Costco

I was a Costco's member years ago but we decided we didn't utilize the membership to make the savings worthwhile since we lived 45 minutes away. I recently started working near the Costco in Durham and decided to see if I even wanted a membership. I went on a Friday at lunch time. The parking lot was a mad house. Clearly there isn't enough parking. It looked like Christmas time. Getting into the store was a hassle. Apparently you are supposed to use a guest pass just to look around. I understand needing a membership to purchase something. The line to get a guest pass was long. I skipped it and went looking anyway. You would have thought there was a major storm coming or they were giving away free food. I can't stand shopping in a chaotic environment. I checked prices and items against other stores I frequent. Some items were less and some were similar to other stores. The potential savings would not outweigh the miserable environment and checkout lines 10 carts deep. Their stock selection is not family friendly either. One family does not want a 10 gallon can of green beans or 50 lbs of rice. I've used BJ'S in the past where we could purchase a package of smaller boxes of rice or set of a half dozen cans of vegetables. It was a manageable size overall and prevented waste. I don't know if all the Costcos are the same their food/pantry selection is better suited to restaurants, schools, or cafeterias. I'm glad I didn't waste my money on a membership. I think I'll check out Sams next.