One thing that often shocks my friends and family is when I tell them that I do most of my shopping at Wegmans. Of course, I am well-known for always being able to find the best deals and without fail, the reaction is usually "Wait - YOU shop at Wegmans? They are so much more expensive than other stores!".
I can see why people might think that...but there is one problem: they are wrong!
When you think of Wegmans - what do you usually think? A fabulous sushi bar, $20 pastries that are absolutely gorgeous, and what seems like miles of prepared foods. Walk to the area behind the produce section (at least in my store) and there is a huge cheese selection stocked with some pretty expensive cheeses (as well as reasonably priced cheeses), dips & spreads as well as a Olive Bar that is just amazing!
And of course, there is my personal favorite - the soup bar (especially when they have the Roasted Corn & Shrimp Chowder available. My mission this winter is to come up with a copycat recipe of that!)
"See!", they say. "Wegmans really IS more expensive!"
But here is the deal. They aren't more expensive - they just have more choices! Tempting, delicious choices that can cause someone without any willpower to overspend! But once you head to the "regular" groceries - they are really LESS expensive than other stores.
Don't believe me? Here's why:
Consistent Low Prices/Seasonal Family Favorites - Wegmans takes some of the most popular and common products and just has them "on sale" (through their CLP program) every single day. My best example? Boneless skinless chicken breasts! It has been priced at $1.99/lb (for the value pack) at Wegmans for years (remember when I said that I never buy chicken at Costco? The reason is Wegmans)! The other grocery stores may put it on sale at that price about every 6 - 8 weeks, but I never have to wait for a sale and stock up and take up freezer space. I just know that every week when I go shopping, that will be the price (sure makes meal planning easy!). Some of my other favorite items on the CLP list are peanut butter, 80% ground beef, pasta sauce, seasonal fresh vegetables and frozen veggies.
Wegmans usually mimics other local grocery store coupon policies - Wegmans does not have a consistent company-wide coupon policy when it comes to doubling coupons because they tend to follow the lead of other area stores. In my area, most of the stores offer "full doubles" (so a $0.75 coupon is worth $1.50) and so that is what Wegmans does. In other areas, where the coupon policies aren't as generous, Wegmans (seems to) simply do what the other stores are doing. You aren't going to lose any "coupon value" at Wegmans! Oh - and don't forget to check the full Wegmans coupon matchups that I post each week!
Organic Produce Prices - I have consistently found that the organic produce prices at Wegmans are cheaper than other grocery stores. As a matter of fact, their organic produce prices are often the same as the non-organic version at one of my local stores. I know that I listed organic produce as something you should buy at Costco (and I still stand buy that, for the items that you use enough of to not waste the giant-size packages at Costco), but for the things that you use less frequently, they have great prices!
Organic Foods - once again - they DO have some very expensive items in the organic foods section ($5 for a loaf of Gluten Free bread? Ugh!). But it isn't that they are more expensive - there are just more choices! If you compare the same brand/size, you will often find that Wegmans prices are lower (except the Horizon version of "Teddy Grahams". For some reason, they are about $1 more at Wegmans)
Wegmans brand products - one thing that makes me nuts (and I have heard plenty of other people complaining) is that a certain chain of stores in my area is slowly phasing out many of the brand names and bringing in their own store-brand products. That would be fine if the products were of similar quality - but they aren't. Not so at Wegmans! I can't tell you how many products we have switched over to using Wegmans brand - and the cost is often less than I can get for a name brand, even WITH a doubled coupon. (although - to be honest, my children are NOT fans of the Wegmans-brand cereals or their grape jelly)
So these are just a few reasons why I firmly believe that Wegmans is NOT more expensive and in fact, is LESS expensive than other stores.
Of course, there are still a few exceptions:
- Wegmans prices on name-brand cereals are not usually as good as other stores (although if you have coupons, they are still better than Costco cereal prices)
- Really good deals on soda are not as frequent as they are at other local grocery chains (and even the drug store deals)
- While less expensive, their name-brand toilet paper is still not as good as my beloved Charmin Extra Soft. My 45-year old butt has no intention of compromising when it comes to toilet paper!
- Deals on cookies, chips, snack crackers are usually better with a sale at other areas stores.
- Wegmans is genius when they get you to pick up the packages of pre-cut vegetables and have you paying 3 times what you should be paying. See that package of peppers and onions already cut for you and ready for Fajita night? It's only $5! What a time saver! And it's right next to the stand where the nice old lady gave you a sample of their Fajita recipe from the Menu magazine! Problem is - you could have purchased enough onions and peppers for 3 Fajita nights for the price you will pay for that package of precut veggies!
So this post turned out to be way longer than I expected it to be, but I wanted to give you complete information on why Wegmans really IS a less expensive alternative to most local grocery stores!
You just need to make it past the $20 pastries, the sushi bar and the cheese bar in order to see the savings!
So do you shop at Wegmans and believe that you save by doing so? I would love to hear your comments!
Note: this is NOT a sponsored post. I was not asked to write this post by Wegmans or any agent of Wegmans. I just really stinkin' love the store and now I can direct people to a post when they ask me how I can shop at that "more expensive Wegmans"!
Elizabeth Fine
I love that wrote this article. This is exactly how I shop at Wegmans. It is my favorite store- it makes you feel like you are shopping in a luxury grocery store with prices being even lower than the competitors. They take all my coupons and even send store coupons in the mail. I also like knowing that they treat their employees well with pay and benefits. I am a true wegmans loyalist!!!!
Rebecca Orr
My fiancée is just like everyone else and says that Wegmans is too expensive. I don't agree and love shopping there! I have to say, the olive bar is divine! And I really love the artichoke dip that Wegmans offers in the prepared foods section. And I go every weekend for their bagels and our store also has Bialy's that are delicious (but I only buy the ones they sell at lunch because I don't like the breakfast ones!). But I stick to the dairy, meat, produce, and middle aisles mostly. I find that their produce stays fresher longer and they are always offering local options as well as imported fruits and veggies. I love when they offer apples and pears from local orchards.
Debbie
I don't dislike Wegmans but I find that Aldi is less expensive and has a faster checkout. The fast checkout means everything to me!
Mindi Cherry
I also love Aldi! This post is actually part of a series that I am writing and the next part of the series is items that you should be buying at Aldi. Hope you will come back and read it!