A Reformed Sam’s Club Warehouse Shopper, maybe

I’m changing this post, and reprinting it. As I’ve changed my buying habits, I’ve also changed my shopping habits. I guess I’m a reformed Sam’s Club shopper. Gone are the days when I would “load up” each month. I now understand that through careful menu planning and price comparison, I get most of my shopping deals at regular grocery stores. That’s not to say that some of their items aren’t expensive, they are. But through lessons learned from great blogs like MyFoodStorageDeals.blogspot.com (read it even if you don’t live in Utah) and LOTS of research, I shop more in the grocery store and my local drug store. I have not been in Sam’s Club since Feb. 11. and I don’t need to go yet. When I shopped that day I loaded up on laundry items for 3 months. I still find some of their items helpful for my food and home storage, and some groceries, but the scary thing about shopping there is you tend to buy impulsively. If you are open to buying store brand canned goods at the grocery store, they can be cheaper if you shop the loss leaders (front page add items stores sell below their cost), than the name brand ones at Sam’s.

These are the food & home storage items that I was still buying there because I haven’t found them cheaper. Yet. My former list is shrinking!!! Maybe I will get to the point where I only have to shop there every quarter!!! 🙂

Toilet Paper 36 ct., $15.53 or $.43
Paper Towels SAS Mega 12 ct. -$1.47
Trash bags, 13 gal -$13.32
Ziploc bags quart, 45 ct.- $2.02
Batteries: AAA $.47, AA $.27, D $1.00, C $.94, 9V $1.92
Dishwasher detergent 11.25 lbs – $9.47
Fabric softener sheets MM 2/200 ct $7.28 or $3.64
Laundry detergent Surf 180 – $15.66
Oxiclean 14 lbs – $16.27
Toilet bowl cleaner – $1.93
Contact lens solution MM 3pk. $8.56 or $2.85
Lotion Curel 20 oz – $6.74
Tortillas 24 ct – $2.26
Strawberries frozen 6 lb – $8.76, $1.46 lb.
Fishies 33 oz – $3.52
Honey Grahams 4pk $7.22 or $1.81
Applesauce cups 36 ct. $8.76 or $1.46 6ct
Fruit snacks MM 72ct – $7.87 or $1.09 10pk
Protein bars – $.99
Quaker granola bars 48 ct. $6.47 or $1.35 10 ct.
Gatorade 20 oz. – $.58
Spices

Items I removed from my list because I can get them cheaper elsewhere:

Rice 50 lb – $23.88 (LDS cannery cheaper since I store in #10 cans)
Eggs 18 ct – $2.02 (grocery store sales are about the same)
Apple juice 96 oz – $2.42 (64 oz. for $1.50 during caselot sale cheaper)
Water 16.9 oz – $.13 ea. (24 pk for $2.99 anywhere is cheaper)
Canned chicken – $2.03 (about the same at WalMart)
Gum Orbit – $.66 (about the same at WalMart in multipack)
Dog food 50 lb – $17.36 (removed this because I am tired of lugging a 50 lb. bag into my cart to save $2.64! I bought 2 x20 lb. bags for $8 ea. at WalMart today. So much easier.)
Honey 6 lb – $13.99, $2.33 lb. (removed this because I decided to buy the smaller 3 lb. for $7.36, or $2.45 lb. at WalMart.)
Flour 50 lb – $14.42 (removed this because I buy the smaller 5 lb. bags in the fall grocery sales and store short-term in a pail with a Gamma lid in my kitchen. I also buy at the LDS cannery and store in #10 cans for long-term. Guess I could put flour into more pails since I go through it faster than most dry foods. Will think on this. Mmmmm. I like #10 cans in boxes of 6 because they stack so nicely and fit on shelves. It is not recommended that you stack pails more than 3 high. Mmmmm. I think I will stick with #10 cans. 🙂