The Real Value of Warehouse Clubs

Bulk shopping at warehouse clubs like BJ’s, Sam’s Club and Costco is a very popular thing to do. And under the right circumstances, buying in bulk can offer a huge savings—especially for businesses and large families. It means less packaging and usually less marketing per volume of product.

Buyers beware: do not assume that bulk is cheaper. Marketers now know that consumers are conditioned into thinking that savings are automatic when buying in volume and some manufacturers are taking advantage of consumers because of this assumption.

Many people flock to warehouse clubs, thinking with every purchase they are getting a good deal. Bulk purchasing is based on the premise that the cost of each unit automatically decreases with quantity, which is not always the case. In some instances, the cost may be the same—or slightly higher than the price at the grocery store for the regular size. It pays to compare prices when shopping in warehouse clubs.

The first rule of shopping at one is always calculating the cost per (ounce or pound) unit, then deciding if it really is a bargain. Small families and individuals living alone may actually be wasting money by shopping there if the items are not stored properly and go stale, or spoil before using them up.

Next, only purchase items you would normally buy in the first place. If you go there with the intent of saving money and purchase things that you had not initially planned on, or a huge box of a product that you never tried before—only to find out later that you do not like it, the item will not be used in its entirety; therefore, you are wasting money.

Make the purchase if you find a good deal on non-perishable items like toilet paper, shampoo, soap, paper towels and trash bags — those types of items will definitely not go to waste since they will get used up eventually. A word of caution, make sure you have enough space at home to be able to store those items.

The next thing to consider is if you or your family uses a large amount of a particular product or item like rice, pasta, cereal, coffee or peanut butter. It would be another safe buy if you find it a comparable bargain, since you already know your family uses those particular items in large quantities on a regular basis already.

Most often, warehouse shopping does not offer much of a variety of individual products, which is one of the main reasons that they are able to keep prices low. So if variety is important to you, bulk shopping at a warehouse club may not be a wise choice.

Remember that bulk shopping can save you quite a bit of money; however, always consider the needs of you, or your family before making the purchase—especially with respect to variety and how often the product will be used.

Not only is warehouse shopping a money saver when comparison shopping, it can be a time saver too by making it the end for special shopping trips to the store for things that run out regularly.