Costco isn’t usually one of those stores we can run in and out of in a hurry. A Costco run typically includes walking up and down the aisles to see what’s new and what you can’t live without. That’s why we go in to pick up toilet paper and batteries and walk out with a cart full of random items and a long receipt. And new research reveals how much it’s costing shoppers each minute they spend in the store.
A joint Instagram post from business news site Morning Brew and Phil Andrews of @maxinomicsmb, a YouTube channel that researches spending habits, explains that from the second someone steps inside a Costco, they’re spending about $1.75 per minute. Now that may not sound like much, but it adds up fast when you think about how long you usually shop in the warehouse club.
- Andrews notes that the average Costco shopper spends about 37 minutes wandering around the store, which comes out to spending around $64.75.
- He explains that between Costco, Target and Walmart, Costco has the longest “dwell time,” the amount of time shoppers wander around.
- Part of that is because Costco doesn’t offer curbside pickup or delivery, so shoppers have to spend more time in the store.
- The food samples are also located in the back, so they take longer to walk to, giving us more time to get distracted and add more stuff to our carts.
- Andrews also points out, “With no signs to tell you where anything is, it becomes a bit of a treasure hunt.”
But the comments section is full of people sharing that they spend way more than 37 minutes at Costco. One admits that they “spend 37 minutes in each aisle at Costco,” while another says their family “spends at least 1.5 to 2 hours in the store.” And one user shares her tip to spend less there, writing, “This is why I Instacart Costco. The $14 tip is cheaper than the impulse buys I’ll get.”
Source: NY Post