[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by Kay5301

........ Is Cosco better than Sam's Club?

In a word.....YES!

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by Dlbonivich

What is the big deal about Costco,?

I know this may sound silly but....As far as I'm aware, Costco is the only warehouse/store that has 4 1/2" wide toilet paper and it is Charmin brand. Believe it or not, that extra 1/2" in width makes the toilet paper sit on the toilet paper holder without it moving side to side. It stays put!!!

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by rbell412

What’s so good about Costco? How does it compare to Sams?

Costco sells their rotisserie chicken pulled and in blister pack packaging. Sam's does not do that. The Costco rotisserie chicken is so delicious and NO BONES!!!! Just pure awesomeness. In fact, I have not seen pulled rotisserie chicken anywhere but Costco.

The package of rotisserie chicken is so large, I portion is out into six packages and freeze them. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Costco.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by Northerner52

Costco only builds were there is population density

I believe that Costco only builds on property that can be seen from a freeway.

Not true. Our Costco in New Jersey was not visible from the the NJ Turnpike or the Garden State Parkway. In fact, the Costco was not even that close to those main arteries......maybe 5 miles away.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by Tall4mom

Have always used Sam's Club. Not a big Costco fan.

To each his own. What is it about Sam's that you prefer over Costco?

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by msilagy

Most villagers are not going to buy in bulk so why would it be advantageous for them to build here? They want to go where there are families with lots of kids that makes it lucrative for them - excuse me can I have 2 bananas? LOL

Then why did Sam's built a warehouse very close to The Villages?

[CWGUY]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

I know this may sound silly but....As far as I'm aware, Costco is the only warehouse/store that has 4 1/2" wide toilet paper and it is Charmin brand. Believe it or not, that extra 1/2" in width makes the toilet paper sit on the toilet paper holder without it moving side to side. It stays put.

I'm embarrassed to say that for 70 years I have managed to never think of measuring my TP...... I just measured my TP from Sam's Club and it's 4 and 3/8 inches across.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by RosemarySoso

I cannot read your posts. The beige background with orange letters is difficult to see. Maybe it’s just me 🤷*♀️

You must be using the new version of TOTV.

With the old version, I use yellow to highlight the text so it is very visible against the dark green background.

With the new version of TOTV, I use red, dark green or black to highlight the text to stand out against the peachy/beige background.

I always BOLD the text I highlight which makes it even easier to see.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by ColdNoMore

You must be using the "new design"...and I'm using the old, tried/true one.

On mine, I'm using dark orange letters on a green background and to me...it's the easiest I've found to read.

Of course...that's just my opinion.

When I'm forced to give up the old design and go to the new (unimproved, IMHO) version...I'll have to figure out something different.

Sorry for the hassle...as of now.

Problem is both versions are being used at this time. If you highlight text for one, it is not visible on the other.

[CWGUY]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

Then why did Sam's built a warehouse in The Villages?

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by OhioBuckeye

I can believe that because I don’t think TV would let anything come to TV unless they get their cut. Summerfield would be a better choice because they would get Ocala business, & everything north of that & possibly take some of “Sams” business.

Actually, Sam's is not in The Villages. Isn't that Lady Lake? It is just very close to The Villages.

[coffeebean]

Originally Posted by CWGUY

I'm embarrassed to say that for 70 years I have managed to never think of measuring my TP...... I just measured my TP from Sam's Club and it's 4 and 3/8 inches across.

Really? I thought all standard toilet paper is 4" in width. But, it isn't Charmin.

[ColdNoMore]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

In a word.....YES!

In two words...HECK YES!


As to the questions on "what's the difference between Costco and Sam's," I've found that while Costco reputedly carries less products (SKU's) than Sam's...their general quality is much higher.

It is not unusual at all, to find high-end/luxury products at Costco, whereas I find Sam's has pretty much what you would find in Walmart...just at different quantities.

What also makes Costco fun...is the 'Treasure Hunt' aspect of it.

Their expertise on shoppers psyche is second to none, which often makes me spend more money than intended (getting out of of Costco without dropping less than $200 on things I didn't know I needed...is hard).

Costco rotates their inventory often, so if you don't buy that really good deal on a quality/luxury product now...it may not be there the next time.

Then, of course is their rotisserie chicken...which has a cult following of its own


Costco Chicken (carve here)

There really isn’t a sneaky catch to these low-cost meals. Most supermarkets sell their rotisserie chickens within a range of $5 and $7, reports the Wall Street Journal.

But those places might be skimping on the size of their birds. According to the same report, Costco’s chickens weigh at least three pounds cooked, while rivals’ usually weigh one-and-a-half to two pounds.

According to Costco’s chief financial officer, the retailer loses between $30 and $40 million a year on the chickens. Still, they refuse to raise their prices to a more reasonable $5.99. The reason: They really believe $4.99 is how much a chicken should cost. “That’s us,” said the CFO on a call with analysts. “That’s what we do.” In a less selfless way, the chickens keep foot traffic high at the store, which benefits its bottom line.

And last, but certainly not least, is that I find Costco employees to be generally happier & more helpful...than other warehouse store employees.

Which is most likely due to the fact that they pay and treat their employees well.

11 More Reasons To Love Costco (poke here)

1. The company pays a living wage. Costco’s CEO and president, Craig Jelinek, has publicly endorsed raising the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, and he takes that to heart. The company’s starting pay is $11.50 per hour, and the average employee wage is $21 per hour, not including overtime. Most other big box retailers start their employees at minimum wage.

2. Workers get benefits. About 88 percent of Costco employees have company-sponsored health insurance, according to David Sherwood, Costco’s Director of Financial Planning and Investor Relations. “I just think people need to make a living wage with health benefits,” Jelinek told Bloomberg. “It also puts more money back into the economy and creates a healthier country. It’s really that simple.”

3. The CEO makes a reasonable salary. Costco’s CEO makes far less than most executives, with a total compensation package of about $4.83 million in 2012. In contrast, Walmart CEO Mike Duke made roughly $19.3 million during the same year. Walmart’s CEO earns as much as 796 average employees, according to CNN Money, compared to Costco’s CEO making 48 times more than the company’s median wage.

4. Costco helped its employees weather the recession. When the economic crisis hit and other retailers laid off workers, Costco’s CEO approved a $1.50-an-hour wage increase for many hourly employees, spread out over three years.

5. Costco doesn’t kill Thanksgiving. While many of its competitors are forcing employees to work on Thanksgiving Day, Costco will buck the trend and stay closed.

6. It also doesn’t waste money on expensive advertising. The company doesn’t advertise nor does it hire a public relations staff. Meanwhile, Walmart dropped $1.89 billion on ads in 2011.

7. Its prices aren’t horrendously high. Costco never marks up products by more than 15 percent, while most retailers commonly mark products up by more than 25 percent.

8. It embraces equality. Costco scored extremely well (90/100) on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index, an assessment of LGBT policies in the workplace.

9. It hires from the inside. More than 70 percent of its warehouse managers began their careers working the register or the floor.

10. Costco’s employees are loyal. For employees that have worked at the company for more than one year, the annual turnover rate is below six percent, according to Sherwood. For executives, the turnover rate is less than one percent.

11. Free samples. Need we say more?

Did I mention that...I LOVE Costco?

[CWGUY]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

Really? I thought all standard toilet paper is 4" in width. But, it isn't Charmin.

Really! It's Ultra Premium Members Mark 2-ply and very soft. Still can't believe I'm having this conversation. Was always more concerned about how much was left on the roll not how wide it was.

[EdFNJ]

Originally Posted by coffeebean

Not true. Our Costco in New Jersey was not visible from the the NJ Turnpike or the Garden State Parkway. In fact, the Costco was not even that close to those main arteries......maybe 5 miles away.

Yep ... and the key is they are in VERY high density industrial/warehouse/office/retail store areas close enough to a major highway(s) which is what they look for. They couldn't make enough money and do enough volume off of mostly Grammys and Grampys buying some toilet paper and a $4 chicken when they are in town 3-6 months out of the year. Maybe if they sold horse & pig feed they could compete with Rural King!

Ever been to RK? Cool place. Free popcorn always and free hot dogs on Saturdays.