As we got in the car this morning, we all commented on how worried we were, assuming the crowds would be crazy. I had already informed our son that he would most likely be riding inside the cart because that would be the safest place for him to be in a very crowded store. Many photos of people stockpiling at Costco yesterday were on the internet, making us reconsider even going. But we decided to forge ahead.
We were still on the freeway when the traffic came to a halt. It slowly crept forward and we kept questioning if there was an accident or if we were caught in Costco traffic? Looking at the GPS, we saw we could walk to Costco in 10 minutes. After getting off the freeway, and no sight of traffic letting up, we decided to hop out of the car and go the rest of the way on foot. The husband half of our neighbor-duo stayed in the car and drove the rest of the way to Costco. (We didn't abandon the car.)
As we walked up to the building, we noticed a line to get inside. We chuckled to ourselves that we've never seen a line to get into Costco, and wondered a bit what we were really getting ourselves into. Did we really want to go this bad?
We walked along the outside of the building to find the end of the line. It went on and on and on, wrapping around an entire length of one side of the store and then wrapping back and forth three times in an area behind the building. There was a man holding a sign to show the end of the line. As we queued up, the man told us the wait might be over an hour. Over an hour? None of us wanted to wait that long.
We decided to wait until our neighbor caught up to us. Even if we decided to bail on Costco, we could go wander around the outlet mall next door. But as we stood there, we noticed the line was moving quickly. Many people were leaving Costco with just one or two purchases - toilet paper and paper towels. Our neighbor was hoping to buy toilet paper and commented she was worried they would sell out before we got inside.
Suddenly, we saw a semitruck pull up to the back of the store. The side of the truck lifted up, revealing a load of toilet paper. There was an audible "ohhh" from the subdued customers. Our Canadian neighbor and I laughed, commenting if this was in North America, people would have cheered.
As we neared the front of the line, we realized the line wasn't because of crowding. It was due to crowd control. They were only letting a certain number of people into the store at a time. Outside the front door, we saw a sign detailing one pack of toilet paper per card holder. So, if a family had two Costco cards with them, they could get two packs. This made a lot of sense with the purchases we saw leaving the store.
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| Limiting the toilet paper. |
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| Masks were sold out. |
Our neighbor who stayed in the car was able to catch up with us before we entered the warehouse. We were glad we decided to split up due to needing to wait in line. When he arrived, we all agreed we would go into Costco and decide on an action plan in there. Would we stay or would we bail? We still were not sure.
We made it to the door in just 25 minutes, way under the "over an hour" estimate we were told. This, of course, made us very happy since it is always better to feel like we didn't have to wait as long as expected.
Once inside, we couldn't believe how few people were in the store! There was a beeline for people to get toilet paper (of which there was a very large stock), but otherwise, the store was less crowded than on a week day. We suddenly were confident we could get all our shopping done.
There were a couple crowded areas, those that are always packed regardless of when you go. The only other sign of the mayhem was the line to check out. Two lines were formed from the registers, all the way to the other end of the store, to the meat department. There was a nice man at the end of the line with a sign, just like outside. He directed the new arrivals into one or the other line.
Since every cash register was open, this line also went fast. It was at this time, I really started to notice how nice people were being. There was no shoving, cutting in line, or grumpiness around us. Everyone was going along with the instructions and it was no big deal.
The one place we decided to avoid was the food court. There was no way we were going to find seating for five people. So, we decided to be grateful for what we had and just go to kaiten sushi (conveyor belt sushi) somewhere else instead of eating burgers, pizza, or hot dogs. The sushi was a healthier choice anyway.
I have absolutely nothing but accolades for Costco and their staff today. They were so well organized and able to give everyone a great shopping experience despite the stockpiling and nervousness going on in the community. Every person I interacted with was professional and kind. I bet they are beyond exhausted tonight, as I'm sure the flow of customers never let up over the course of the day. But when I was getting down about the stockpiling and reselling of items (not to mention the price gouging that has been an embarrassing issue with masks and hand soap/sanitizer), Costco renewed my faith that we are not a bunch of heathens. And to top it all off, I was able to cook my very first pot roast in Japan with my Costco purchase!
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