Bay Arean
Well-known member
Some are the complaints are just not their business model. Like help with products. That's not the warehouse shopping deal.I don't expect it at all.
The lines are bad because we live in the congested Bay Area. I've been to much lighter-traffic Costcos, which was a pleasure.
I think Costco has become more and more like Walmart in the sense of constantly moving items for customer visibility (people see things differently if they can't follow the same path). I detest this so much it makes me mad thinking of it. You never know where the hell anything is going to be and the problem is getting worse. It used to just be seasonal now its at least monthly.
The mortal sin to me is cutting you off of seemingly perpetual products. You guys razzed me about it, but for several months they didn't sell refried beans, which they have carried for at least a decade. Which was ridiculous. They finally got one variety back. The latest thing are those sandwich thins. For a while they sold three varieties. For the last three visits, they just don't sell em period. Dieters love em because you can make yer sammich but have less bread, less carbs. A truly popular item. Instead they "leaned in" with way too many varieties of regular sliced bread, albeit holistic, sustainable, premium whole grains whatever. I know damn well that all us fat people still shop there the most so this bugs me big time. Just look around.
If you guys are on a very limited schedule like me and have to be at work all day, I'll tell you the best time to go which is between 5 to 6 pm. on a weekday. NEVER go on a Sunday because thats when all the workaholic people make a frickin holiday on their one day off. No food samples at the times I go (unless its Friday), which is just fine. I wish they didn't do food samples at all. I already know what anything I want tastes like, it's just an encumbrance. Don't think the football games are gonna make traffic lighter on a Sunday, at least in this part of the East Bay, where so many people do not originate in the US.
At a heavily-visited urban location like my local Costco (El Cerrito) the fast food service is a moot point. It's just too frickin crowded, it could be caviar for a buck, I don't care. I have been stuck in the damn place long enough just trying to find where they hid my staples. I want out, out, out. I have been a customer since they opened, I think back in the 90s, actually in a different building. I do all the food shopping in mi casa, so I know that store well. You are elbow to elbow with people you wouldnt' normally have to be with in that joint, I ain't sharing the uncomfortable picnic table with em.
Oh yeah, and they got me hooked on the two-color block cheese then stopped carrying it, replacing it with pre-shredded version. Which spoils must faster due to more surface exposure. Really pisses me off. I haven't checked the label, but before you ever buy shredded cheese, make sure it doesn't have "cellulose" (sawdust) added to keep it from clumping. Yuck.
The fact that they have dairy spread over several cases is annoying too. Refrig room for milk and eggs. Gourmet cheese in several aisles in the middle. Cheaper cheese at another aisle. Some yogurt in that aisle, more in another. Butter in both gourmet and other sections. Give me a frickin break.
To me, there is a confusion, not a plan at my local store. I have slowly been migrating away from costco on some items, even though they cost more just because I get so tired of looking for stuff and not finding it, that I don't want to go so often to repeat the experience.
The lines are bad because we live in the congested Bay Area. I've been to much lighter-traffic Costcos, which was a pleasure.
I think Costco has become more and more like Walmart in the sense of constantly moving items for customer visibility (people see things differently if they can't follow the same path). I detest this so much it makes me mad thinking of it. You never know where the hell anything is going to be and the problem is getting worse. It used to just be seasonal now its at least monthly.
The mortal sin to me is cutting you off of seemingly perpetual products. You guys razzed me about it, but for several months they didn't sell refried beans, which they have carried for at least a decade. Which was ridiculous. They finally got one variety back. The latest thing are those sandwich thins. For a while they sold three varieties. For the last three visits, they just don't sell em period. Dieters love em because you can make yer sammich but have less bread, less carbs. A truly popular item. Instead they "leaned in" with way too many varieties of regular sliced bread, albeit holistic, sustainable, premium whole grains whatever. I know damn well that all us fat people still shop there the most so this bugs me big time. Just look around.
If you guys are on a very limited schedule like me and have to be at work all day, I'll tell you the best time to go which is between 5 to 6 pm. on a weekday. NEVER go on a Sunday because thats when all the workaholic people make a frickin holiday on their one day off. No food samples at the times I go (unless its Friday), which is just fine. I wish they didn't do food samples at all. I already know what anything I want tastes like, it's just an encumbrance. Don't think the football games are gonna make traffic lighter on a Sunday, at least in this part of the East Bay, where so many people do not originate in the US.
At a heavily-visited urban location like my local Costco (El Cerrito) the fast food service is a moot point. It's just too frickin crowded, it could be caviar for a buck, I don't care. I have been stuck in the damn place long enough just trying to find where they hid my staples. I want out, out, out. I have been a customer since they opened, I think back in the 90s, actually in a different building. I do all the food shopping in mi casa, so I know that store well. You are elbow to elbow with people you wouldnt' normally have to be with in that joint, I ain't sharing the uncomfortable picnic table with em.
Oh yeah, and they got me hooked on the two-color block cheese then stopped carrying it, replacing it with pre-shredded version. Which spoils must faster due to more surface exposure. Really pisses me off. I haven't checked the label, but before you ever buy shredded cheese, make sure it doesn't have "cellulose" (sawdust) added to keep it from clumping. Yuck.
The fact that they have dairy spread over several cases is annoying too. Refrig room for milk and eggs. Gourmet cheese in several aisles in the middle. Cheaper cheese at another aisle. Some yogurt in that aisle, more in another. Butter in both gourmet and other sections. Give me a frickin break.
To me, there is a confusion, not a plan at my local store. I have slowly been migrating away from costco on some items, even though they cost more just because I get so tired of looking for stuff and not finding it, that I don't want to go so often to repeat the experience.
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The look of horror on her face was pure gold, and I said " HEY, YOU STARTED IT" as she turned and scooted away.
