Those of you who are lucky enough to have a Costco (or a Sam’s Club) in your neighborhood may not appreciate this post as much as those of us who have to travel long distances to find a wholesale store. Even though the Costco I frequent is only about 45 minutes away, sometimes it feels like an eternity! Any trip to St. George takes up the majority of the day and swallows every ounce of productivity I have in me. Therefore, the fewer Costco runs I have to make the better.
Before I venture into the $500 dollar store I spend weeks adding to my list of things to buy. I go through closets and drawers. I scan the pantry and the storage room looking for items I might need. I even go through our clothes to see if there is something in need of being replaced. I obsess about every possible item I may need in the near future, only to get home from my quest to find, alas, I have forgotten something.
As I am sure many of you have determined for yourself, there are some products which are cheaper to purchase wholesale and others that are a bit wasteful. For example, about 5 years ago my husband and I decided to buy a gigantic restaurant sized jar of pickles. I’m not sure what we thought we would do with this pickle jar as there was NO POSSIBLE WAY it was going to fit in our refrigerator (we don’t even like pickles that much). But hey, it was from Costco so it must be less expensive than buying 17 small jars of pickles. Years later after the pickles had been moved no less than 13 times from one closet to the next we introduced it to its new home, the garbage can. There just wasn’t any way anyone was going to ever eat those pickles. Mark $18 down the drain.
So as to avoid another pickle catastrophe I made a semi-permanent Costco list. I wrote down everything in my house that I preferred to purchase from Costco (with the exception of Food Storage items as they will go on a separate list to be made in September). This list contains everything from toothpaste to frozen burritos to dog biscuits. I recently added the St. George Utah prices to many of the list items to give me an idea of how much a particular Costco run is going to dent my pocketbook. I realize many prices change, especially with coupons, but this gives me a good estimate. I also know at the end of the trip how much money I ever so graciously gave to Costco for things I hadn’t planned to buy. This is my way of supporting and rewarding the talented, hardworking Costco employees who devote their time and effort to successful floor layouts. Good job guys!!
As you can see I am still missing some prices (time always runs out!!). Hopefully after my next trip to the big warehouse store I will have the opportunity to complete the price list. I will be sure to make note of all changes!
Costco Shopping has become simple. Now I:
- Print the List
- Quickly mark the things I need
- Calculate approximately how much my trip will cost (Allowing me to remove items if I am over budget BEFORE I even get to the store)
- Beg a friend or family member to watch the kids
- Locate a neglected Broadway musical album and put it in the car
- ENJOY THE DRIVE!
What is your favorite and least favorite part about Warehouse shopping?
What pickle product have you purchased and later wondered, “What was I THINKING”?