BJ’s Wholesale Club: Serious Savings Options for the Holidays

(Note to readers: I was included in this event as a media guest and provided with lunch and a gift bag. I was not otherwise compensated and my opinion remains my own.)

With Thanksgiving behind us, it’s time to turn up the volume on sweet shopping deals for holiday gifts and time for round two of all the visitors you’ll be hosting through the new year.

Whether that means you need to stock up on extra cleaning supplies or cookie batter, you can find it all at BJ’s Wholesale Club, and probably end up saving enough money to still throw in a gift or two.

One a media tour of a BJ’s near my home, I couldn’t believe the impressive display of decorations.  And I’m not talking junk.  Lenox was just one of the brand names that surprised me on BJ’s shelves.

Other surprises as I wandered through the store aisles:

•                All the organic options.  I knew from past trips you could find a handful of organic foods, but just in the past few months the list of items has grown. A lot.
•                The appetizer options.  You can be ready for any drop-in guest with the massive assortment of cheeses and charcuterie available.
•                Alcohol.  You can bet you’re going to want to have some wine and champagne on hand for the holidays.  BJ’s has this covered, too.

The store requires a membership to shop, but it’s pretty simple to get a 60-day trial membership to make sure it’ll work for your family.  BJ’s takes coupons, both from outside sources and its own coupons you can find in-store.  Odds are that, combined with the low prices, will be enough to make the membership a good value.

For me, it’s the deli trays.  I needed three huge meat and cheese trays for an event I held this year.  I priced out buying all the food and putting the trays together myself, but it honest to goodness was less expensive to have the BJ’s crew put them together and by them ready to go.  That was quite a relief, so I ordered three and was able to pick them up the next day.  Pretty cool, right?

The bottom line: if you’re ever going to check out a BJ’s Wholesale Club, this is the time of year to do it.

Let me know if you find something that really impresses you on your next shopping trip there.