Posted on 01/16/2017 5:17:34 AM PST by Iron Munro
We shop Save-A-Lot, Dollar General, Big Lots and others
(thrift stores). Fang’s sister sticks her nose in the air
at places like that; but she also pays through the nose the
hard-earned dollars her henpecked husband earns. (I’d feel
sorry for him; but he’s a big boy & didn’t have to tolerate
her pettiness. It’s ingrained in her as she was the youngest
child & the only girl in their family.) One of those you’d
like to buy for what they’re worth and sell for what they
THINK they’re worth.
At Woodmans one can get Kringles.
This is what would happen to the health care industry if we allowed free enterprise and competition.
I passed a kidney stone recently. Not the most pleasant experience, but I could have done it on my own. In the end, my wife convinced me to go to the doctor and my doctor advised me to go to the local emergency room. They were very pleasant, but I passed the stone in the urine sample I gave them about 10 minutes after I arrived.
In the end, the cost was $5000 for two hours of very good attention at a very well equipped hospital. My insurance paid for all but about 500. I could afford it, but this is what is bankrupting us. What I really was someone to tell me to take Tylenol and drink lots of water beforehand, and to prescribe an antibiotic afterwards,
If we designed a health care system where consumers kept their money and got to make their own choices, health care providers would compete for their dollars and we would have a health care system that was as efficient and competitive advantage our supermarkets.
Based on their preferences and resources, some people would choose Whole Foods/GiantEagle, some would choose Publix/Kroger, and some would choose Save-a-Lot/Aldi. No one would starve, and we could even have a modest Food Stamp like program for the few who truly needed it.
The real problem with the health care system is they take the dollars away from the patient so early in the process, so we are not regarded as customers. The real customer is the insurance company or the government, so it’s no wonder that there is more emphasis on ever more complex rules than their is on serving the patient.
This is what would happen to the health care industry if we allowed free enterprise and competition.
I passed a kidney stone recently. Not the most pleasant experience, but I could have done it on my own. In the end, my wife convinced me to go to the doctor and my doctor advised me to go to the local emergency room. They were very pleasant, but I passed the stone in the urine sample I gave them about 10 minutes after I arrived.
In the end, the cost was $5000 for two hours of very good attention at a very well equipped hospital. My insurance paid for all but about 500. I could afford it, but this is what is bankrupting us. What I really was someone to tell me to take Tylenol and drink lots of water beforehand, and to prescribe an antibiotic afterwards,
If we designed a health care system where consumers kept their money and got to make their own choices, health care providers would compete for their dollars and we would have a health care system that was as efficient and competitive advantage our supermarkets.
Based on their preferences and resources, some people would choose Whole Foods/GiantEagle, some would choose Publix/Kroger, and some would choose Save-a-Lot/Aldi. No one would starve, and we could even have a modest Food Stamp like program for the few who truly needed it.
The real problem with the health care system is they take the dollars away from the patient so early in the process, so we are not regarded as customers. The real customer is the insurance company or the government, so it’s no wonder that there is more emphasis on ever more complex rules than their is on serving the patient.
Exactly what the people shopping there don't need.
We go to Aldi’s from time to time, and we always get our quarter back. There are some things there that you can’t find at other places.
Not necessarily.
They do have a good assortment of canned goods at good prices but also carry more basic staples and fresh fruits and veggies than you would think from those pictures.
They usually are well stocked with things like sugar, spices, rice, beans, fruits, veggies, etc. and have some of the lowest prices around.
They also have very good weekend sales specials.
I went into a Save-A-Lot to buy bananas and was looking at the beef. I saw steaks at a really good price and it was the first time I ever saw meat from Mexico. I didn’t buy any.
This writer was apparently picked up in a bargain store at a deep, deep discount because of defective writing skills.
I live in a small town. We have a Kroger and a WalMart superstore, and a Save-A-Lot.
I do a fair amount of shopping at the Save-A-Lot. The regional brands of canned veggies are high quality. Ditto for the regional brands of frozen veggies. Meat section is small, beef is only OK. Chicken is chicken. But the pork is not only a better price, it is far superior in quality to that of Kroger and WM. Ditto for ribs.
I do the majority of shopping at Kroger, our store is OK, but not at all impressive. WalMart only for items that Kroger doesn’t carry.
But since our town is small & nothing is more that 5-10 minutes away, the Save-A-Lot is very convenient for the items that I do want there. It fills a particular market niche well. Ours is very much a local store. One of the ladies in management I know has been there 20 years.
I'll bet you've seen it before elsewhere, but never noticed.
I agree. Our Save A Lot has great prices on meats and is very clean. You can get awesome Delmonico steaks for $6.99/lb and as low as $3.99 on sale. Never had a bad one. We got a 5lb bag of white potatoes for $1.88. There are some bad produce items at times and selections are limited compared to other stores. Overall, we have switched from Tops and Wegman’s to mostly Save A Lot.
Well I’m glad to hear it. I’m not a penny pincher but I do believe in value and what my wife and I like to do is cook up a big 20-pound turkey on a Sunday afternoon (like we are doing today). Potatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, turnips, celery and other vegetables will go into the leftover carcass to make soup that will get us through most of the upcoming week. I reckon our daily cost for dinner will be around $10 a day when it’s all averaged out. I never get tired of turkey and homemade turkey soup in the wintertime.
Agreed, but I can't do my weekly grocery shopping at either, because the stock is continuously changing.
It's a nice (usually fun - I always find something cheap and tasty there that I shouldn't eat) supplement. But not a replacement.
FWIW, the Save-a-Lot in my area isn't very good at all. Dirty, understocked. Would be a last choice.
Based on where I see them choosing to locate here in the Tulsa area, I tend to agree. There is a recently announced plan to open in North Tulsa, a "food desert" that the local bleeding hearts regularly bemoan. The location is one where other name stores have previously occupied and left because their margin could not be maintained. It never comes out publicly but I'm sure shrinkage is a significant issue. However, I do wish them success in their ventures as access to food is a basic human desire that has history of business success, i.e A&P, etc.
Actually save a lot is in poorer communities because more affluent shun it’s business model. Store is mostly house brands and you must bag your own groceries and pay for the bags if you want them separate. Not deli or Bakery etc there model is for those who are looking to save on their food costs and they do indeed offer far cheaper food bill.
I have shopped at save a lot for years, never had an issue but I know most in my income bracket, especially wives would be mortified at the very prospect of shopping there even though it is in the same shopping plaza as the supermarket they shop at.
I’d love to have a good grocery store nearby. Oklahoma, in a lot of areas, is a food desert. In the south we had Publix, and Kroger, and Winn Dixie, and Food Lion, Harris-Teeter, etc. Lots of good grocery stores, within a reasonable distance. Here in Oklahoma, we are pretty much stuck with Reasors, which is our state, almost monopoly, grocery store, and it is expensive. In some areas, you might be lucky to have another choice. If you live in a bigger city, you could be lucky enough to have a Whole Foods, or a Sprouts, Sams, etc. There is an Aldi about 20 miles away from me, but I rarely drive there. Costco and Sams are too far for me to drive. I grow a garden, and can and freeze, so I’m lucky. I don’t buy a lot of meat anymore because even here in cattle country, it is ridiculously high. I usually buy the family packs of boneless chicken breast from Walmart because it is only $1.99/lb, and I divide it up and freeze small portions. Occasionally, I find a good sale on something, and I stock up and put it in the deep freeze. I feel for people who don’t have transportation to get to the store, or a way to grow their own food.
Publix has those water rolls, great for small burgers, my KellyGold butter, fancy produce that I love, and Progresso lentil/andouille soup which is surpringly good for a canned soup. Yet I don't shop there often because the final bill so high. I have shopped Aldi but it is a lot of trouble and not much fun. Walmart I hate because it is tiring and the clientele makes me uneasy---Sam's is better if I'm going to tire myself out.
Most of you probably pay either reduced sales tax or no sales tax on your groceries, but here in Oklahoma, we pay the full sales tax on every food item that we buy. For me, in my city/county I pay 9.5% on ALL my groceries. So, that adds significantly to our grocery bills.
For most items, but for meat, Save-A-Lot blows Aldi away on variety, quality and price. They have an in store butcher and the meat is of good quality.
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