Buying In Bulk
Costco and Sam’s Club make billions yearly on people like you and me. We want to do everything we can to save money. We want to be good stewards of our hard-earned dollars.
You’ve worked 60 hours-that overtime was really a bonus-but you hate to blow it at Publix or Kroger-you will be smart and get a warehouse club membership-savings here we come. The main way to save at a warehouse club is buying in bulk.
Advantages of buying in bulk:
- price
- price
- price
Disadvantages to buying in bulk:
- Waste-Expiration/best used by….. will get you every time.
- Storage space-where you going to put all that crap?
- Overbuying/wasteful spending-”Hey baby, the price on this 42 inch big screen is sweet-how close are we to our credit limit???”
- Price-bulk buying is not always cheaper-you gotta know what your volume/price is-if you are not sure it’s a bargain-don’t buy!!!!
This article at Yahoo finance, discusses ten things not to buy in bulk-let’s look over the list, check it out:
- Brown Rice-loses flavor over time-due to fat content-(I didn’t know there was fat in brown rice-I thought the fat was from the butter I add.) Now we have tons-well maybe just 200lbs or so of un-ground wheat kernals-but until you grind, it stays good forever-well almost…
- Candy-price/waist reward ratio…
- Paper towels-space issue
- Toilet paper-space issue
- Nuts-fat content-unless you eat a lot will begin to have a rancid taste if opened for too long.
- Mayo-going out of date
- Vitamins/protein supplements-going out of date, and repetition-who wants the same flavored protein shake every day for a year?
- Diapers-kids grow fast
- Bleach-ages, loses it’s effectiveness
- Ice Cream-I added this one after looking over other items. Space and who wants ice crystals all over their cream when they need a special reward after a hard day…
My thoughts on the above:
The space issue with the paper goods, may not be a consideration, if you are like me and have a big pantry/lots of storage space.
I agree with the repetition issue on the protein shakes-that same flavor day after day gets old, but I just do it anyway….And I have continued to take out of date vitamins-but I am a Doc-don’t try this at home!
Candy-can you say rapid rise in morbid obesity rates…
Nuts-don’t get old at our house-good stuff!
Now the argument pro and con re shopping at warehouse clubs at all, we will save for another day. That is almost like religion and politics, the battles can be long and dirty!!!
But they are marketing experts – They have a PhD in convincing you that you need to fill one of their flat-bed carts (that would hold a hospital bed) .
When you go-go with a plan, a list, and a full stomach!!!
The WSJ recently did this review of Warehouse shopping-concluding that frequently prices are just as good at Wal-Mart-but it depends on what and how much you buy….
Other bloggers’ Bulk Buying Warehouse opinions:
Len Penzo tested paper towels, and a warehouse club brand was the winner!
The Mighty Bargain Hunter has this to say about bulk buying-”Watermelon suckers???”
Deliver Away Debt, thinks that with coupons, the grocery stores can beat the warehouse stores!
Not Made of Money has this to say on bulk buying.
One Money Design discusses warehouse shopping here.
Do you have a club membership? Do you get your money’s worth?
Let me know your screw-ups at the warehouse clubs. What have you bought, that you couldn’t find space for, or was sick to death of eating before you just said, “to heck with this!” and threw it out?
Tags: bulk buying, buying in bulk, saving money at warehouse clubs, saving money by buying in bulk
I love my Costco membership! We stock up on the toilet paper and paper towels (generic Kirkland brand is great). We pile them in our linen closet. We also stock up on our meat, separate it when we get home, and freeze it. It’s nice to have it on hand and they have a great selection of cuts. Then there is shampoo/conditioner… We spend roughly $260 per 6 weeks. Its a very useful membership in our family.
Sounds similar to our use. We maybe go 3-4 times per year for the paper items, and the toiletries that we favor. We get our money’s worth out of our membership, but it is certainly easy to overspend-I linger over the wine selections, and my wife is tempted by all the books!
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We go to Sam’s Club about every 3 months or so…or when we happen to be going by (but it is an hour away or we would be there more!) We usually stock up on large bags of Baking Soda, big bottles of hydrogen peroxide & jugs of White Vinegar, as we use those for natural cleaning around the house and we can get much larger containers at a MUCH better price than anywhere else. We also buy a box of trash bags there that usually lasts us a year is tremendously cheaper. We are a family of 5 so buying food in bulk helps save alot of money for us…but we have 2 deep freezers that we can load up.
Another advantage of Sam’s is that there is more variety than our usual stores…there are things I can’t find anywhere else.
But usually we stay out of the middle section and only get necessities. We love trying the samples but won’t buy unless a majority agrees that we will actually eat it!
We have also gotten really good deal on tires in the past which alone paid for the membership.
But some items are NOT cheaper and you have to be a smart shopper.
Catching a good deal on sale at the local store with a coupon is sometimes much cheaper!
Smart shopping Jill. Those samples will tempt you, want they!
DD