“lookie here! hot dog combo is still a buck fifty! we’re the good guys, honest!”
//raises prices everywhere else//
(they’re still priced above cost btw. hot dogs are cheap, especially when you own the factory. fountain syrup per serving is also inexpensive, and they no-doubt have a sweetheart deal from pepsico to keep them loyal)
Even with some or most prices increased, Costco is still one of the best places to shop for a ton of reasons that any member can fill you in on.
It’s clear that plenty of people don’t understand how this shit works in real life. Did no one here see Costcos official response to a couple of stores voting to unionize?
I am not one to praise any retail whatsoever but I preach the holy site that is Costco to anyone that will listen. Even the single people out there can benefit, if you wear prescription glasses and/or have any meds you need on a regular basis, those alone could save you at least the first years membership.
Costco began, and allegedly is still, a bulk buying savings membership warehouse. But the transition to mostly “organic” foods that are double the price or more of their non “organic” labeled products is just greed. Frozen blueberries 3lbs $9.00, sams non organic 4lbs less than $9.00. White mushrooms $5.99, sams $3.49, same size. And “organic” fresh produce dies faster than regular. My store got rid of the bag of spinach, $4.99 2.5lbs and only has the bin 1lb for $3.99, that would be $10.00 for the same product, Just a few small examples.
On the other hand, buying Sam’s means supporting Walmart and the Walton family, so it’s up to you how much that affects your calculus.
If you or anyone is doing all of their shopping at one at store, that’s a you problem. Despite how okay we are doing, we still shop around for deals and take advantage of things like teeter doing multiplied points on Fridays towards gas discounts, checking out Aldi and Lidl for deals, etc.
Costco does not have a large variety or selection of what they offer but most things are pretty much guaranteed to be a better deal than elsewhere. For example, because of vpx having issues I’ve settled on Celsius as my current caffeine+other stuff drink when I am working or otherwise need the boost. Amazon and elsewhere sell 12 packs for like $19-$25+, Costco has the same pricing (approximately) but it’s 18 cans instead of 12. Another example is a greenworks riding lawnmower I’ve been eyeballing as soon as I can find the 6k+, bb has it for about the same price or even cheaper when it’s on sale but Costco includes $2400+ worth of extras like twice the batteries and the not cheap clippings bag for the back of it for the same price.
Long story short. Take advantage of what Costco has to offer and do what you have to do to save a buck. Don’t just assume that it’s a better deal because reasons but I’ve learned that for a lot of things, Costco is going to be a better deal even if it’s priced slightly higher or same.
Oh and anyone reading this. Stop buying most of your meat and produce at regular stores like Costco, teeter, publix, etc. Find one or 3+ local farms that sell directly to the public, also keep an eye out for what are called CSAs, you prepay an amount upfront in late winter, early spring and then you get a set number of weekly pickups that are based on what you want and what they have fresh and ready to go. The ones we have worked with are usually open to swapping things out if you end up with more of one thing than you would like but that is based on what they have available for a swap. There is also a local one that we hit up every so often for farm fresh milk that is so much better than any store bought of any brand.
The hot dog being $1.50 is still good considering that they could probably double the price, which would triple or quadruple their profit on it and people would still happily buy.
Of course, it’s not because of altruism that they do it. They do it because people use the hot dog as a symbol of the good value for money that Costco supposedly provides.
