I don't eat out often. But when I do, one thing I really dislike is going to a restaurant and finding out they are busy and having to wait 30-60 minutes (5, maybe 10, minutes is okay; and don't get me started on these electronic waitlists that require your phone number or email - fuck that). So, I appreciate the restaurants / websites that provide some realtime gauge of how busy the business is at the moment. Seems to be somewhat accurate and reliable.

So, my point is that I sure wish Costco would have such an online meter. I try to go when it's not busy / less busy. For example, I never go on weekends. And try to go first thing on weekday mornings. But sometimes even then it's increasingly unpredictable as the population around here continues to grow. And apparently the local Costco has better products that other local Costco's don't carry - so that increases the traffic.

Nothing like dodging idiots in the aisles and then waiting in the check-out line for ages while frozen food in the cart melt away....

If Costco would just get the scan-and-go system like Sam's it would make a massive difference.

I imagine every location is different, but no matter how busy my store is I've never waited more than 5 minutes to check out.

There is a busy gauge on Google Maps. However, I'm sure it's based upon Google users and their location data. But it seems to be pretty accurate. For example, you can see it if you search for Costco in Google Maps, click on the specific location, and scroll down. It's below the hours and store location info...

Some restaurants have this feature in Google Maps as well...

quote:

Originally posted by honestlou:
I imagine every location is different, but no matter how busy my store is I've never waited more than 5 minutes to check out.

Yeah, we're very fortunate that our Costco is stress-free, never crowded when we go, usually between 9am-11am on weekdays. I get gas there, sometimes as late as 11am and have never waited for a pump, at least since Thanksgiving time maybe three years ago. Since they let executive members in early, I have walked up to an empty self checkout station every time, it is like going to a normal grocery store in the mornings. We no longer get shopping carts full of stuff, we tend to go more often, 2-3 times a month.

Good to know. I’ll try it out.

Our local Costco had self scan being installed last time I was there.

Kinda wondering how these online meters work. How does it know how busy it is?

quote:

Originally posted by Georgeair:
If Costco would just get the scan-and-go system like Sam's it would make a massive difference.

Ours has a version of it, if you go to the self checkout, 8 stations, and two employees with scanners, you show them your membership ID, they scan that, and then every product in your cart.

When you get to a register just scan your membership ID and it automatically transfers every item to the register, you can review, then pay with your CC and be done.

Works great.

Sams Club lets you scan your items as you load them in the cart with your phone, just open the app, select Scan and Go, scan the bar code, skip the register, just select checkout and pay right from the app, you take it to the door, they scan your id and count the items and you go...

Sams has it down pat....

Why would a merchant publish information that could deter a potential customer? A boost to good will rarely beats actual in-store patrons.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
Kinda wondering how these online meters work. How does it know how busy it is?

google knows where your phone is.

this is also how google maps does traffic so well.

quote:

Originally posted by honestlou:
I imagine every location is different, but no matter how busy my store is I've never waited more than 5 minutes to check out.

Ours [N Houston] is usually not a long wait for a register, but have waited nearly 30 min for a whole pizza.
And, they stopped taking call ins, just rings forever with no answer. We'd usually call it in about halfway through shopping. Now one of us goes to the register & the other to the pizza.

The ones around here let old folks and premier members in at 9:00. I’m both and went to the Fountain Valley location last Wednesday. I had the place almost to myself for an hour. More than enough time to get what I needed and get out.

quote:

Originally posted by P250UA5:

have waited nearly 30 min for a whole pizza. And, they stopped taking call ins, just rings forever with no answer.

Just the opposite at the local Costco -- they require a telephone order for a whole pizza. Funny thing, when a food court worker informed me of that policy, I asked what the phone number was. I got a blank stare. She knew that you had to call to order a pizza, but she had now idea what number to call.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:

Sams Club lets you scan your items as you load them in the cart with your phone, just open the app, select Scan and Go, scan the bar code, skip the register, just select checkout and pay right from the app, you take it to the door, they scan your id and count the items and you go...

Sams has it down pat....

You can even speed that up at Sams if your cart isn’t too full. Don’t scan anything until you finish putting all your items in the cart and then switch to continuous scan mode and scan them all one right after another. At our Sams I’ve found that when you roll your cart through the detectors just before the exit, the attendant gets all the info they need and more often than not they’ll just wave you through with no manual checking of my cart at all. Only thing that may slow me up is if I’ve scanned any alcohol and have to show my driver’s license.

It is easy enough to shop when not busy. At my store, a certain demographic shops the same day and floods the store. Weekends are swamped. Down to four days. Driving by the parking lot on other errands, can scan for crowd. Wait, Tuesday at 10 am looks reasonable. Done.

I hit Costco when they first open and the spousal unit and I haev a plan of attack. We know exactly what we need, we get those and try to be the first ones at checkout.

I will not wait in a line to eat, I will go somewhere else. Food is just not important enough to me to wait to eat.

We let our Costco membership expire a couple of months ago. We got tired of it being so crowded that you could barely get down an aisle. From opening to closing it looked like an Indian bazaar. I’d think that I just stepped into a third world country every time we went.