I've Been Bit By 'The Costco Bug' (My Shopping Experience)

THE LEARNING CURVE

I'm not sure what just happened. I've been thinking, "What's the big deal?" I've walked around this store...and I don't get it. Will I be saving money? Or will I just be spending more money on cool stuff that I wouldn't have spent money on before?

MY SUNDAY DRIVE

I finally was close enough to running out of supplies that I thought; Okay. I'm going to give this a shot. My shopping list consisted of things like:

Computer paper
Toilet Paper
Paper towels
Laundry detergent pods
Dishwasher pods
Batteries
Razors
Shampoo & Conditioner
Food
Furnace Filters
Gasoline

That's a pretty good needs list; right? So I went for these things but I came out with SO much more...and then some things on my list I skipped; There's nothing sayin I HAVE to buy everything from Costco just because I purchased the Executive Membership.

THINGS I REALLY LIKE:

The cash back; the FREEBIES and other coupons you receive for becoming an Executive member; Even though I haven't used it yet; I think it's pretty cool that they have a Travel program; Car programs; and inexpensive quality gasoline.

I DID purchase the things I thought were reasonable; The toilet paper; paper towels; razors; batteries. I bought the Kirkland brand to see if it really IS comparable to the brands I currently buy.

THE FREEBIES

I'm going to try to free Kirkland coffee; the discounted bakery goods; the discounted berries and batteries. So far; I've not been disappointed.

THINGS THAT DON'T WORK FOR ME- I STILL DON'T GET IT...

I needed to get filters for my furnace; but the price I would have paid for what Costco offers, was WAY more than what I pay for those things now. Maybe they are better than what I buy; but what I buy works and saves me a lot of money. Even if I have to change my filters more often, It didn't make sense to me to purchase these. Same with the Shampoo and Conditioners. The prices were WAY higher than what I pay...Okay...So maybe I am a Suave kind of girl...but my boys run through a lot of shampoo; and I could spend a fortune there; so shampoo and conditioner...No.

I feel like they have such GREAT deals on some things; that they slip it a few things that really aren't saving you anything; maybe you're getting higher quality; maybe you're just paying more.

FOOD OPTIONS

I never expected to see Walleye in the seafood section. SOLD. They also had great bakery items, delicious take and bake food items, salads, that are put together in their kitchens. So far; very impressed with that as well.

WILL IT BE WORTH IT?

So I walked into Costco. Spent $120 on an Executive Membership. Recevied about4 4 free items that totaled about $40. I also will be receiving $80 more back in the mail in gift cards and savings. I ended up paying $360 on top of my $120 Membership. A normal trip to the grocery store? Probably about half of that.

I told my Customer Service Representative that there's no way I'm going to remember all of the details they were explaining to me. They assured me that I don't need to remember; They'll make sure I get notices and have everything at my fingertips.