Costco and the forever warranty

[Dogcliff]

Can't help but have noticed that many treaders of this board reference Costco as a source. I would take the next step and suggest that it's a way of life.

Because of their most liberal return policy, isn't what you really get a 'forever warranty'? Because of this policy, I find myself compelled to make most purchases there (as the quality/price ratio is already quite high). I can purchase with the total assurence that, if, for any reason, I find my purchase defective, or otherwise not to my liking, I can simply return it for a refund.

They even allow software to be returned. Nice touch, when there is so much garbage out there.

I LOVE Costco.

dc

p.s. can't beat the price of new dryer sheets (when you finally deplete the recycle stash)

 

[wabmester]

I have been shopping at Costco since before they were invented! (I was a member of the original Price Club in San Diego, which preceded Costco and was later acquired by them.) COST is one of the few individual stocks I still hold. But I never paid much attention to their return policy. That actually bothers me both as a member (higher prices) and as an investor (lower returns).

Oh well, I guess I won't complain as they seem to be doing other things right.

 

[dory36]

Just curious - is their policy fairly consistent across the chain? I've had wildly varying results with a few other big chains.

 

[Dogcliff]

Can't speak to consistancy across the chain .. the written pocicy is 100% satisfaction guarantee ..the only exception I am aware of is computer systems, which changed last year from 'forever' to six months. This exception is explicitely posted.


dc

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Its mostly a costco thing.

They had to change the computer returns because people were buying pc's and two years later "returning" them and getting a new one.

It is worth noting that (from memory) the actual written portion of this says all returns are subject to managment discretion. I think the "reasonable person" applies here...if you have a vacuum cleaner and its broken 5 times and now a year later doesnt work well, they'll take it back. If you bought a pool and used it 3 years and tried to take it back, lotsa luck.

The model costco uses is to carry primarily higher quality items of a type that have high demand. I actually use this as a metric when buying something...if costco has sold it for more than six month and still has it on the shelf, it will probably serve well. Anything with a high return rate gets pulled from the shelves immediately.

 

[DFill]

Costco........what a grand place. I have never had a problem returning an item, although I have seen some folks returning stuff that looked as though it could have been WWII issue.

Costco does one very simple thing for me......and.....the
word is SIMPLE. They have limited selection! I really don't need to choose between 75 different types of socks. For years our family has said, "If Costco ain't got it - we don't need it." The cost savings are significant most of the time, they seem to open more registers when it gets croweded and truly make us feel like they value us as a customer. I even like the fact they respect their employees enough to keep closed on Holidays.

On top of all that you can get a Super Jumbo Hot Dog with choice of fixin's, a huge refillable beverage for the grand total of a buck-fifty. Why it's like 1975!

Their dryer sheets are an exceptional value. DFill