Costco Wholesale

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Cathlete
Costco Wholesale are opening the first location in Wisconsin not too far from where I live, maybe half hour drive. Can anyone tell me what these stores are like? The flyer sent to our name and address talks about a membership. It sounds like a Sams Club to me. I was not all that impressed with those, and the closest was too far of a drive, almost an hour away.
Any info, likes or dislikes would be very helpful.THANKS SO MUCH!!!
Colleen
 
Are you referring to the one in Grafton? I live in Thiensville and have heard good things about Costco. I believe they are the same format as a Sam's Club - any idea what date they are to open? I'm curious as to the pro's/con's as well.

Mo
 
The flyer says it will open in Grafton, Thursday, August 30, at 8am.
It also says Join Costco and receive a Free Costco Sampler Tote filled with full-size samples of Kirkland products and up to $20 in Costco Cash Cards,($10 for joining and $10 for applying for a credit card from Costco and American Express). I have to admit it sounds exciting and it isn't all that far to drive for me.
Colleen
 
It is a lot like Sam's with a few exceptions. They always have a lot of high end stuff, they have (supposedly) the highest selection of 'good' wines, and they pay their employees a heck of a lot more than Walmart (Sam's). Their CEO refuses to make more than $200,000 a year because he doesn't believe his personal profits should be that high.

Carolyn
 
I shop at Costco and would caution you to mindful of per unit pricing when shopping there. Some things are priced very well, others seem like a deal because of the size but if cost is broken down and compared to regular grocery store prices it becomes apparent that it's not a deal at all. I feel the membership is worth it because they carry some really great items that I can't get anywhere else.

I love the seasonal stuff at Costco but the timing is pretty ridiculous, Hallowe'en stuff started appearing in there in mid July. I haven't been into the store in a few weeks but suspect the seasonal stuff is full tilt Christmas.

Take Care
Laurie
 
Carolyn, thanks for sharing that tidbit about the CEO. I have a lot of Costco clients in my massage practise because they have such great extended benefits. I knew they were well paid and not 'working poor' like a lot of Wal-Mart employees, makes me feel even better about shopping there knowing that the CEO walks the high road.

Take Care
Laurie
 
I agree with Laurie about being cautious on the pricing.

And yes, the Christmas stuff is out in full force. Wrapping paper, anyone?

I quite often find nice workout clothes there, and also clothes for my DD.
 
Costco is basically like Sam's but generally with higher quality merchandise.

I agree w/ whoever said to look @ per unit pricing - not everything is a deal. They do have great quality meats, fruits & veggies - worth the price IMO (prices are generally competitive with the grocery store)

That said, what I save on milk and OJ alone more than pays for our annual membership fee.
 
I love costco. I love their kirkland brand and use it for anything I can. I stock up on household items, toiletries, office supplies, tuna, milk, cat litter, etc. I even buy my gas from there. Lately I've been getting my digitial pictures printed there as well with their one hour service (17 cents for 4x6). I have never been dissappointed with them except for the occasionally long lines at checkout.
 
To echo everyone out here, not everything is a great deal.

But their food is outstanding. I always go there whenever I need a party platter or something for a gathering. And their meat is fantastic! I buy all of my burgers, chops, steaks there, and have never been disappointed in the quality!

Don't know about everywhere else, but annual membership in Chicago is $40, and you will easily spend that in a single trip!
 
I love Costco. I have memberships to both Costco and Sam's because I feel the merchandise is different enough to justify both. Costco does carry higher end merchandise - I also think they have better deals. Sam's is better as far as variety - if you're looking for something in particular, you may find 4 or 5 different kinds at Sam's, and only 1 or 2 at Costco. What really sets Costco apart for me is their already-cooked food. It's great!
 
I also like buying my books there and clothes. I used to not pay much attention to their clothes section until I bought a sweater at Nordstrom and saw the exact same sweater (brand, color, everything) at Costco for a fraction of the cost. I paid $75, Costco had it for $30.

And of course I love their bakery - chocolate chip muffins...mmmmmmmmmmm. :D
 
DF and I love Costco. IMO, it is better than Sam's (and I love what Laurie said about the CEO). I really like to get things like toilet paper, paper towels, detergent, dog treats, etc. Things that I don't want to run out and buy all the time but need frequent replacing. They also have great prices on books but I have noticed their CD proces are high. One amazing deal is Sabra hummus (with the red top...sooo good). A small thing of it in the grocery store is around $4 or more. It maybe has 8 servings. The huge tub at Costco is $5.69 and it probably has about 30 servings! There are other things like that as well. Their food, fruits, and vegetables are always good but it can be difficult to use it up before it goes bad.

They also have an AmEx card that you can get. They give you a $25 refund when you join and you get 1% cash back on all purchases, 2% on food and travel, etc. (I think those are the percentages). It's a really good deal and they are giving 0% interest until November (although we don't keep a balance, just use it for the cash back).

Okay, I need to stop. I sound like I work for Costco!
 
>It's exactly the same as Sam's Club.
>


The Costco in my area is VERY different from a Sam's Club.

The Costco's around here are immaculately maintained, sell higher-end items, and very well stocked.
 
I was curious about Costco a few years ago and decided to buy a membership as a try out. Once my membership expired, I continued to renew it. I agree NOT everything is a deal but there are quite a few things that I do purchase from there and it is worth it for me.
 
I'm a member of Sam's currently, but plan on switching to Costco once one opens nearby. More for the higher end quality items, prepared foods, etc.

Oh, and sabra hummus ROCKS - what a great deal, and it's delish (sorry, channeling Rachel Ray there...) I also love the deal on blueberries since we eat them daily. A huge carton is $6 vs. the $4-$6 you pay for the tiny cartons at your regular grocer.

Heidi
 
>I'm a member of Sam's currently, but plan on switching to
>Costco once one opens nearby. More for the higher end quality
>items, prepared foods, etc.
>
>Oh, and sabra hummus ROCKS - what a great deal, and it's
>delish (sorry, channeling Rachel Ray there...) I also love the
>deal on blueberries since we eat them daily. A huge carton is
>$6 vs. the $4-$6 you pay for the tiny cartons at your regular
>grocer.
>
>Heidi

Heidi - you are SO right about that hummus! It's amazing!! They have another kind of hummus there that is jalapeño flavored that is incredible as well. And their produce always looks good to me (of course I haven't been in one for over a year).

Carolyn
 
My fiance has a membership there, so we go occasionally.

We buy all kinds of stuff there, most of it is NOT food. The other day we got some cast iron skillets. My bathrobe is from there, and -- get this -- almost all of my underwear is from Costco.

They have great meat as someone else mentioned -- we only buy our steaks there. They have great prices on milk, and they have YUMMY stuff in the bakery -- cakes are really good too!

I would definitely recommend it. It saves us a lot of money.
 
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