Posted on 02/14/2018 9:59:30 AM PST by fulltlt
Hoping to better compete with arch-rival Costco Wholesale (COST, +1.12%) and Amazon.com, Sam’s Club said on Wednesday that it’s now offering free shipping for many items to its premium members as part of a restructuring to its membership programs.
The bulk retailer, a unit of Walmart Inc (WMT, +0.35%), says that the bulk of items it sells online will qualify and that there will be no minimum order size for customers who have a “Plus” membership, which costs $100 annually. Exceptions will include merchandise that is only available for curbside pickup such as fresh and frozen food (groceries account for nearly 60% of company revenue), bulk items, and products sent directly to customers by a third party.
(Excerpt) Read more at fortune.com ...
Too little, too late?
Forbes ranked Costco #3 in the nation for treating their employees well. Well-treated employees create a well-run company that in turn treats their customers well. Return customers are the key to retail success. Great combination that is tough to beat.
Sam’s Club will have to change a LOT of things to compete successfully with Costco.
So they are paying for this free shipping with thousands of immediate, unannounced layoffs. No thanks. F— the Waltons. What are they anyway but a distributor for the Chicoms?
“Sam’s Club will have to change a LOT of things to compete successfully with Costco.”
indeed. how about starting with self-checkout lanes that take cash and cash register display pads that show change due, both of which are 100% lacking at our local Sam’s, and yet are available at every other grocery store in town ...
not to mention a dearth of open staffed checkout lanes, and a bunch of checkout “supervisors” that stand around and gossip with each other and give you dirty looks if you ask them to open another lane or ask them to assist the checkout clerks when the run out of one dollar bills ...
I love Costco. I drive about 7 miles every weekend to get to it. There is a Sam's about a mile or less from my house that I pass on the way to Costco. I still keep my Sam's membership in case I need something in a hurry, but I far prefer Costco, from the product selection to the speed of the checkouts. Even when the lines are long at Costco, the checkout people race through the orders. Sam's takes forever. Because I get a rebate for my purchases at Costco, my Executive membership is practically free, because the rebate amount usually equals the membership fee.
The Sam's near me has recently done a lot of remodeling/shuffling of things to make the store appear more Costco-like. It is an improvement, but they're no Costco.
Don’t they own “Jet.com”. Rather, doesn’t wal-mart own it?
I think that if they do it right they will be fine. Remember, for the general public, Facebook came after Myspace. And here we are.
I quit Sam's and went to Costco when their CEO said she'd discriminate against me.
Now....I've recently learned that she resigned and now works for Starbucks.
I don't go to Sam's or Starbucks!
The last time that happened I wrote up a comment and the comment was rejected based on Amazon Policy that didn't allow profanity etc. There was ZERO profanity. I stated very clearly that the item I had received was used...and that's all that I said... I suspect when I complain again about this happening I'll run into the same rejection.
Allowing scammers into their system will ultimately destroy Amazon if they don't get a grip on it.
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Sam’s has such a limited stock available, and so many zone restrictions, that I gave up on them a long time ago.
Their stores are OK, in most cases.
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Scamazon is a scam!
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Biggest gripe I have with Sam’s stores is that their staff in general are not terribly bright.
I’ve never run into that problem at Costco.
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Sam’s club is awful. I got batteries that exploded, charcoal that wouldn’t light, and the foods are not good.
We had a Sam’s 5 minutes away but dropped them for Costco 25 minutes away.
Cash? Change??
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Sam’s batteries are the same as Costco’s (Junk, from Durajunk)
If you want good batteries you have to buy Union Carbide (Eveready)
Costco’s “generic” batteries are excellent, but they only have AA and AAA.
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You’ll get a total refund of your Sam’s regular membership fee if you ask for it before the next renewal date. Same thing at Costco. The “plus” fees might be pro-rated after the first year.
No costco nearer than 50 miles from Daytona(!). Let my Sam’s lapse; might need to rethink that. I buy Members Mark stuff off amazon maybe once a month. There TP rocks lol. Same with vitamins. Would rather pay the Waltons than bezos any day.
We love Costco. Never had a complaint about how they do business. Never a problem returning items no matter the condition, always get a cheerful response. One time we had a large plasma TV fail just after the warranty expired, it was about $1700 cost to us. We enquired, the employee told us to bring it in, and Costco gave us a full refund despite warranty expiration. We bought a newer better TV and pocketed the difference of several hundred dollars. Employees have also given us tips on merchandise they’re closing out and gave us steep discounts. If it’s the last item and they want the shelf space, they’ll do that. We have three Costco stores within a few miles of us, and all are excellent.
I ordered something from Jet and had it the next day and I live in a rural area.
We have business memberships and use Sams and Costco heavily. They both have their place with our standing weekly business orders at Sams. They’ve just added a fantastic meat counter so you don’t have to buy steaks or fish in bulk. A buddy that has a BBQ restaurant buys his prime grade brisket from them. Their produce is better than Costco. I’m more likely to do personal shopping at Costco. I love Costco dress shirts as my everyday uniform and at <$20 I’m not too concerned if they get damaged. Costcos electronics policy (and returns in general) and warranty is awesome.
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