccurate message ("Worst Warehouse Club Buys"). The title here is equally misleading (and the Dolans never even mentioned BJ's).
Their article doesn't say don't buy gas at the warehouse clubs, or that club gas is more expensive. It says don't assume that it's cheaper. When gas prices begin to rise, club prices tend to go up faster. So there is a point when the club gas may temporarily be more expensive than at a gas station.
They compared paper products to "big box" stores like Walmart and Target. They didn't say don't buy them at Costco or that they're cheaper elsewhere, they said, "You can often find better bargains [at other places]..." especially if you use coupons (on other items, too), which most clubs don't take.
On designer items: They didn't say don't buy, they said just be aware ahead of time that because the item and the label are the same doesn't mean everything is the same. Warranties may not have to be honored and the quality may differ.
Other items? A gallon of olive oil at Sam's saves me a bundle, but cheaper costs me dearly if I don't or can't use what I bought.
The never said don't buy the items noted at a club. They said, "(K)eep finding great deals at warehouse clubs, just be sure you don't erase your savings by overspending on items you could buy cheaper elsewhere."
I may have missed something, but I simply cannot equate comparison shopping with "Worst Things You Can Buy...."
-Patricia
P.S. for the Dolans, I hope you're reading: I miss your weekly radio show, your wisdom and down-to-earth information for everyone, not just investors and 401k-ers. I'm happy to have re-discovered you and hope you get back on air.
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It all depends on your household needs. We have only two people in our family, so a pallet of apples would go bad much faster than in a family of 6. We don't buy produce at Costco, simply for that reason. However, their paper products can't be beat...20 rolls of papertowels!
I would like a bigger selection in their personal items, such as shampoo & toothpaste. However, if you plan ahead, you can make the 4 huge bottles of shampoo last quite some time! -
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They may be right about produce, but I'm not sure about paper products or gas. Even if Costco does raise gas prices faster, at least around here, they are still priced lower for gas. And their price per roll of paper towels is lower than any I've seen near here, even if you have to buy 20 of them...
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[...] link: read here Tags: discounted, items, shoppers, [...]
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These people have NO idea what they're talking about do they? Do they actually research these things before they write about them? They're so provably and laughably wrong!
Gas is always at least 10 cents a gallon cheaper at my local Costco than at my local gas station.
Paper towels and toilet tissue are about 20% cheaper than similar size packs at my local drugstore or grocery store.
The Calvin Klein jeans that I bought last week were about HALF of what Macy's was advertising on sale!
Are these guys serious?
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[...] post: Worst Stuff to Buy at BJ's Club and Costco – The Cheapskate Blog … Share and [...]
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Personal finance gurus? I don't think Ken or Daria have any idea what they're talking about. Jewelry? I don't buy and have no idea of the quality (neither do they). Produce? You're joking, Costco far and away. Gasoline, also cheaper if no longer by huge amounts, also get 3% rebate which does make it generally 20c to 25c a gallon cheaper. Designer clothes? How could you be more full of it? Where did these "personal finance gurus" come from.
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As the mother of two small children, I shop at Costco for convenience. If I can buy everything (TP, paper towels) in one trip and avoid taking two screaming kids there for another six months I'll pay the extra price.
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