For many customers, Costco’s towering shelves and endless aisles offer the excitement of massive savings, where you can purchase a year’s supply of pasta or enough toilet paper to last a pandemic. Shoppers are drawn in by the idea of buying in bulk and seeing their carts filled with essentials. But, despite the tempting deals, whether buying in bulk truly benefits the average family is more complicated than it appears.
While Costco’s discounts sound great for saving money, the membership fee and bulk product sizes only work for some. Some families can benefit from buying in bulk, while others find that they are buying products they can’t finish.
Carlmont students and local Costco shoppers have their perspectives on whether buying bulk at Costco is practical for households or if it is just a waste of food.
“Costco seems like a great deal, but if you are only shopping for one or two people, the food goes bad before we can finish it,” said Costco customer and sophomore Kiyo Aretun. “I think that the prices are nice, but it is easy to overbuy, so it adds up.”
On the other hand, buying in bulk at Costco when shopping for larger families provides enough benefits, which makes the membership fee worth it.
“My family shops at Costco wherever we run out of the things we bought from our previous Costco trip. I feel like buying in bulk saves time and effort compared to shopping at other stores,” said Carlmont sophomore Charlotte Searle.
Especially with holidays coming up, specifically Thanksgiving, Costco is the place to purchase enough food to feed entire families.
“The portions are quite large, which is good because I can make sure my hungry grandchildren are well fed,” said Mavis Holloway, a grandmother who hosts Thanksgiving for her extended family almost every year.
For many families like Holloway’s, Costco’s convenience of having essentials ready for purchase in bulk is especially beneficial in reducing shopping trips.
“The membership just feels worth it,” Holloway said.
