{"id":1484,"date":"2011-01-28T05:50:26","date_gmt":"2011-01-28T13:50:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/?p=1484"},"modified":"2014-05-06T15:43:22","modified_gmt":"2014-05-06T22:43:22","slug":"why-i-dont-shop-much-at-club-stores","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/why-i-dont-shop-much-at-club-stores\/","title":{"rendered":"Why I Don’t Shop Much at Club Stores"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the cornerstones of frugal living<\/a>, it seems, is shopping at club stores. The idea is that you can get huge discounts on different items, and this will account for the cost you incur by joining a club store. Growing up, my parents shopped at a club store regularly. However, now that I’m grown and have my own family, I don’t do much shopping at club stores.<\/p>\n

My Family is Quite Small<\/h3>\n

I grew up in a family of five kids. For a good portion of my growing up life, we were on a single income — my father’s salary as a college professor. My mother made almost everything from scratch, using ingredients bought in bulk<\/a>. My family, though, is quite small: My husband, my son and myself. There is no reason to buy huge amounts of many items. Many food items<\/a>, especially perishables, are likely to go bad before we use them.<\/p>\n

I Can Find Better Deals Elsewhere<\/h3>\n

It is true that there are some items at club stores that offer great deals. However, the best deal isn’t always to be found at a club store. And, even if you do get a good deal, you need consider whether the savings you receive actually do add up to an amount that is large enough to offset the annual fee you pay as a club store member.<\/p>\n

We have found that we can actually get better deals if we look for sales at other stores. Per-unit, we have found that buying toilet paper, tissues and a few other items are actually less expensive if we buy them on sale elsewhere. So we watch for the sales, and the stock up. The same is true of canned goods. The local grocery store has a regular “case lot” sale that results in cheaper canned goods than what we’d get at the club store. So, as long as we plan ahead and stock up, there is no need to go to the club store.<\/p>\n

And, of course, one can’t forget the Internet. Small appliances, electronics and other items can usually be found cheaper online. We do a lot of online shopping — at sites that offer free shipping on certain orders, of course!<\/p>\n

What I DO Buy at the Club Store<\/h3>\n

My mother is able to add others to her account for less, so she just pays for each of her children to be on her account every year. So, a couple times a year, we venture into the club store for some very specific purchases. The over the counter medications are actually the best deal at the club store. Additionally, personal care items like deodorant, toothpaste and hand soap are usually good deals at the club store in our town. So we go ahead and get those, stocking up, at the club store.<\/p>\n

While the club store can be a source of good prices and big savings, it’s important to double check. You actually may not be getting the best deal at the club store. Just like every other situation, it is a good idea to shop around and do some price comparisons. You might find that you can save more with a little careful investigation, rather than just getting everything at the club store.<\/p>\n

This post was featured in the Festival of Frugality.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the cornerstones of frugal living, it seems, is shopping at club stores. The idea is that you can get huge discounts on different items, and this will account for the cost you incur by joining a club store. Growing up, my parents shopped at a club store regularly. However, now that I’m grown […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8],"tags":[510,23],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1484"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1484\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/couponshoebox.com\/tips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}