[MplsPete]

Originally Posted by JerryLBell

... Or maybe it's the fact that the CEO of [Costco] makes something like 7 times as much as the average employee (I may have the number wrong; it's from a special I saw on them years ago) instead of 50 or 100 times as much...

Sounds fishy to me. So I asked my friend Google, "Who is the CEO of Costco?" Answer: Ron Vachris. Then I asked "What is Ron Vachris' salary?" Answer: His compensation package is more than 12 million dollars, according to a proxy statement filed with the SEC this month.

[NoMo50]

Originally Posted by Normal

I wonder how many south of 44 will ever go there. We currently use the Costco in Clermont because it’s a little less than a half hour drive. Also Traders isn’t far if we feel like the extra drive.

I think this Costco will be just as far?

Maybe not quite as far for us. The Clermont Costco is 35 minutes for me, door to door. The new store will be a little less than that. But, even if it wasn't closer, it would be worth it just to stay off the darn turnpike.

[Marmaduke]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

BJ's is golf cart accessible, but it's WAYYYYYYY up on the furthest northeasterly part of The Villages that you can get. So if you're down south of 44, or near Brownwood, or even south of Sumter, it's not convenient at all. They offer the same dog and soda deal the other two offer, $1.50. Their dogs aren't as good as Sam's though, and their condiments (watery relish, watery yellow mustard, watery ketchup) are pathetic. For an extra 50 cents you can swap your soda out for a frozen coke. BJ's gas is the cheapest in the area, even less than Sam's but it's members only. If you have a BJ's credit card, it's even cheaper than that. They don't have a pharmacy but they do have a full-service optical department.

Sam's is not golf-cart accessible at all, it is also on 441 but further south, across from Kohl's. It's not very convenient if you live south of 44, or east of Buena Vista, north or south. Their hotdogs are pretty awesome. Sam's has both optical and full service pharmacy, more "tasting" areas, more variety in their butcher/seafood department, and the store itself is larger.

I've never been to any Costco ever so I can't comment on what it has/doesn't have. But it won't be convenient to anyone north of Sumter, and it'd be pretty pointless to be a member if you live in the Historic Side since BJ's is right there. Would probably be a great occasional visit though, I think they offer day-passes.

OBB - there is every reason to be a member of Costco and dump the other 2.
The reasons are to numerous to mention and I won't even begin to attempt it.
To say it's inconvenient to the historic side is ... hard to believe, unless you're 100 and fearful of driving or something.

[Just jimmy]

Originally Posted by FloridaGuy66

I've been a Costco member for 30+ years. I've also been a BJ member for a year (didn't renew) and I'm an active Sam's member (2+ years) but used to "borrow" a friends membership for a decade before that.

Costco is unparalleled. You're essentially getting only top quality goods at a great price. They're return policy is probably the best in the US among all retailers. They will take anything back without question in most cases.

Sam's is good. Definitely better than 5-10 years ago. They sell good stuff but sometimes a little lower end things than Costco. When the Costco gets built here we might keep our Sam's membership for the great car wash and a few meat items that we like to buy sometimes at Sam's.

BJ's is like a mini version of both. Much less food selection. I don't see how they will survive here when the Costco opens up.

We bought our new Honda crv through Costco auto program. No haggle. Took 3500$ right off the top. No dealer cash add ons.

I use them for travel all the time. Save a ton on rental cars. Also book cruises through them. Our last cruise I got a 375$ cash card back after the cruise. We are also executive members and get 2 percent back on all we spend. Due to all the travel items I get more back each year than membership costs. Costco prepared food is also much better than the other 2.

[jimdecastro]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

BJ's is golf cart accessible, but it's WAYYYYYYY up on the furthest northeasterly part of The Villages that you can get. So if you're down south of 44, or near Brownwood, or even south of Sumter, it's not convenient at all. They offer the same dog and soda deal the other two offer, $1.50. Their dogs aren't as good as Sam's though, and their condiments (watery relish, watery yellow mustard, watery ketchup) are pathetic. For an extra 50 cents you can swap your soda out for a frozen coke. BJ's gas is the cheapest in the area, even less than Sam's but it's members only. If you have a BJ's credit card, it's even cheaper than that. They don't have a pharmacy but they do have a full-service optical department.

Sam's is not golf-cart accessible at all, it is also on 441 but further south, across from Kohl's. It's not very convenient if you live south of 44, or east of Buena Vista, north or south. Their hotdogs are pretty awesome. Sam's has both optical and full service pharmacy, more "tasting" areas, more variety in their butcher/seafood department, and the store itself is larger.

I've never been to any Costco ever so I can't comment on what it has/doesn't have. But it won't be convenient to anyone north of Sumter, and it'd be pretty pointless to be a member if you live in the Historic Side since BJ's is right there. Would probably be a great occasional visit though, I think they offer day-passes.

Excellent post. I have been a member of all 3 but I am Newell so none are convenient except Sam's (my church is next door). I like each for different things but to me Costco is superior. I would likely still go to Clermont - but my work is in Buffalo Ridge.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by Marmaduke

OBB - there is every reason to be a member of Costco and dump the other 2.
The reasons are to numerous to mention and I won't even begin to attempt it.
To say it's inconvenient to the historic side is ... hard to believe, unless you're 100 and fearful of driving or something.

It is odd that a poster won't begin to attempt to mention the reasons to choose Costco and dump the other 2 in a thread specifically created to gather any reasons why one should be chosen over the others.

[Gatemaker]

Originally Posted by Arctic Fox

I have never been in a Costco store, but many on this forum wax lyrical about them.

What are the main differences between a Costco and the other two?

Thank you

We are a member of both. Not a member of BJ. Both are simular but offer some different items not found in the other. You can go in Costco for a look around before you sign up. You'll just have to go a decide for yourself. Good luck..as I mentioned, we're members of both.

[Bill14564]

Are the Costco online prices the same as the in-store prices? Sam's warns that they may not be but for any item I have checked, the prices are the same. I would like to get a feel for what the items I might buy would cost without having to walk the aisles at Costco.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Marmaduke

OBB - there is every reason to be a member of Costco and dump the other 2.
The reasons are to numerous to mention and I won't even begin to attempt it.
To say it's inconvenient to the historic side is ... hard to believe, unless you're 100 and fearful of driving or something.

I live 5 minutes by golf cart to BJ's. I live 3 minutes by car to BJ's. I get my gas at BJ's, which is either 3 or 5 minutes from home, thus saving lots of money throughout the year because it's less expensive than any other gas in the area, and takes less time to get there, thus saving money in gas use for the trip to fill it up.

It's also near Walmart, which is where I do most of my grocery shopping. So I can fill up the tank on the way to or from the supermarket at any time during the week.

I have no NEED to drive 40 minutes in each direction to fill up my tank, or to get a half pound of sliced ham, or a 4-pack of ground coffee bricks. And if I'm going to head in the direction of the new Costco, it'll be on a Tuesday, so I can get ground beef at FreshMarket for $3.99/lb in 1-pound packages.

So yes - it's an inconvenience. If I need gas for my car, I need to not have to waste over an hour's worth of gas round-trip just to get it.

I never need hotdogs, but if I WANT one, BJ's has them, there's a hotdog cart guy outside Lowe's, the new Crave hotdog joint just opened up near me, and I can always buy a package and make my own. No need to drive 40 minutes each way (by golf cart, 25 minutes by car) to get one.

There is nothing I /need/ from any big-box store, that I can't already get without a big-box store. Membership at Costco is $65/year, or $130/year for the upgraded membership. I don't save enough to justify the expense or the inconvenience of having to drive over an hour round-trip for the privilege.

As I said before - if I could get a day-pass, I'd absolutely give it a look. But the more people describe why they think it's so awesome, the more I'm convince it's not going to be something I'll need to pay extra to use.

[Stu from NYC]

We have been members of Sams for over 30 years and members of BJ about 3.

Like both for different reasons. Can get deli counter meats and cheese at BJ as well as knishes. Sams has wider selections and more choices for shirts and pants.

Never lived near Costco so never a member but have gone there with our kids who are both members.

Concerned about traffic but expect to join Costco when they open and probably will over time drop one of them.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

We have been members of Sams for over 30 years and members of BJ about 3.

Like both for different reasons. Can get deli counter meats and cheese at BJ as well as knishes. Sams has wider selections and more choices for shirts and pants.

Never lived near Costco so never a member but have gone there with our kids who are both members.

Concerned about traffic but expect to join Costco when they open and probably will over time drop one of them.

I joined Sam's when we first moved in because we got that membership fee credited in store credit as a promotion, and there wasn't any indication that there'd be a BJ's in the area yet.

I really liked the place, liked the different prepared foods and butcher and seafood areas, the overall layout, and the variety of everything else. But I just didn't need stuff there often enough to justify having to take my car and not being able to take the golf cart, when I live within 2 miles of the place. I think I went shopping there twice the whole year. I found better prices for "bulk toilet paper" and for 6-packs of Pepsi at Walmart. You can't buy just a half gallon of milk, or just a single 8-oz package of cheese at these big-box stores, and I don't like throwing away food. My freezer has limited space, so I'm not going to buy a lot of perishable foods in large sizes and freeze them. So I have to get that stuff at Walmart anyway. I did end up using their pharmacy when I started needing periodontal and skin cancer surgeries, because Sam's was the closest pharmacy on the way back from each of those offices. But you don't have to be a member to use their pharmacy.

So - I let my membership expire and didn't renew. BJ's came around and I got free membership there, a discounted membership my second year. If I can keep getting discounted memberships I'll stick with BJ's. If not, I'll let that expire and not use any big-box store for awhile.

They're a nice option to have but definitely not a necessity around here, if you don't have a big family or a lot of storage space.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by OrangeBlossomBaby

I joined Sam's when we first moved in because we got that membership fee credited in store credit as a promotion, and there wasn't any indication that there'd be a BJ's in the area yet.

I really liked the place, liked the different prepared foods and butcher and seafood areas, the overall layout, and the variety of everything else. But I just didn't need stuff there often enough to justify having to take my car and not being able to take the golf cart, when I live within 2 miles of the place. I think I went shopping there twice the whole year. I found better prices for "bulk toilet paper" and for 6-packs of Pepsi at Walmart. You can't buy just a half gallon of milk, or just a single 8-oz package of cheese at these big-box stores, and I don't like throwing away food. My freezer has limited space, so I'm not going to buy a lot of perishable foods in large sizes and freeze them. So I have to get that stuff at Walmart anyway. I did end up using their pharmacy when I started needing periodontal and skin cancer surgeries, because Sam's was the closest pharmacy on the way back from each of those offices. But you don't have to be a member to use their pharmacy.

So - I let my membership expire and didn't renew. BJ's came around and I got free membership there, a discounted membership my second year. If I can keep getting discounted memberships I'll stick with BJ's. If not, I'll let that expire and not use any big-box store for awhile.

They're a nice option to have but definitely not a necessity around here, if you don't have a big family or a lot of storage space.

In order to make sense of shopping at Sams we purchased a big freezer to store stuff in our garage. Can buy fruits and veg in sizes that we can use up within a week so we usually will go to either Sams or BJ weekly.

Pricing is great for many things but certain items like TP not so great but convenient to bring home a case.

[OrangeBlossomBaby]

Originally Posted by Stu from NYC

In order to make sense of shopping at Sams we purchased a big freezer to store stuff in our garage. Can buy fruits and veg in sizes that we can use up within a week so we usually will go to either Sams or BJ weekly.

Pricing is great for many things but certain items like TP not so great but convenient to bring home a case.

For citrus fruits, I pick them off the trees in the neighborhood (limes in my own back yard). I squeeze the lemon juice by hand and freeze it in an ice cube tray, it's great for making scampi all year 'round. Bananas seem to turn brown and mushy within 2 days of buying them, so I only buy 1-2 at a time. Unless I want to make banana bread. Then I'll buy a bunch and let them get mushy.

I try buying melon chunks because I know hubby likes them but he forgets we have them and they go bad and I end up throwing half the package away. So - more stuff I rarely buy, and only in very small quantities.

Veggies - I buy only what I'll consume within a few days for the same reason as the melon chunk situation. Walmart sells packages of 48 rolls of "soft and strong" toilet paper. Staples also sells large packages of it, and I usually use any credits I earn through their rewards program to get TP there (thus costing me absolutely nothing). I only need to buy TP 3-4 times a year and the Staples package fits perfectly in the cupboard in the master bathroom. For paper towels, I buy maybe one package of 12 rolls of the Walmart brand once a year.

Like I said - pretty much everything I need is at Walmart, and it's only a few minutes by golf cart from home.

[Reeds]

I have never been in a Costco store, but many on this forum wax lyrical about them.

What are the main differences between a Costco and the other two?

Thank you


We have also been members of each at one time or another. There are many similarities but Costco has been the clear winner for us. Stores are very clean, workers are more helpful and we like their selection (variety) better. Good wine selection and much better clothing too.
If you sign up for the executive membership you can get cash back if your spending for a year exceeds a certain amount. If you pay for one but find you don't go often enough, they will change it to a regular membership and credit the difference in membership fee back to you.
Electronics like computers and iPads (maybe TV's as well) automatically have an additional one year warranty.
We are current members and looking forward to the one coming to The Villages. We are south of 44 so it's only a few extra minute to get there versus Sam's and potentially quicker than going to BJ's.

[Kenswing]

Isn't Sam's just a Walmart on steroids?

We like Costco. The store is always clean. The employees are always helpful. One of the perks we like the most is booking our cruises through them. Not only do we get cash back on our Costco credit card but Costco kicks back roughly half of their commission in the form of a gift card. Our next cruise is getting us a $1,250 gift card.