Scribbit's rejection of my friend Costco

A local fellow blogger Michelle Mitchell has recently posted about Costco so I thought I'd post my thoughts on the subject too. Her perpective doesn't bear out for our family. In her most recent post, she writes, "Spending money is kind of a personal thing, everyone has different opinions on the matter." Here are some of mine.

Firstly, the membership fee, she writes, is too steep. $50 a year works out to $4.16 month, which I know we save above and beyond each time we shop there. One way to make it even cheaper is to artificially"extend" your membership; get it for 12 months but renew it at 15 months, stocking up in bulk at the 12 month mark to get you through the next 3 months, or however long you can manage. That works out to just $3.33 a month.

Secondly, she writes about the amount of waste she generates by buying Costco sizes which, she writes, are too big. I disagree again. By purchasing in bulk, you often (not always) cut down substantially on packaging. Buying a ten pound can of refried beans does cut out on waste generated from however many individual cans. Secondly, buying in bulk, especially for a large family like we each have, does not need to equate with wasted food. For instance, with the 10 pound package of refried beans, we usually store half in the refrigerator and store the rest in tupperware in the freezer. It stores well, as do most foods. (For a guide to foods that do not store well, please see a book such as Frozen Assets. I will blog soon about freezer cooking too.) I also cannot complain about the literal hours of entertainment afforded by the boxes they pack our food in to prepare for us to bring it home. The kids love Costco boxes. They turn them into sleds, robot heads, fake TVs, etc. Did you know that, even without snow on the ground, a sheet of cardboard can turn into a grass sled? Very fun.

Thirdly, she writes about money savings. Michelle is right that many items are not cheaper at Costco. Meat almost never is. And certainly Costco is loaded with temptations that may be hard to resist, but that does not mean you cannot save money there. It just means you have to say "no" and run far away. Let the buck stop at the free sample. I have found that many items at Costco are much less than I can find at our local supermarket, but not all. The key is to know what and where. The blog mentions rotisserie chickens as an example...they are typically $1 less at Costco than our local supermarket. While we don't buy them regularly, we used to buy 2-4 a month, which works out to a savings of $24 to $48 a year. That's just one item that can potentially save you money if you buy them regularly. They are not necessarily cheaper than fryer chickens and a lot less work. These types of considerations are important to keep in mind.

I recommend making a price notebook. (This is not my idea, by the way. Almost every idea I have about frugality has already been written by someone else, and this one is from The Tightwad Gazette.) A price notebook is a list of prices on a per-unit basis that shows you what you can get where. It takes some legwork to create, but once you have it, you know where to find the cheapest item that you need and, more importantly, if you see it for less somewhere else, you know that it's a deal and can stockpile it for later.

A price notebook also helps when communicating with spouses. When Alex goes to the market, I can ask him to check the clearance meat section and look for ground beef under $2.00/pound and chicken under $0.99/pound. That is the cheapest we can find around here, cheaper than Costco and, being that it will all get thrown in our freezer anyway, it doesn't matter to me if the expiration is just a couple days out. This does involve "going with the flow." If you stockpile 10 pounds of turkey legs in the freezer, "let them eat turkey." Obviously, you may not wish to shop at multiple locations or take the time involved. That is a personal choice and a point where only you alone can prioritize the time savings v. money savings and so on. (Being a vegetarian will save you a lot more money, especially at Costco, as their dried beans and grains, while rather paltry from the standpoint of variety, are much cheaper than at the supermarket

Finally, she mentions the cost of gas to get to Costco. That is an important consideration, especially in Alaska where there are only a very small handful of Costcos). We live about 13 miles away from one which is a good gallon of gas round trip at $3.30 right now (gulp). This is one factor where you can spend less by going less and buying more while you are there. Position yourself to buy in bulk in a way that works for your family. It's worth it! More blogs later on meal planning, freezer cooking, and other ways to let Costco work for you.