I just joined Costco, that place is amazing! I have no idea about most the brands there though. What is something you always buy from Costco because it is delicious/works well/would not be able to buy it otherwise? I am really going to need some word of mouth on these brands before I end up with enough product to feed a small army. I am well happy with the meat quality and savings, so I have my membership value returned already.
I don't see any savings compared to Coles special prices, or Coles everyday prices, and often the product is worse. E.g. Chicken breast which is factory farmed and more expensive compared to Coles RSPCA approved chicken breast. If you buy in bulk I guess there are some savings, but two of us never need ornhave the space for 10kg of fillet steak. Their Levi jeans are really cheap however.
You must be confused thorton82. Costco sell Lilydale free range chicken breasts that have always been cheaper than Coles. They sell them in bulk but with tear off portions of 500 to 600g each that are very handy to use and freeze.
At least Costco has a wide variety of brands and gourmet products compared to Coles which keeps reducing brand choice by replacing them with Coles homebrand.
Kirkland brand salmon and sweet potato dry dog food is about 2/3 the price of Blackhawk fish and potato, for a 20 kilo vs 18 kilo bag. If you have a dog you will understand this is great value - the staff advised I call ahead to see if they have it because it is very popular and often out of stock. Pigs ears and trotters are also cheaper here than pet stores or online stores.
Apart from that I buy sorbent toilet paper in a huge slab for about $ 22. I think that it can be had at a comparable price from supermarket sales, but I have the space to store it so I tend to get one each time I go. I also buy their Kirkland brand unscented laundry liquid, about $23, not sure how many litres but it lasts easily six months or more and I'm Dame Washalot!
TBH, I don't tend to find their food to be a bargain compared to supermarket sales, especially if you shop quick sale/clearance. I do recall buying giant trays of hot cross buns last Easter, but they probably weren't a bargain, I just love HCBs (but ONLY at Easter!). I've also bought their fresh bagels- they are real boiled bagels and totally delicious - but you have to buy two six packs and I WILL eat them in a couple of days, so they aren't on my list any more!
BBQ chooks FTW. Larger than Colesworth and cheaper ($6)
they were $7 before and was surprised when it got reduced
Yes $6, freshly BBQ'd, large size = bargain
Think the 18 pack free range eggs are a good deal.
Decent LED light bulbs.
Recently got a great deal on HP printer cartridges, 25% less compared to best ebay price I could find.
12 pack croissants, tasty.
Loved their Black Forrest Cake, Clive Palmer style, thick and rich. Well, by now better than Clive Palmer I hear, hehe.
Business shirts, got 2 branded pure cotton for $33 each, Nautica I think.
Great selection if "healthy" snacks, well at least they make you feel good.
Otherwise it is also about the refund policy.
Once bought some large pack of food there, after a few samples didnt like the taste and returned 2/3 full. Refund no, worries.
Not a fan of their fresh fruit and vegetables.
Sometimes cant finish the jar or whatever before it goes stale.
i like the pizza from their canteen
Damn their canteen is cheap. 50 cent cold bottles of water in the vending machines is great too!
Whole egg mayo in 1kg tub
Jonny's BBQ sauce
Large jar of pickled cucumbers
Trail mix type 1kg bags
pizza from canteen is great.
The mayo was the first thing I grabbed!
Frozen edamame!! Coconut rolls 'hand dipped' in chocolate! Oral-B toothbrush heads (electric). Non alcoholic cider (in the green bottles).
Soft drink at the canteen.
Buy a cup
Refill ten times.
Keep cup and reuse for next ten visits until it starts leaking through the bottom.
Tape up and keep using
All that for saving $1.29? Dude, really???
Anyhow, depending on your GTT (grossness tolerance threshold), here's a another method I just thought of.
Arrive.
Find someone else used cup.
Use soft drink to wash (Coke is best for that sorta stuff I hear)
Refill away to your hearts desire.
Repeat or do a Hoju.
[yuck]
Generally we buy things that don't have a 'use by' date or have a very long shelf life, because of the quantity you get. We've noticed that the good sale prices (1/2 price ETC.) at Coles/Woolworths will just beat Costco prices, but then these very rarely line up with when we need them. We also live in a rural area, so have the storage available in Fridge/Freezer for when we buy chicken and pork. (We produce our own beef…)Also, love the Croissants and Dim Sum. The down side to Costco is that some items are one-off. We found the Indian equivalent to the Dim Sum, but they no longer stock it. And, you really need to watch the budget… It's the big bang it makes when you got past it and it blows out… (Darn lack of self control and those huge trolleys…)
Kirkland toilet paper, paper towels and garbage bags are excellent. In fact, pretty much all Kirkland products are good
Their panco breadcrumbs are significantly cheaper. Lurpak butter likewise - around half price. It does come up at around the same price very occasionally at the supermarkets, but not that often. Their licorice allsorts are pretty good.
kirkland laundry detergent, 12.7kg for $27
Basically half the price of everything at big w
https://www.bigw.com.au/search/?pageSize=144&q=detergent%3Ar…
These aren't everyday items but we bought our fridge and microwave from Costco. Significant savings compared to other retailers. The only issue with the fridge was we had to collect it ourselves, however the staff were more than happy to help us get it out of the store and into our trailer.
Everything is cheaper:
-Tech products (I bought a laptop $500 cheaper)
-Milk and dairy products are cheaper
- Food in general
I have crap hearing. Costco hearing aids are rebadged Bernefons (I think. It was years ago I bought mine) Anyway, the Costco price was 25% of retail elsewhere. In my case I saved about $6,000. Support has been excellent. Will definitely buy from them again when the time comes.
Also, they have low profile car jacks that are quite cheap. People resell then on eBay all the time. I have one and I really like it.
chia seeds
books for the kids
eclipse mints
Kirkland brand paper towels
croissants
muffins
mixed Danishes
frozen scallop meat roe off
they have this potato salad that is quite yummy,
LED light bulbs are good.
napisan when they have a discount
sweetened condensed milk
looks a lot like my shopping trolley on the weekend,
and the hot dog and drink combo…
Meats and Seafood are absolutely awesome, Salads if you're into that are great as well if you go into the cold room. Some products I always come back to are Ichiban Delicious Ramen, Philippine Dried Mangoes, KB's Prawn Gyoza, Smoked Salmon and Smoked Bacon there are great as well (forget the brands). Hope this helps!