Costco Member Privileges and Conditions

rijndael said:
We've been a member since the days of Price Club.

I generally don't like being herded like cattle and treated like a thief when trying to leave, but them's the rules; I enter the building knowing the game.
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I can't relate at all to the "being herded like cattle" statement. I've never been more than 2-3 people back to scan my membership and enter the store. Even if there was a long line, it is my decision as to whether I get in line or not. No one is pushing me into a cue. That's not how cattle herding works. Take it from someone who has worked with cattle.

dkryan said:
For all you Costco members who think it’s a genuine pain to shop there, there’s a very simple solution: drop your membership!!
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Absolutely! This is a simple solution. If you don't like how Costco is run, or any other business for that matter, then don't shop there. It will make for a much more pleasant experience for the rest of us. Serious.

dogememe said:
I love Costco but those "Michelin" (rebadged Trico) wipers are trash. I guess you could take them in and warranty them every few months but that gets tiresome IMO.
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Really? I don't buy them anymore because they don't have a direct fit for my current cars, but I used to use them, and always found them to be a good wiper for the price. Always got a years service out of them, and they met all my expectations.

grasscutter said:
What I used to do is enter through the exit with an empty product box and say I was going to returns.

That was until I ran out of product boxes.
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So not only are you unwilling to follow Costco rules, but you are an outright deceptive liar to them. Have you considered the possibility that not only Costco, but the rest of Costco members, would be better off without members that cheat and lie.
 
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BITOG has its share of contrarians who feel the need to voice their anti-establishment beliefs/behaviors in order to confirm their superiority over the rest of society. Not much different than subscribers of conspiracy theories.

The smell of Dunning-Kruger is pervasive in today's society.
 
BHopkins said:
Absolutely! This is a simple solution. If you don't like how Costco is run, or any other business for that matter, then don't shop there. It will make for a much more pleasant experience for the rest of us.Serious.
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Yep, it's easy to vote with your wallet. I used to go to a really yummy (but not cheap) breakfast restaurant in our area on a very frequent basis. Everything was always great.

But then they hired a new employee who was very rude to one demographic and very nice to another demographic. I observed this behavior consistently. If you looked a certain way, you'd get your order called out quickly and politely. If you looked different, you would not get your order called out and had to ask for it repeatedly and he would be clearly irritated you asked to get your order that you could see had been sitting there for several minutes.

What did I do? Well, I chose to simply stop going there. I didn't leave a bad Yelp review, I didn't contact management, I didn't say anything to him about it... I just chose to go elsewhere. It's that simple. I don't care about it anymore or think about it every day - I don't want jerks to live rent free in my head! Just move on!

As a consumer you have a right to choose where you shop. If you are not happy with something, just go somewhere else. Depending on the issue you have with the company, you might choose to continue going there because it's cheaper or more convenient or has a better product, or you might decide your values or experience are truly not a match and be willing to drive further or pay more elsewhere.

Why try to screw over or circumvent a businesses policy? That's a lot of effort. Just go somewhere else!

Costco is not perfect, who or what is? But overall I have always enjoyed shopping there. Clean stores, reasonable prices, quality products, and overall a good experience. And if you don't have an EV, and need gas, they are an excellent choice for quality fuel at a lower price than the competition. Before Costco came to our city, gas was way more expensive compared to driving 15 minutes to the next city south. As soon as Costco opened and their gas station went live, most gas stations in town immediately had to lower their prices and now it's about in line with the surrounding areas. This is a big deal! Not to me because we went electric but high fuel prices affect everyone, especially normal people that work regular jobs or people that own small service businesses that use gas every day to provide you a product or service. So I genuinely appreciate Costco for that alone, and even if I didn't have a membership, that's a value they bring to the community.
 
K-Man said:
Walmarts have them year-round here in Virginia. I don't see any problem with loss prevention efforts like this to keep from having to raise prices.

BJ's checks receipts too, but I don't have to show my card to enter the store. The entrance and exit are the same set of doors. Was a member of Costco back when it was Price Club and it sounds as though it has gone downhill with control.
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Costco workers are among the friendliest and happiest in retail and beyond. They call me bro, smile, joke and are very helpful.
If flashing a card or your cell when walking in it too much hassle, I don't know what to say.
 
Big box score with memberships, the memberships are how they make the bulk of their profits. I doubt they’ll cancel your membership for something frivolous, especially if you are not even really buying anything. It’s all profit for them.
 
BHopkins said:
So not only are you unwilling to follow Costco rules, but you are an outright deceptive liar to them. Have you considered the possibility that not only Costco, but the rest of Costco members, would be better off without members that cheat and lie.
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You are correct sir. After the girl finished raking me over the coals for using the exit to enter, I told her I should be on death row.
 
I was also a member of Price Club, which merged with Costco in the early 90's. Then I had various Costco memberships, usually a business account. I don't have one currently, as I've become less of a fan of the crowds. If it works for some, more power to them.
 
I see a lot of typical BITOG responses.... Surprise, surprise, yet the irony is you voluntarily sign up and pay for membership there. If you don't like anything about it, you're a hypocrite when you continue to maintain membership. I promise you, most people are rolling their eyes at you and laughing !
 
4WD said:
Sadly - I only see Walmart receipt checkers around Christmas
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Around here, they almost always have someone at the entrance but they're not consistent when it comes to checking receipts (at Walmart). I do walk past them, even when they want me to stop, and no one has ever said a thing. My favorite was in Myrtle Beach on a Saturday when all of us vacationers arrive and go to the grocery. There was a line of 30 carts having their receipts checked. We walked past and went on our way. You could hear people in line saying "they're skipping the line" like it was scandalous !! 😂😂😂
grasscutter said:
What I used to do is enter through the exit with an empty product box and say I was going to returns.

That was until I ran out of product boxes.
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That is sad. Please, just cancel your membership and avoid all of this !
 
grasscutter said:
Member Privileges and Conditions

In that membership policy statement, I see nothing that states a member MUST enter the store using the entrance.

Do you think they would actually go so far as to revoke a person's membership because the member peacefully and quietly prefers to enter the store through the exit? Yes I understand entering the store through the exit may impede the flow of traffic exiting the store, but keep in mind that said member does not enter the store with a cart. The member obtains the cart AFTER the member has entered the store. There's usually plenty of vacant carts inside the store that are unattended.

I really don't care if they pull my membership. I just think it would be ridiculous reason to do so.

The only thing I buy there mostly is frozen bags of ice and vitamin supplements.
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grasscutter said:
What I used to do is enter through the exit with an empty product box and say I was going to returns.

That was until I ran out of product boxes.
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grasscutter said:
You are correct sir. After the girl finished raking me over the coals for using the exit to enter, I told her I should be on death row.
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Now the picture is starting to come together. Would it be accurate to say that you weren't raked "over the coals" simply for entering through the exit, but by using deceptive tactics, presenting yourself as going to the service counter, but with no genuine intent to do so?

Have you thought through the potential consequences of your little game of deception? Coming into a retail store with an empty box, to deceive the store employees into believing it is a return, seems to be asking for unwanted attention from the store's loss prevention team. They may not only revoke your membership, but the police may also be called, to permanently trespass you from all Costco properties.
 
02SE said:
I was also a member of Price Club, which merged with Costco in the early 90's. Then I had various Costco memberships, usually a business account. I don't have one currently, as I've become less of a fan of the crowds. If it works for some, more power to them.
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Yep. I really HATE crowds.

Publix at 7 AM is a breeze and lots of BOGO free deals.

It takes me 15 minutes to shop.
 
JeffKeryk said:
What is the big deal about entering through the huge rollup door marked "Enter"?
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Jeff....you have been on this forum enough to know what' s going on here. Apparently going through the entrance a Costco ranks right up there with buying a car from a dealer. Or- the manual says run this weight oil but I need to run another weight oil.. Just because.
 
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grasscutter said:
Member Privileges and Conditions

In that membership policy statement, I see nothing that states a member MUST enter the store using the entrance.

Do you think they would actually go so far as to revoke a person's membership because the member peacefully and quietly prefers to enter the store through the exit? Yes I understand entering the store through the exit may impede the flow of traffic exiting the store, but keep in mind that said member does not enter the store with a cart. The member obtains the cart AFTER the member has entered the store. There's usually plenty of vacant carts inside the store that are unattended.

I really don't care if they pull my membership. I just think it would be ridiculous reason to do so.

The only thing I buy there mostly is frozen bags of ice and vitamin supplements.
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Last year they really started to pay attention to whether non-members were shopping there. As a result they installed a scanner at the entrance to verify ID.
 
How are the folks with no memberships checking out? The first thing our checkout folks do is scan your badge, they have to before they can scan your items.
 
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