Supermarkets discussion

[BuhSnarf]

Then you provide a link to the most expensive! Gold star membership requires a considerable spend. Individual Membership (NOT Business) has been available at my local store since it opened. It costs more than Business per annum, but the ID required is a driving licence or other acceptable photo ID. The other option is Digital Membership, open to all over 18 but no access to stores or petrol stations (yet). Buy and join on their website.

Individual membership (Goldstar) is not open to all.

You can't get a cheaper membership without having a business.

There isn't an "individual" level anymore afaik, that's what Gold Star is?

 

[Buzby]

Individual membership (Goldstar) is not open to all.

I didn’t say it was - the link that was provided supposedly showing individuals couldn’t join was erroneous. I’ve been a Business member for 18 years, and Individual for 3 whereupon it became too expensive, even considering the £1.50 Hot Dod & Soda.

 

[skyhigh]

I don't think Costco are particularly fussy with their eligibility criteria. I know plenty of rail staff who have membership and that doesn't qualify according to the list.

 

[jon0844]

I don't think Costco are particularly fussy with their eligibility criteria. I know plenty of rail staff who have membership and that doesn't qualify according to the list.

Rail staff do qualify.

 

[BuhSnarf]

The link was correct? It was a link to the page for individual membership page (Gold Star) which showed who is / isn't eligible.

As for whether they're fussy or not, I guess it depends on the warehouse/person. When I first joined (I work in financial services) I had to provide a copy of my work ID.

 

[bspahh]

Costco isn't a supermarket. Its a wholesaler. If they wanted to, they could set up on land where they have planning permission to run a shop that is open to the public.

 

[AM9]

I have never worked in any of the qualifying jobs, (such as medical, education, banking, civil service, or local government), but somebody at where I did work, - probably the sports and social club, clearly persuaded Costco that our employees having membership was good for Costco's business, (which is the only bottom line for a wholesaler).

 

[Buzby]

The link was correct? It was a link to the page for individual membership page (Gold Star) which showed who is / isn't eligible.

Gold Star is NOT ‘Individual’ membership. It is an Executive level that (a) costs more per annum and (b) when I joined it allowed you to pay by American Express instead of (originally) debit cards. The bottom line is if you want to pay them for Individual membership they’ll let practically anyone in. Are you a member?

 

[Darandio]

Gold Star is NOT ‘Individual’ membership.

Yet their website says it is.

 

[styles]

Interesting article on the BBC website this evening:

Aldi boss says some of rivals' loyalty discounts 'dupe' customers

Aldi is the only major supermarket chain that doesn't operate a loyalty scheme, which are hugely popular and used by millions of shoppers.

www.bbc.co.uk

Is Aldi lashing out at other supermarkets because they are losing their 'low price' USP??

Given that last month they were [still] the cheapest supermarket according to Which?, I'm going to say no:

Cheapest supermarkets 2026 - Which?

Discover the UK's cheapest and most expensive supermarkets, based on Which? analysis of thousands of grocery prices

www.which.co.uk

August 2026

Aldi was the cheapest supermarket in our analysis this month, with a shop costing £159.36 on average. It was once again followed by Lidl, with an average shop costing £161.10.

Asda came third, with a shop costing £185.21 across the month. Sainsbury's Nectar card prices beat Tesco's Clubcard offerings this month, with a shop costing £185.55 – without a Nectar card, it would cost you £195.33.

Tesco's Clubcard shop cost an average of £189.45, while the same shop without a Clubcard would cost you £192.97.

Morrisons has an average price of £194.11 across the month, with Ocado coming in at £207.62.

Waitrose was once again the most expensive shop over the month, at £223.75.

As the BBC article points out, a big shop at Aldi last month actually cost less than it did the same time last year.

Aldi have grown so much that they're not far off meeting Asda's market share now.

 

[jon81uk]

Then you provide a link to the most expensive! Gold star membership requires a considerable spend. Individual Membership (NOT Business) has been available at my local store since it opened. It costs more than Business per annum, but the ID required is a driving licence or other acceptable photo ID. The other option is Digital Membership, open to all over 18 but no access to stores or petrol stations (yet). Buy and join on their website.

Gold Star is individual membership, it is the standard membership for individuals. There is Executive membership which is more expensive but gives cashback. No membership has a minimum spend requirement.

You need to prove you are a member of an eligible workplace or own a business to join Costco. It is not possible to join with just a driving license.

 

[lookapigeon]

Gold Star is NOT ‘Individual’ membership. It is an Executive level that (a) costs more per annum and (b) when I joined it allowed you to pay by American Express instead of (originally) debit cards. The bottom line is if you want to pay them for Individual membership they’ll let practically anyone in. Are you a member?

I there's a bit of confusion here as Costco have played around with the names of the membership levels, and they always try and get you to trade up.

The gold star is the rebranded individual membership, which you can get subject to the criteria on the website on profession, signing up in the warehouse with relevant proof etc. I know this because I have a card with this level, and also got stuff advising it was being rebranded, so individual = gold star.

The executive membership is an additional level on top which enables you to get rewards back, but it only seems worth it if you purchase A LOT from costco, and I mean lots! The fee is also more compared to the gold star membership.

The pre-approved membership list is pretty much suppliers or companies that have business dealings with costco.

 

[Buzby]

Yet their website says it is.

It is used by individuals but is a premium level for those that need to be recognised. Individual membership is available for the hoi polloi.

 

[jon81uk]

It is used by individuals but is a premium level for those that need to be recognised. Individual membership is available for the hoi polloi.

There is no longer any such thing as "individual membership".
The only options are gold star or business.
Then within that you can have regular gold star or executive gold star, or regular business or executive business.
See https://www.costco.co.uk/membership

 

[BuhSnarf]

It is used by individuals but is a premium level for those that need to be recognised. Individual membership is available for the hoi polloi.

Gold Star is NOT ‘Individual’ membership. It is an Executive level that (a) costs more per annum and (b) when I joined it allowed you to pay by American Express instead of (originally) debit cards. The bottom line is if you want to pay them for Individual membership they’ll let practically anyone in. Are you a member?

Gold Star IS what used to be known as individual membership (it's what was £30 and is now £35 a year option) and yes I am a member.

Costco have the following membership tiers:

For individuals:

Gold Star Membership - £35 ex VAT
Executive Gold Star Membership - £70 ex VAT

For both of these you need to be within the right sectors to gain membership, they don't let "practically anyone" in. You have to have proof that you're in one of the listed professions - which you can see at this link: https://www.costco.co.uk/membership-goldstar-questions

For businesses:

Business Membership - £25 ex VAT
Executive Business Membership - £65 ex VAT

For both of these you need to have a business.

I believe these changes happebned in 2024. You can see what they were pre-changes by going to the internet archive - https://web.archive.org/web/20120214213754/http://www.costco.co.uk/membership/ - for example. I believe you're confusing Executive and Goldstar possibly as Executive? Executive you get cashback.

Incidentally my membership card still says "INDIVIDUAL MEMBER" as that is what it was when I opened it, but on my digital card in the Costco app it says Goldstar.

 

[styles]

I don't think Costco are particularly fussy with their eligibility criteria. I know plenty of rail staff who have membership and that doesn't qualify according to the list.

Rail staff do qualify.

But no they are not fussy about membership eligibility. There's a couple of reasons membership is restricted but fundamentally Costco want as wide a membership criteria as possible. You used to be able to sign up if you had AA/RAC/National Trust membership, and of course anyone can setup a limited company with Companies House to gain membership (though company registration fees have rocketed from £15 to £100 in the space of a few years. You can probably get it cheaper through the likes of Tide or FreeAgent or whatever). It being restricted just adds to the impression that it's an exclusive club with amazing deals when in reality almost anybody can join and a lot of what they sell isn't cheaper than the budget supermarkets. There are some great deals to be had in Costco, but many fall into the trap of assuming it's all cheaper whereas if you break it down per unit, many things are cheaper in Asda, let alone Aldi or Lidl.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Rail staff do qualify.

But no they are not fussy about membership eligibility. There's a couple of reasons membership is restricted but fundamentally Costco want as wide a membership criteria as possible. You used to be able to sign up if you had AA/RAC/National Trust membership, and of course anyone can setup a limited company with Companies House to gain membership (though company registration fees have rocketed from £15 to £100 in the space of a few years. You can probably get it cheaper through the likes of Tide or FreeAgent or whatever). It being restricted just adds to the impression that it's an exclusive club with amazing deals when in reality almost anybody can join and a lot of what they sell isn't cheaper than the budget supermarkets. There are some great deals to be had in Costco, but many fall into the trap of assuming it's all cheaper whereas if you break it down per unit, many things are cheaper in Asda, let alone Aldi or Lidl.

Yes, you have to really be careful with what you get, but there's some great deals on somethings and their Kirkland Signature stuff is pretty decent.

They also, nearly always have Sketchers for £30 which are my go to trainer. And of course their food court is a rather cheap date

 

[styles]

Yes, you have to really be careful with what you get, but there's some great deals on somethings and their Kirkland Signature stuff is pretty decent.

They also, nearly always have Sketchers for £30 which are my go to trainer. And of course their food court is a rather cheap date

Yeah I find their fresh meat, fish, bakery is great value for money, striking the right balance between quality, price, and service.

Non-perishable foodstuffs like rice and pasta, not so much.

Often good for branded products, especially washing detergents, bog rolls, etc; and of course petrol/diesel.

I tend to go with a specific purpose rather than a general weekly shop. Last time was booze for an event, and the time before that was because no local butchers had a center cut tenderloin for the beef wellington I was making at Christmas.

 

[SuspectUsual]

A major issue for a lot of supermarkets nowadays is that because of the inexorable rise in the use of promotions as a marketing tool, an increasing proportion of what they sell are things where the customer didn't specifically go to the shop for that product, rather they went for some stuff.

For example I like New Zealand sauvignon blanc; I have a preferred make, but they're pretty much all decent enough, so I go for some NZ sauvignon blanc rather than that specific brand. At least one of them will be on promotion, and that'll very nearly always be the one I buy. So forecasting demand is difficult because loads of demand is transferrable, which in turn makes negotiating buying prices more complicated because it's hard to be certain of even rough volumes.

And that's a simple example where I'm moving my demand within a sub-category of maybe 6 or 8 articles. Try extrapolating that to the customer who goes to buy some white wine.

Similarly, when we go shopping we'll have a list of stuff we need to get (most of which as per the above we won't know which variant we're going to buy), plus a count of the number of meals we need to buy for, and the protein part will very largely be driven by what's on special

How many products am I absolutely brand loyal to? I think only three - Marmite, Guinness and Heinz salad cream. In my parents' day that would have been unthinkable

 

[BuhSnarf]

Not to tempt you away from being loyal, but Aldi's Marmite is just as nice

 

[styles]

Not to tempt you away from being loyal, but Aldi's Marmite is just as nice

One of only three foods I've found which I don't like

 

[SuspectUsual]

One of only three foods I've found which I don't like

Marmite is the nectar of the gods. And in my college and early days of working period it was my main source of vitamins

 

[Peter Sarf]

Rail staff do qualify.

But no they are not fussy about membership eligibility. There's a couple of reasons membership is restricted but fundamentally Costco want as wide a membership criteria as possible. You used to be able to sign up if you had AA/RAC/National Trust membership, and of course anyone can setup a limited company with Companies House to gain membership (though company registration fees have rocketed from £15 to £100 in the space of a few years. You can probably get it cheaper through the likes of Tide or FreeAgent or whatever). It being restricted just adds to the impression that it's an exclusive club with amazing deals when in reality almost anybody can join and a lot of what they sell isn't cheaper than the budget supermarkets. There are some great deals to be had in Costco, but many fall into the trap of assuming it's all cheaper whereas if you break it down per unit, many things are cheaper in Asda, let alone Aldi or Lidl.

This is how I see it. Make it appear exclusive enough and the punters will come.

On prices I find most things are not cheap - certainly on things that I know the price of.
I found that with Makro and Bookers as well in the past.

The missus falls for it all which is why we have membership. I cannot believe she has any special eligibility but, when I look at how much she pays for membership, I think it is not worth it. But then I am just the grunt (with the car, oh and the money).

I find that, because the prices are without VAT they can appear cheaper when they are really not so cheap.

The missus swears by the bottled water - beyond me as I prefer to get my water fresh from the tap.

My missus is the type that clings on to known brands. Whereas I am always on the lookout for an equivalent that is cheaper, to the point I will plump for a cheaper version UNLESS I am sure it is inferior.

Unless prepared to shop around (which is time consuming) then a shopper is going to plump for buying everything from the one place.
Because Costco has a huge range it is very easy to stick to the one place.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Marmite is the nectar of the gods. And in my college and early days of working period it was my main source of vitamins

You cannot beat seeded bread toasted, spread with salted butter and topped with Marmite (or own bread alternative ) and grated Red Fox cheese.

 

[styles]

This is how I see it. Make it appear exclusive enough and the punters will come.

On prices I find most things are not cheap - certainly on things that I know the price of.
I found that with Makro and Bookers as well in the past.

Costco is at least cheaper than Makro and Booker in my experience!

The missus falls for it all which is why we have membership. I cannot believe she has any special eligibility but, when I look at how much she pays for membership, I think it is not worth it. But then I am just the grunt (with the car, oh and the money).

On the car front, if you happen to live very close to a Costco, or pass one on a regular commute/journey, the membership can pay for itself in petrol/diesel savings. Auto Shenanigans did a video a while back demonstrating that it's usually not worthwhile driving further just to get to a cheaper petrol station though.

I find that, because the prices are without VAT they can appear cheaper when they are really not so cheap.

Yes, and I think combined with the quantity the items are sold in. You see a 15Kg bag of rice for £x and because you're not used to buying things in that quantity you think that's a great deal, only 10p a serving. But then it you compare the unit price to just buying the rice from Asda, Costco works out more expensive, and of course you need more cash up front to bulk buy, and then need the place to store it all.

The missus swears by the bottled water - beyond me as I prefer to get my water fresh from the tap.

I'm a tap water guy also and don't get the whole bottled water thing. Costco bottled water is often stacked at the entrance and is very cheap, potentially even a loss-leader. I swear that's how a lot of people are duped into shopping there - they find one or two products which are significantly cheaper there and think the whole shop must be a trove of bargains.

My missus is the type that clings on to known brands. Whereas I am always on the lookout for an equivalent that is cheaper, to the point I will plump for a cheaper version UNLESS I am sure it is inferior.

Yeah, my mother in law is like this. During COVID, my partner and I were doing the food shop, and we switched from Tesco to Aldi. We swapped her Bisto granuals (not sold in Aldi) with Aldi own brand, and she never knew. Same also with Coco Pops, butter, and a couple of other bits and she never clicked, but benefitted from the savings. There are some things where branded vs non-branded is a significant difference though. Mayo for example, I find it really obvious when it's not Hellman's. So we're a bit of a mix of some brand loyalty with a lot of unbranded preference.

Unless prepared to shop around (which is time consuming) then a shopper is going to plump for buying everything from the one place.
Because Costco has a huge range it is very easy to stick to the one place.

Yeah. I remember there used to be a website which let you add all your shopping and it would show you the cheapest supermarkets to buy each product. The problem is, nobody wants to go to Asda for half a dozen things, then Tesco for another half dozen, then Aldi for the bulk of the shop, etc. I'm no different. Recently I needed jam sugar, bread flour, and filo pastry, which I know my nearest Aldi don't sell, so I did the whole shop at Asda instead, because I value my time more than the cost difference in the total food shop.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Costco bottled water is often stacked at the entrance and is very cheap, potentially even a loss-leader. I swear that's how a lot of people are duped into shopping there - they find one or two products which are significantly cheaper there and think the whole shop must be a trove of bargains.

Bulky items sold at or below cost as key promo lines were the bane of my life when I ran logistics for Makro. Partly because of the sheer volume of the stuff making getting the Makro Mail stock into stores on time difficult, and partly because when the Germans (Metro AG) owned Makro they main KPI they used for my effectiveness was logistics cost as a proportion of selling price. Guess what happened to that when they were doing buy one get one free bog roll for a fortnight?!?

 

[BuhSnarf]

Yeah. I remember there used to be a website which let you add all your shopping and it would show you the cheapest supermarkets to buy each product. The problem is, nobody wants to go to Asda for half a dozen things, then Tesco for another half dozen, then Aldi for the bulk of the shop, etc. I'm no different. Recently I needed jam sugar, bread flour, and filo pastry, which I know my nearest Aldi don't sell, so I did the whole shop at Asda instead, because I value my time more than the cost difference in the total food shop.

I think this website must have been made for my other half.

She loves nothing better than visiting supermarkets at least 5-10 times a week because "I can't get the things I want in the same place and Aldi is 20p cheaper than Lidl this week on X." She says she finds walking round the aisles quite relaxing which is an alien concept to me. I did protest at one point early on in the relationship that she was wasting her time and we didn't need to save 20p here and there, but then she mentioned that I find travelling on buses fun so I learnt to end the argument there!

 

[Merle Haggard]

C/snip

I'm a tap water guy also and don't get the whole bottled water thing. Costco bottled water is often stacked at the entrance and is very cheap, potentially even a loss-leader. I swear that's how a lot of people are duped into shopping there - they find one or two products which are significantly cheaper there and think the whole shop must be a trove of bargains.
/snip

my bold.

That certainly seemed to be the case with B&M, where branded food was very cheap and there was also a lot of over-priced tat.

They seem to have dropped the idea - perhaps there were too many people like me who just bought the loss-leading branded stuff and nothing else.

 

[Ediswan]

I note this (my emphasis):
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmwyzye21463o

The Scottish government has introduced rules meaning some products that are high in fat, sugar and salt can no longer be put in prime end-of-aisle slots, or feature as part of multi-buy offers in store or online.

Personally, I find end-of-aisle the least conspicuous place to put things.

 

[philthetube]

Marmite, ugh, replace with bovril, amazing.