Comments on: Is Bulk Better?

By: Ted

Ted — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:21:53 +0000

I do love bulk stores- I want a membership there. But it is more for the thrill I do believe. So far, we just stock up on what is one sale, when it is. We also shop at Trader Joe’s which does not do any sales or deals. They (supposedly) keep prices down everyday. That way we know exactly what something will cost (within $0.10 usually) when we go. We are not stressing that something is not on sale so we eat things we do not like or overspend.

So we watch target to stock up on chicken and beef, and use trader joe’s for the everyday things and fresh items. it works for us.

Once we get a few more bucks in the bank, I may get a sam’s club subscription in order to get office supplies and furniture for our home businesses. I have heard the discounts can be great but I want to wait until I have some luxury dollars.

By: Craig

Craig — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 13:27:51 +0000

It depends on what you are buying and whether you use it. We have a BJ’s membership and love it. It saves us on things like diapers, wipes, frozen pizzas, peanut butter, etc… But we’ve been burned buying items like aspirin where the jar was so big it expired before we used half of it. You have to get a feel for what pays off in the store for you.

By: A Family of Geeks

A Family of Geeks — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 12:20:03 +0000

I’m a former grocery gamer who switched over to warehouse shopping for most items. For me, saving those 3-4 hours of travel/shopping/coupon clipping a week was worth it and our weekly budget hasn’t gone up any. (Our membership is ‘covered’ by the fact we save about $10 on milk a month)

I find that the meat cuts in our BJ’s are much better than the bargain cuts at the supermarket and they actually have them in stock. I used to try to hit up our local Giant for the $1.79 chicken, but unless you got there at 6am the day the sale started there usually wasn’t any. I may pay an extra $.20lb at BJ’s, but at least I know it will always be there AND I don’t have to wait 12 weeks for the sale to come around.

The one thing that is almost never cheaper for us is cereal. By buying what’s on sale that week and using the ridiculous amount coupons available, it’s usually $2-3 to pick up two packages in the local Safeway than it is to buy the bulk box at BJ’s.

By: Jason @ MyMoneyMinute

Jason @ MyMoneyMinute — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 20:25:17 +0000

I’m a Costco member but seriously considering dropping it (again). It’s not the most convenient place to get gas for us, and every time I go in there, I seem to drop $200! Some things are great at Costco but often we find items that we “need” that we didn’t “need” just going down to Kroger and getting groceries every week.

By: Wise Finish

Wise Finish — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:37:35 +0000

Is cheaper better? I love shopping at warehouse clubs because they give me access to high-quality, healthy products (like that 5 lb container of organic vegetables) that I can’t get (or at least not for anywhere near the same price) at a health food or grocery store.

Eating cheap is what is causing many in America to have serious health issues: Obesity, Food Allergies, Cancer, etc

By: Julie

Julie — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:38:11 +0000

I love buying CFL bulbs from Costco because our local energy company gives rebates which are deducted immediately from the price. An 8-pack of good CFL bulbs for $3 is a heck of a steal!

By: ctreit

ctreit — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:42:20 +0000

We have a joint membership with my mother-in-law at one of these places, but I don’t find the prices good enough to make an extra trip to the store. I have stocked up on really good sales at the supermarkets in our area. Just recently I bought light bulbs for 1/2 price. Now we have enough light bulbs to last at least a year and I did not have to drive to a warehouse store (where I am sure I would have had to pay more for these same bulbs) or pay a membership to get these light bulbs.

By: Forest

Forest — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 09:08:34 +0000

Totally agree…. You have to hunt around. A local farmer or even neighborbood grower may do you an awesome bulk deal on veggies or meat and it could be much better than any store would give you.

Thanks,
Forest.

By: Faye

Faye — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:30:09 +0000

Another trick with the membership stores — stock up right at the end of the membership period, and then let it lapse for a time.

Even if you let it lapse for 3-4 months, you’re basically saving about 1/3 of the annual fee over several years.

By: Brandy

Brandy — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:00:12 +0000

I have a Sams membership. By having a membership I pay for better service (I havent gotten any attitude like I get at other stores) and I have never had anything ring up wrong. Also its not too crowded and people act better in there. do I sound snobby yes, but I also spend alot at Walmart and for as much as I spend I have to watch items ring up, get attitude and people showing theyre tails in there. Ive had bad cashiers at Walmart, never at Sams. Ive had some issues with Sams in the 10+ years Ive been a member but its pretty great there. I can get my car loaded with an oversize item, try that at Walmart. Also I shop at Krogers. I get all sorts of stares or comments and all if I buy in bulk there.