My Shopping Experience at Costco - Review
9 Comments September 30, 2009 / Posted in Reviews
Shopping at Costco - everything's sold in bulk
Earlier this week I was invited by a friend, who was a Costco member, to check it out. I have been hearing a lot of news about Costco lately, a bulk buying supermarket from the USA. Seeing that I had nothing to do I thought I might as well check out what the fuss is all about.
So last Sunday after we had finished Yum Cha at Gold Leaf restaurant we walked across to Costco. Upon arriving, I saw a MASSIVE line, like 30 metres long, I kid you not. I kept thinking to myself why on earth am I lining up just to get into a bloody supermarket. Anyway after a 20 minute wait we were finally allowed in. There I realised the line was there for NON MEMBERS (membership is $60)!! Apparently my this is my friend 2nd outing so she didn’t know. Anyway we finally got in and took with us a huge trolley which I thought we wouldn’t be needing. How wrong was I!
Entering Costco, I saw lots of things, massive warehouse style - the size is similar to Bunnings. Lot’s of the things were sold either in bulk or oversized. Like they slabs of coke, V energy drinks & Red Bull I just threw into the trolley 
Or the pizza that will prob take me a week to eat? And the 15 pairs of socks I just bought. Costco sells anything and everything you can possibly think off, from trestle table, aromatherapy candles through candies, fresh vegies, smoked salmon and books - All in BULK!
Electronics were not that cheap though…here are summary of items which I think are worth buying in bulk:
- Nappies, Toilet Tissues, Cleaning Products (dishwasher tablets, detergents, cleaning products).
- Chocolates & Candies - if you’re preparing for halloween or throwing a party
- Pies, Prawns, Meats, Chickens, Eggs, Flour, Cakes, Muffins, Soft Drinks - if you’re a baker or plan to throw a party
- To give you an idea, buying redbull in bulk will equate to $1.87/can. Redbull in bulk costs $44.95
And with my love of energy drinks, I bought enough to last me 6 months I think The fact that I went in without planning to buy anything and came out with a full trolley shows that Costco sells everything and anything that you can possibly think of and certainly encourage you to shop :).
In summary, Costco will definetely benefit large familes but not as much with a household of 2 or so. It is good value though if you decide to throw a party, as you can find massive pizzas and party pies. I would suggest you get another family in your street to share everything in half (e.g. a bag of onion to be split into half). The only gotchas, you can only pay with the credit card of a person whose name’s on the membership card otherwise you can always pay cash.
Is $60 worth paying for membership, I think so. As it makes a good family day out and helps you save some cash :). An outting at recent Royal Melbourne Show for 1 adult costs me about $40/person (not including rides, entrance fee alone costs $27). I will definetely be checking back into Costco in 3 months time to stock up on items or just simply spend my afternoon window shopping :). Thus it’s probably a quarterly event if you are getting other family to share the cost of bulk shopping
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Hey I’ve been curious as the cost smoked salmon and how it looked like and how it was packaged?
The cost of the 1kg smoke salmon, if I recall correctly, is around $42-$44 not, not 100% sure. The bad thing about smoke salmon is, even though it has a due date of 1 year in advanced, once you open it, you must consume the rest within 2 days. It’s packed in an air tight/pressed sealed plastic packaging
Cool thanks, yes, that’s what I was thinking. Very much like what you said about some of the other foods, great if you’re having a cocktail party, picnic or other event.
Definitely worth the shopping if you can go there to buy often. The line to register is too long still atm. Great tip from someone who works in the inside: Contact lenses are half the price of what is out in the normal shops, though normal glasses are normal. Everyone that shops there apparently comes out with a pack of tissue paper, and hot dog + refill drink is a bargain at $2.50.
Thanks for sharing the tip Shy. Next time I know what to hunt for at Costco
and will certainly feast on the hot dog & refill drink :). As for the long queue to register, it’s probably best not to go during peak days (weekends) but opt for weekdays instead. Couple years ago I’ve been the one in the US and they had similar thing - long queue to register and one guy got agitated as after queueing for sometimes, he had to fill in a form and found out he had to pay to be a member. The security guys escorted him out of the line. Then…not long after, while I managed to get inside, I saw the same guy ran to gain entry and once again, he got escorted 
Hi Mai, thanks for your great reviews of Melbourne!! I’m going to have a look out on your recommendations of Sushi joints coz i love Japanese food.
Out of curiosity regarding Costco, am i able to get in without membership? I went there when they first opened and gave up because of the size of the queue. I can’t seem to find a single catalog or even list of certain items that they sell there because i am curious about the type of sweets and chocolates. I really like Hersheys chocolates and want to know if they sell it there.
Hi,
Glad you enjoyed my review on Costco. You need a membership to get in, however if you happen to know anyone that has a membership, she/he can take you in. Chocolates…hm… not sure what they have, but quite sure they have heaps of varieties….If you do go..make it like a day trip (i.e. similar to when you visit a zoo) :).
Thanks Mai, I’ll have to go Costco one day even just for the experience of using the huge trolleys.
Your reviews are great! I get to discover new places of interest in Melbourne i was never aware about through your blog. I’ve now been to Laurent Patisserie and am now a big fan of the macaroons and cakes there. ^_^
Hi Little Coy,
I am really glad to hear that you are enjoying my reviews. I enjoy discovering new places so I know how you feel
I’m in the process of writing more - so stay tuned :).
Costco is definitely a great experience. It really is something!!! Even if you’re in there just to ‘look’ and not buy anything
My first Costco experience was in USA during my business trip. I got the membership just to get in once hehe…I had a great time :).