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I shop at my local grocery store, which for me is Publix - and Super Walmart. The Walmart is substantially cheaper on at least half of the items I regularly buy, and also carries a few things that my grocery does not. Strangely, I have found that cheese seems to be higher at Walmart EXCEPT for parmesan which is a lot cheaper! One does have to be aware of what prices are at each store, so not to assume one will always be cheaper. My grocery also runs some nice sales, which they advertise online.
I always get my produce at local farm stands, and sometimes go to a butcher shop for meats, elsewise I do get meat from Publix which is just fine.
It astonishes me that anyone shops for food at superstores.
I wonder if these trends are only regional. This information comes from the Midwest. Has anyone else compared superstore and supermarket pricing in other regions?
I've found the same thing to be true in the Piedmont/Triad area of North Carolina.
Shopped at Walmart for years until one day I just got sick and tired of the crappy service, junk on the shelves, old food, spider legs in the bakery items, and of course the LONG lines.
Since then- I've saved so much money! I didn't understand it at first as I was suckered by the media as well thinking Walmart was lower priced. NOT!
I save on average 25% on my bill by shopping Food Lion and Walgreens instead of Walmart.
Walmart doesn't have normal sized items ...seems like they 'giant' their products to justify their higher prices....consumers THINK they are getting a bargain.
I've not ever been back and hopefully I never will have to!
Every years a consumer group does a identical shopping list at stores and wal-mart always comes out substantially cheaper than other discounters and much cheaper major grocery chains.
I can pay for a taxi or bus to go to our local discount supermarket, or I can walk to Wal-Mart. The convenience of Wal-Mart is that I can go there at 2 a.m.--the middle of MY day--and get my shopping done. We've got a Publix I can walk to, but if I don't wake up until 8 p.m., I feel rushed--because I have never liked it when people came in just before closing time and dawdled in the store.
I've found the same thing to be true in the Piedmont/Triad area of North Carolina.
Shopped at Walmart for years until one day I just got sick and tired of the crappy service, junk on the shelves, old food, spider legs in the bakery items, and of course the LONG lines.
Since then- I've saved so much money! I didn't understand it at first as I was suckered by the media as well thinking Walmart was lower priced. NOT!
I save on average 25% on my bill by shopping Food Lion and Walgreens instead of Walmart.
Walmart doesn't have normal sized items ...seems like they 'giant' their products to justify their higher prices....consumers THINK they are getting a bargain.
I've not ever been back and hopefully I never will have to!
I buy normal sized items at Walmart all the time. In fact, that's ALL I buy at Walmart (though they do have a small section of one shelf that's commercial-sized cans of some food items, presumably for those few folks who want them.
Except for the rest of your description, I would have though you were talking about Sam's, which DOES carry huge sizes and few "normal" sized items (and those in case lots), but the Sams that I've been in have been brightly lit and clean with good service when I needed it.
I like my coop. I can't stand buying crap just because it is cheap. I would rather eat half the amount and eat quality fresh fruits and veggies than the junk some people think they need to buy like hamburger helper or something
You realize Wal-Mart sells general foods too right?
Wal-Mart in my area sells the Gold Medal Bread flour (unbleached, unbromated) for $1.50 less than the Harris Teeter. Just one example. Like already mentioned Wal-Mart also gets its fresh produce from local suppliers just like your co-op yet it's significantly cheaper.
I can pay for a taxi or bus to go to our local discount supermarket, or I can walk to Wal-Mart. The convenience of Wal-Mart is that I can go there at 2 a.m.--the middle of MY day--and get my shopping done. We've got a Publix I can walk to, but if I don't wake up until 8 p.m., I feel rushed--because I have never liked it when people came in just before closing time and dawdled in the store.
Last year, I worked from 7 am - 9 pm most workdays and on Saturday. My major irritant was that while supermarkets are open, most of the departments I use - bakery, deli, etc. - closed around 6 pm.
I live in Norfolk, VA, and Walmart is cheaper on most packaged foods, on a daily basis. Grocery stores are fairly competitive on meat, and produce, Walmart has lower quality, but often better prices.
However, the statement that grocery stores (supermarkets) are cheaper is bunk. The only time I ever shop at a grocery store is when they have deeply discounted sale prices. Other then that, its Walmart.
I like my coop. I can't stand buying crap just because it is cheap. I would rather eat half the amount and eat quality fresh fruits and veggies than the junk some people think they need to buy like hamburger helper or something
I don't really eat vegetables much. Lots of pasta and tomato sauce, bread, cheese, dairy products. Canned olives and mushrooms. And junk food. I can't remember the last time I bought meat--unless you count the bacon I bought two weeks ago and froze, because it was BOGO. I don't like paying over $2 on a single item either.
For my list of staples, the sale prices are my baseline price. For instance, I won't pay more than $0.89 for a dozen eggs because I know that Aldi will sell them at that rate within the month as they rotate their discounts. Because WalMart doesn't have significant sales, their goods never get down to my baseline price, thus I never buy anything there. I might want yogurt, and WalMart might be cheaper per oz. than Kroger at that particular moment, but I know Kroger will discount their yogurt below WalMart's price next week. So I buy whatever is on sale and go without other items until their sale cycle comes up.
I am not surprised that identical shopping lists might end up being cheaper at WalMart, but IMO going in with a list and buying everything on that list regardless of price is a very non-frugal way to shop.
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