So, if this weekend you see in the sales papers that one store has shampoo, toothpaste and socks on sale; and another store has 3 things on sale and another store has other things on sale. Do you hit all 3 stores? Do you only get the items you are running low on or do you buy all of them because they are a good price? But, then I still go back to my original post about WalMart. If store A is running Crest toothpaste on sale for $1.50 and Walmart has it for $1.48 there is not much point in stocking up at $1.50 KWIM?
The only thing I really "stock up" on is meat. This past weekend the little store I buy meat at had pork chops $1 a pound. I bought enough to last 2-3 months (don't want pork in the freezer any longer than that). They also had roasts on sale and I bought 3. Now if they run pork chops again during that 2-3 months, I don't buy anymore until just before I run out. I do it this way because meat is perisable and I don't want it in the freezer for too long.
Well, for me it's a bit different, I'm in a major metro area so there are tons of options for groceries. Jewel (grocery store chain) is 5 minutes from my house, Meijers is 10, and Trader Joes is 20. I eat a lot of organic foods so TJ's is a must, even though it's furthest away. Also, TJ's is pretty competitive on prices, believe it or not.
TJ's does not run sales, so I go there and buy whatever it is I need each week. Besides, I buy most of my fresh foods there anyway, couldn't stock up if I wanted to. So that leaves Jewel and Meijers. Each Wednesday I look at their sales ads in the paper and see what's on sale. Some weeks one will have great deals and the other won't, so I'll only shop at one. Some weeks they both do so I go to both. And a few weeks NEITHER will have anything I want/need to buy, so I just go to TJ's. Since they are both so close to the house, even on weeks when I hit all three, it really doesn't add much to my shoping time. I have a list of the deals and just run in and grab those items. Unless its a huge week with tons of deals, I'm usually out in 15 minutes or less at each store.
I haven't priced checked WM recently, but the last time I did, their prices were either the same or slightly higher on a lot of stuff, and only a few cents lower a few things. And that's based on every day prices, not the mega deals I can get at other stores. Even if it was noticably cheaper, I still would not want to shop there as the WM's near me are dirty and crowded, with long lines, few open check outs, and employees that were indifferent at best and surly at worst. It would have to be
signifigantly cheaper for it to be worth my while to go to WM on a regular basis, and it's NOT signifigantly cheaper.
Oh, and I do buy some things in bulk at Costco. Paper products, food staples I use in large quantities (organic olive oil, for example), household items, just a real mix of things. I only go to Costco when they send their coupon packs out and there are a few things I have coupons for. Other than staples, I rarely buy anything there that I don't have a coupon for, so I get savings on top of savings. I go to Costco about 4-5 times a year.
For non-grocery items (household, clothing, etc.), I usually only go out 2-3 times a year. First of all I have to need something, and once I do I watch the sale ads and look out for coupons. Once I find a deal I go out and grab it. So it's not as if I'm spending every weekend out at the mall, looking for bargins. It's just an occasional thing.
For clothing, again I live in a major metro area, I litterally have every nationally known brand available to shop at. I shop name brand (and occasionally even designer) stores clearance racks, and rarely pay full price for anything. I get most of my clothes for much less than departement stores, Target, or WM and get fantastic quality. I also buy classic styles that I can wear for years and stay away from the trendy stuff (which I don't tend to like anyway, so no hardship there). I have $80-$100 Eddie Bauer skirts that I paid $30-$40 for 7-8 years ago that I still wear each winter, they look brand new even though I wear them 3-4 times a month. Conversly, the ONE time I bought clothes at WM, they didn't make it past two wash cycles. They litterally fell apart, even following the washing instructions on the lable exactly. It was a total rip off.
For household items, I stick to Kohl's, Penney's, and Costco. Kohl's has killer sales, right now I've got a 30% off everything coupon sitting on my desk. I don't need anything, but I'll flip through the sale ad, just to make sure. In the past, I've bought many the high end kitchen appliance that way. I've gotten steals on stand mixers, food procesors, pots and pans, partyware, all sorts of things. Penney's lately has been hit and miss, other than bedding and window treatments (great selection!) I can't think of anything I've bought there recently.
WM could fall of the face of the planet and I wouldn't even notice they were gone. The times I've been in there, I have not seen anything that would make me want to shop there. The quality is bad, the stores are dirty, employees are iffy at best, and their prices in my area can be easily matched or beaten elsewhere.
Now, I know that many areas don't have as much competition, or any competition at all. I understand that other WM's are clean and well run. That's fine, but it's just not the reality in my area.
. 
