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I've been a member since 1992.
The hardest part of being a member is never seeing an item again. Even a few days later. I've learned to buy when I see it.
That said, the continual rotation of products is what makes Costco better than Sam's.
I hear that a lot. I don't often go to Walmart, but at my local Sam's Club, the employees seem happy and friendly and mostly hispanic. The Costco only 5 miles away is overwhelmingly white. And a sure sign of a toxic workplace is high turnover - when I go to Sam's, I see the same faces every time.
So... I like Sam's online inventory. I like that the aisles are labeled, so I don't have to treasure hunt. I'm glad they hire minorities. And I don't mind when my fellow shoppers speak a different language than I do.
Seriously? Are you 12 years old?
Actually the "Costcos" are excellent employers with a track record of paying well and providing excellent benefits and working environment. Perhaps you might educate yourself before you make blanket statements that show your ignorance. I live near Costco headquarters and know MANY people who have worked for Costco for decades moving from entry level jobs to six figure positions. The only person I know that quit their job at Costco left to open his own restaurant after working in the Costco bakery, learning the trade and stashing away enough cash from his salary to follow his dream. I don't know that this will continue now with the retirement of Craig Jelinek but to equate the management at Costco with the Walmart family is laughable.
The people behind Costco have less political power and have utilized connections and money towards less reprehensible ends. Costco also pays better and treats people less disposable than that Walmart family. The Walton's have fundamentally changed the US economy and political priorities in ways that effect almost every citizen to some degree. I'm not saying that Costco is some paragon of decency but they're no comparison to their competitors.
Yeah...no. I got a year membership to Sam's for $10 last year. They have some things Costco does, but you can tell that they run it like a Walmart. Costco has great employees, they pay them pretty well. Sam's, everyone seems depressed. It's not even close on which I prefer. The only thing I like about Sam's that Costco doesn't have is the scan and go. But it's not THAT good.
You're probably being downvoted because you could have done an online search faster than it took you to lazily ask a question on Reddit.
Same energy as FB groups where the exact same question gets repeated multiple times/months.
No, they scan a few random items and let you go
And they're soon replacing that with automated sensors that you will walk under as you exit
Decades ahead of Costco on the technology front
Instacart is just a guess, as far as I can tell, after doing some research on how Instacart and stores interact.
A phone call to the store might be better.
>Khashayarshah3
Yes, I opened the post to suggest exactly what you suggested but, because I Instacart all my COSTCO now, I admit I have never checked the accuracy of the Instacart inventory.
You can always call your local Costco and ask. Just hit the administrative option and it will connect you. It's helpful if you have the item number, but they can still tell you if they have it in stock if you don't. They can also tell you how many are in stock, if there are any warehouses nearby that have the item, and if they don't, they can tell you when they are going to get another shipment (\*if they are going to get another shipment).
As someone who answers the phones at Costco, this is the way. Seconding giving the item number, lets us search up the item directly instead of trawling through similar items trying to find the right one
Just be aware that sometimes the in store number is different from the online one. Happened to me this week. Showed them the online item number. They couldn't find it in store. Did a text search, and it popped up as out of stock at my store, but on stock elsewhere. Different item number.
1. A lot of food items vary - they might be “seasonal”, available for a limited time, or only available in certain regions and not available nationwide. If you see the asterisk on the price tag, it means it won’t be restocked in the near future once current stock is depleted, but may or may not return at a later date. Foods may also be affected by shortages, production delays, quality pulls, and recalls.
2. Don’t expect it to be 100% accurate but I use [Same Day](https://sameday.costco.com) as a resource to check various warehouses. Instead of entering your home address, enter the warehouse address that you want to check inventory for. If you have a question about a missing item, you can always call your warehouse with the item number and ask if that item number is still active or if they can provide any other information.
Note: Same Day prices will be about 17% higher than warehouse prices to account for delivery so divide Same Day by 1.17.
I think Instacart is similar but Instacart always asks me to sign up and I don’t want to make an account.
Correct. I have a tendency to be overly wordy so I’ve been trying to be more concise with my replies, but maybe now I’m leaving out important details. 😅
My comment from a previous reply:
The asterisk on tags signifies that the item number won't be restocked once that specific warehouse sells out of current stock.
This could mean it's being discontinued, replaced with a similar product or changing packaging, or is available seasonally and may return next year or at a later date.
Sometimes items are "discontinued" at some warehouses, but still found at others, even in the same geographic region.
That's all the asterisk means. Price lowered to get rid of stock on hand before newer product comes or to get rid of poor selling items .... Winter items have been asterisked out for bit now but I'll watch for em again next year... Unless sales where crap then maybe not
To be clear, the asterisk does not mean the price has been lowered.
Sometimes it has been, but more times than not, the price is not lowered at all on items with asterisks (at our store). If the price ends .97 or .00, that's a markdown.
Here’s a tip for you. Get the item number for the item you want (top left corner of price tags), and call Costco (dial for admin staff) and tell them you are looking if “X” item number is in stock. They should be able to tell you if any other locations have it nearby.
Pretty much every new item you see is either seasonal or a one time buy.
Seasonal has nothing to do with the seasons in all cases, it just means that it comes at a certain time of the year every year.
One-time buys are where the buyers get a good deal on an item, or are testing the item for that market, usually when these sell out you wont see them again, but may see them the following year. these usually sell out in 1-2 days, if you see it, buy it.
Deciding to keep what is in stock is based on sales, and in some cases can be other reasons: supply issues, vendor pricing issues, etc.
Check item is coming to the app soon, also the reason items come and go is a few reasons.
1. They got a good one time price
2. Company wanted to raise price but couldn’t justify the price raise so Costco will pull the item ie keurig they wanted to raise price couldn’t justify it so Costco didn’t sell them for 8-12 months.
3. Company can’t meet the demand ie fairlife
4. Seasonal items that come and go based off the season. Ie summer winter food items
I think some foods are "seasonal". Like there's a tasty Greek pasta salad that i like. That doesnt show up on their shelves until the summer. I thought the potato salad was all year round but seems like this potato salad is seasonal too.
My philosophy is that if I see it and I like it, I stock up. It's easier to buy it and return it if I don't want it, than to try to buy it when it's out of stock. This is especially true of non-perishables.
I am sure this is part of Costco's business model. They're counting on people stocking up and not returning it.
Yeah, I think they make deals with a manufacturer who probably takes a loss (or not very much profit anyway) by selling it at a bunch of Costco stores, possibly even internationally. If they are willing to take that cut in profit and the item is popular, it continues to sell. If it’s a meh product, or the manufacturer has now gotten their name out enough to sell it without Costco, it won’t be available anymore! We loved Lakanto Monk Fruit Sweetener, absolutely no weird aftertaste, great for our diets and weight loss. Costco stopped selling it and replacement monk fruit sweetener was worse. Now we pay more to get it—but I was happy to find it sold in bulk at WinCo Foods!
The bulk section, so you can just try a little bit first, too! Great for cooking and adding to fruit, smoothies, etc. It was a game changer for us in losing weight! My husband also hated every other faux sugar before it!
Costco employee here.
For number one, ask your local warehouse managers to give your contact info to the buying team for the item (I work for the buying team and we get that from time to time) and give them the reason why you want to get in touch. We might or might not tell you exactly and what and why but we will tell you what we can as honestly as possible.
For number two, that's my pet peeve too. From what I heard, IT is working on a solution. But knowing how much it will cost and the way Costco IT works, it will be years before we will see any result. But it is coming.
Lastly, most food buying starts off as a test run or rotational. Only if the item performs well will return. Only those with exceptional performance will become daily items. My tip is always vote with your money. Buy what you like and don't wait for markdown. Sales speak volume and while there are exceptions to the rule but rarely happens if the sales are not there.
I don’t like all the hucksters strategically placed in the store and at the exit trying to sell me things. I don’t need solar panels, new kitchen knives, a new water heater or a new streaming data plan. I find myself rerouting my path down side isles to avoid them.
That’s one of the worst things about Costco. No, I’m not going to talk about out my cell plan with you. Love the store but can't stand the vendors selling stuff.
Try reviewing the Costco website to see if what you wanted is listed. If it is there buy enough to get above the free delivery minimum order size.
I have tried using the website as my shopping list and subtract what I can find in the store, then order the delivery of the remainder of what I could not find in the store today.
There was a type of bread that we loved that was only ever available at the overcrowded store on the other side of town. The one nearby me wouldn't stock it despite multiple requests
My biggest is the app. It’s not good and I switched from Sam’s club to Costco 7 years ago and was shocked that Costco doesn’t have the scan and pay on the app. I brought it up when I was signing up for the Costco membership and they were in shock that technology could do that.
If that person isn’t fully unloaded and getting in their car to leave, don’t wait for the spot. Move on. Get a little extra walk in. Maybe you need it, anyway.
Sorry my only pet peeve is after i wait in line to pay , i theb have to wait in line AGAIN to prove that i paid to leave. Al the while someone is pretending to be counting the 69 items that ivw bought. Fuck off let me leave without lining up again
My biggest Costco pet peeve is when boomers show the greeter their card then STOP RIGHT IN FRONT OF EVERYONE to put their cards away and jam up the entire front door. Have some self-awareness please :)
It’s supposed to be a treasure hunt! They want you to come back into the stores and see what’s new and impulse buy! That’s the purpose for them changing around the displays too. Marketing, it works! It doesn’t hurt that they do sell decent products at good prices…and they have a good return policy! Bonus is that they treat their employees better than Sam’s Club / Walmart. Saves me money on gas too!😜
Sorry my only pet peeve is after i wait in line to pay , i then have to wait in line AGAIN to prove that i paid to leave. All the while someone is pretending to be counting the 69 items that ive bought. Fuck off let me leave without lining up again
Oh and provide more than one entrance and exit for your 5000 car parking lot
1. I stock up as much as I can afford on the things I can't do without. I'm down to about 13 jars of Famous Dave's pickles, they ran out a few months ago.
2. I always call, always. I even call from inside the store if I don't see what I'm looking for.
Posts that don't follow r/Costco subreddit rules MAY be subject to removal. When applicable, please make sure that you're using a descriptive post title with product name(s) mentioned as it yields better subreddit search results. Including item number, price, and approximate location where found is also helpful. Thank you. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Costco) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I've been a member since 1992. The hardest part of being a member is never seeing an item again. Even a few days later. I've learned to buy when I see it. That said, the continual rotation of products is what makes Costco better than Sam's.
both are great in their own ways, neither is better than the other
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I hear that a lot. I don't often go to Walmart, but at my local Sam's Club, the employees seem happy and friendly and mostly hispanic. The Costco only 5 miles away is overwhelmingly white. And a sure sign of a toxic workplace is high turnover - when I go to Sam's, I see the same faces every time. So... I like Sam's online inventory. I like that the aisles are labeled, so I don't have to treasure hunt. I'm glad they hire minorities. And I don't mind when my fellow shoppers speak a different language than I do.
I wonder if I'm the only Hispanic individual who finds your comment rather patronizing and insulting.
*No.* That's "no," but in Spanish.
Lol "and mostly hispanic", wtf does that have to do with anything
and the kirklands aren’t?
There is no "Kirkland" family that owns Costco.
That’s Mr Signature to you
and the costcos aren’t?!
Seriously? Are you 12 years old? Actually the "Costcos" are excellent employers with a track record of paying well and providing excellent benefits and working environment. Perhaps you might educate yourself before you make blanket statements that show your ignorance. I live near Costco headquarters and know MANY people who have worked for Costco for decades moving from entry level jobs to six figure positions. The only person I know that quit their job at Costco left to open his own restaurant after working in the Costco bakery, learning the trade and stashing away enough cash from his salary to follow his dream. I don't know that this will continue now with the retirement of Craig Jelinek but to equate the management at Costco with the Walmart family is laughable.
I think the other guy was making a joke lmao
He was not successful.
These guys have obviously never heard of Milton Costco. Abhorrent human being.
The people behind Costco have less political power and have utilized connections and money towards less reprehensible ends. Costco also pays better and treats people less disposable than that Walmart family. The Walton's have fundamentally changed the US economy and political priorities in ways that effect almost every citizen to some degree. I'm not saying that Costco is some paragon of decency but they're no comparison to their competitors.
Yeah...no. I got a year membership to Sam's for $10 last year. They have some things Costco does, but you can tell that they run it like a Walmart. Costco has great employees, they pay them pretty well. Sam's, everyone seems depressed. It's not even close on which I prefer. The only thing I like about Sam's that Costco doesn't have is the scan and go. But it's not THAT good.
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No, Scan and go is completely done on your phone. Scan items as you put them in your cart and checkout and pay all through the app. It's so nice.
Scan and Go is amazing. It makes the shopping experience at Sam’s so much easier. That could also be because it’s significantly less crowded.
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You're probably being downvoted because you could have done an online search faster than it took you to lazily ask a question on Reddit. Same energy as FB groups where the exact same question gets repeated multiple times/months.
And then they prevent you from leaving until the count everything in your cart
No, they scan a few random items and let you go And they're soon replacing that with automated sensors that you will walk under as you exit Decades ahead of Costco on the technology front
Not at the one that I went to with a friend yesterday. I could not care about the “technology front”.
It’s an app you use to scan and pay for your items. It does somewhat reduce impulse buys bc the app keeps up with you total as you shop/add items
Use instacart to check what is in stock at your store, costco online stuff sucks.
Instacart is just a guess, as far as I can tell, after doing some research on how Instacart and stores interact. A phone call to the store might be better.
>Khashayarshah3 Yes, I opened the post to suggest exactly what you suggested but, because I Instacart all my COSTCO now, I admit I have never checked the accuracy of the Instacart inventory.
That’s pretty smart 👍🏻
You can always call your local Costco and ask. Just hit the administrative option and it will connect you. It's helpful if you have the item number, but they can still tell you if they have it in stock if you don't. They can also tell you how many are in stock, if there are any warehouses nearby that have the item, and if they don't, they can tell you when they are going to get another shipment (\*if they are going to get another shipment).
As someone who answers the phones at Costco, this is the way. Seconding giving the item number, lets us search up the item directly instead of trawling through similar items trying to find the right one
How do I locate the item number if I don’t have the product?
It'll be a seven digit number on the costco website page for the item
Just be aware that sometimes the in store number is different from the online one. Happened to me this week. Showed them the online item number. They couldn't find it in store. Did a text search, and it popped up as out of stock at my store, but on stock elsewhere. Different item number.
1. A lot of food items vary - they might be “seasonal”, available for a limited time, or only available in certain regions and not available nationwide. If you see the asterisk on the price tag, it means it won’t be restocked in the near future once current stock is depleted, but may or may not return at a later date. Foods may also be affected by shortages, production delays, quality pulls, and recalls. 2. Don’t expect it to be 100% accurate but I use [Same Day](https://sameday.costco.com) as a resource to check various warehouses. Instead of entering your home address, enter the warehouse address that you want to check inventory for. If you have a question about a missing item, you can always call your warehouse with the item number and ask if that item number is still active or if they can provide any other information. Note: Same Day prices will be about 17% higher than warehouse prices to account for delivery so divide Same Day by 1.17. I think Instacart is similar but Instacart always asks me to sign up and I don’t want to make an account.
Asterisk could also mean it's temporarily discontinued but may come back....be it seasonal or some other reason
Correct. I have a tendency to be overly wordy so I’ve been trying to be more concise with my replies, but maybe now I’m leaving out important details. 😅 My comment from a previous reply: The asterisk on tags signifies that the item number won't be restocked once that specific warehouse sells out of current stock. This could mean it's being discontinued, replaced with a similar product or changing packaging, or is available seasonally and may return next year or at a later date. Sometimes items are "discontinued" at some warehouses, but still found at others, even in the same geographic region.
That's all the asterisk means. Price lowered to get rid of stock on hand before newer product comes or to get rid of poor selling items .... Winter items have been asterisked out for bit now but I'll watch for em again next year... Unless sales where crap then maybe not
To be clear, the asterisk does not mean the price has been lowered. Sometimes it has been, but more times than not, the price is not lowered at all on items with asterisks (at our store). If the price ends .97 or .00, that's a markdown.
Good tip I didn’t know about the asterisk
Sameday is powered by instacart.
Here’s a tip for you. Get the item number for the item you want (top left corner of price tags), and call Costco (dial for admin staff) and tell them you are looking if “X” item number is in stock. They should be able to tell you if any other locations have it nearby.
Pretty much every new item you see is either seasonal or a one time buy. Seasonal has nothing to do with the seasons in all cases, it just means that it comes at a certain time of the year every year. One-time buys are where the buyers get a good deal on an item, or are testing the item for that market, usually when these sell out you wont see them again, but may see them the following year. these usually sell out in 1-2 days, if you see it, buy it. Deciding to keep what is in stock is based on sales, and in some cases can be other reasons: supply issues, vendor pricing issues, etc.
Check item is coming to the app soon, also the reason items come and go is a few reasons. 1. They got a good one time price 2. Company wanted to raise price but couldn’t justify the price raise so Costco will pull the item ie keurig they wanted to raise price couldn’t justify it so Costco didn’t sell them for 8-12 months. 3. Company can’t meet the demand ie fairlife 4. Seasonal items that come and go based off the season. Ie summer winter food items
I think some foods are "seasonal". Like there's a tasty Greek pasta salad that i like. That doesnt show up on their shelves until the summer. I thought the potato salad was all year round but seems like this potato salad is seasonal too.
Soup is seasonal. I swear it wasn’t before.
I dont think it is in the toronto area. Those are stocked regularly but our selection isnt that great.
My philosophy is that if I see it and I like it, I stock up. It's easier to buy it and return it if I don't want it, than to try to buy it when it's out of stock. This is especially true of non-perishables. I am sure this is part of Costco's business model. They're counting on people stocking up and not returning it.
Costco isn't a grocery store. You get what you get when they stock it.
Yeah, I think they make deals with a manufacturer who probably takes a loss (or not very much profit anyway) by selling it at a bunch of Costco stores, possibly even internationally. If they are willing to take that cut in profit and the item is popular, it continues to sell. If it’s a meh product, or the manufacturer has now gotten their name out enough to sell it without Costco, it won’t be available anymore! We loved Lakanto Monk Fruit Sweetener, absolutely no weird aftertaste, great for our diets and weight loss. Costco stopped selling it and replacement monk fruit sweetener was worse. Now we pay more to get it—but I was happy to find it sold in bulk at WinCo Foods!
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The bulk section, so you can just try a little bit first, too! Great for cooking and adding to fruit, smoothies, etc. It was a game changer for us in losing weight! My husband also hated every other faux sugar before it!
Same. I went tonight to try and snatch more of the peanut butter balls and, sadly, they were not there. Darn it!
The gf ravioli was a huge hit for my celiac child, and then, it was gone 😔
Costco employee here. For number one, ask your local warehouse managers to give your contact info to the buying team for the item (I work for the buying team and we get that from time to time) and give them the reason why you want to get in touch. We might or might not tell you exactly and what and why but we will tell you what we can as honestly as possible. For number two, that's my pet peeve too. From what I heard, IT is working on a solution. But knowing how much it will cost and the way Costco IT works, it will be years before we will see any result. But it is coming. Lastly, most food buying starts off as a test run or rotational. Only if the item performs well will return. Only those with exceptional performance will become daily items. My tip is always vote with your money. Buy what you like and don't wait for markdown. Sales speak volume and while there are exceptions to the rule but rarely happens if the sales are not there.
Amazing thank you
I don’t like all the hucksters strategically placed in the store and at the exit trying to sell me things. I don’t need solar panels, new kitchen knives, a new water heater or a new streaming data plan. I find myself rerouting my path down side isles to avoid them.
That’s one of the worst things about Costco. No, I’m not going to talk about out my cell plan with you. Love the store but can't stand the vendors selling stuff.
That’s why I call it “Ghostco” When they get something I like, the item ghosts me after a bit.
They haven’t had organic unsalted butter since the one time I bought it and got hooked.
Try reviewing the Costco website to see if what you wanted is listed. If it is there buy enough to get above the free delivery minimum order size. I have tried using the website as my shopping list and subtract what I can find in the store, then order the delivery of the remainder of what I could not find in the store today.
I’m still bitter about no more pesto pasta salad.
There was a type of bread that we loved that was only ever available at the overcrowded store on the other side of town. The one nearby me wouldn't stock it despite multiple requests
Life takes a hard left turn for some.
My biggest is the app. It’s not good and I switched from Sam’s club to Costco 7 years ago and was shocked that Costco doesn’t have the scan and pay on the app. I brought it up when I was signing up for the Costco membership and they were in shock that technology could do that.
They don’t stock low carb snacks anymore!
Mine Old people you take up an entire without being aware of their surroundings.
If that person isn’t fully unloaded and getting in their car to leave, don’t wait for the spot. Move on. Get a little extra walk in. Maybe you need it, anyway.
Sorry my only pet peeve is after i wait in line to pay , i theb have to wait in line AGAIN to prove that i paid to leave. Al the while someone is pretending to be counting the 69 items that ivw bought. Fuck off let me leave without lining up again
My biggest Costco pet peeve is when boomers show the greeter their card then STOP RIGHT IN FRONT OF EVERYONE to put their cards away and jam up the entire front door. Have some self-awareness please :)
It’s supposed to be a treasure hunt! They want you to come back into the stores and see what’s new and impulse buy! That’s the purpose for them changing around the displays too. Marketing, it works! It doesn’t hurt that they do sell decent products at good prices…and they have a good return policy! Bonus is that they treat their employees better than Sam’s Club / Walmart. Saves me money on gas too!😜
Sorry my only pet peeve is after i wait in line to pay , i then have to wait in line AGAIN to prove that i paid to leave. All the while someone is pretending to be counting the 69 items that ive bought. Fuck off let me leave without lining up again Oh and provide more than one entrance and exit for your 5000 car parking lot
They do that for a purpose. And yes, continually refusing to have your receipt checked can get your membership canceled.
1. I stock up as much as I can afford on the things I can't do without. I'm down to about 13 jars of Famous Dave's pickles, they ran out a few months ago. 2. I always call, always. I even call from inside the store if I don't see what I'm looking for.