Ok I couldn't help myself.

Fresh from a trip to the US a few months ago, and visiting Costco twice while there, I purchased membership on Mothers Day for the soon-to-open Costco here in Melbourne. Well it finally opened today and boy was I glad about that $55 well spent (business membership). It enabled us to bypass the application line that welcomed us as we approached the entrance from the Harbour City carpark (Costco underground carpark was, unsurprisingly, full).

Once inside, and looking past the sea of people it was good to see some familiar brands - both American and Australian, including Costco's signature Kirkland brand. By the time we arrived customers and their giant white trolleys (of which there were none to be found!) were already in line waiting to check out.

We ended up just doing a bit of recon work and not actually buying anything because a) we couldn't find a trolley and b) I didn't want to wait in the line that snaked around the store for 2 hours. Everyone in the line looked so happy. Not. Instead, I walked around and took photos of what I wanted to buy (well - I would like to buy the Cartier Men's Tank watch to replace the one that my husband previously owned and now sits on my wrist, as well as the 5.12ct Diamond Ring... but those may have to wait.) I read that the LV bags sold out by 11am.

There were, understandably, a lot of Americans in the store, all excited that Costco had finally made its way to Australian shores. In general, prices were on par (or maybe just a tad above) the US prices, but as I told my husband - it's about the variety of products available more than the prices. Layout is pretty much on par with other Costco stores I've visited in the US.

Here is a very brief summary of some of the product lines I saw. Note to the uninitiated: don't expect to go to Costco to buy just one or two small things. Items are in extra large sizes or packed in bulk packs, depending on the item.

Electrical Appliances and Electronics
Kenwood K-Mix mixer for A$570 - I've always wanted one but can't really justify the purchase since my baking skills are limited, to say the least. Will leave that one to Martha Stewart.

Sorry about the photo quality. In my excitement I left my camera at home and only had our phones on us.
Other electronic/electrical items I saw today were: iPods, printers, laptops, desktops, external hard drives, cordless phones, GPS, Sony Plasma TVs, including a 63" one,





Bakery

Costco has its own in-store bakery, which offers giant muffins, assorted cookies, mudcake, macadamia nut pie, pre-decorated bday cakes (large ones at $27 - a steal!), a bag of 36 soft white dinner rolls for $5.99 and a whole range of other baked items. There are also supermarket brand loaves of bread in 2- and 3-packs (never just 1!)

The smell in this section is intoxicating and luckily for hungry shoppers there are plenty of sample tables dotted around the store.

Meats
Very good quality meat, presented well and looked so, so fresh. 100-day grainfed Australian beef in various cuts - both in trays as well as whole pieces in cryovac. Great value for large families.





Giant crab legs from Russia.

Fresh Produce
A pack of 18 fresh eggs was free to coupon holders just for opening day. There were 1.8kg+ boxes of grapes and big bags of 12 lemons for $1.99 (cheap considering I usually pay 80c for just 1 lemon at my local). I saw the biggest punnets of strawberries (at, I think, $6.99) - they would've weighed close to 1kg. I wasn't really able to take a good look at all the fruit and veg -- too many people!
Clothes & Accessories
The Jeans - because it's always about the jeans: today I saw Diesel dark skinnies, mavi, DKNY, Gloria Vanderbilt and Citizens of Humanity, all for well under $150. I wonder why US jeans cost upwards of $400 in the shops here in Australia.

The (in)famous Ed Hardy Tees for $69.99 in the foreground. Slight problem with purchasing clothing at Costco is the lack of change rooms. They advise you that they have a great return policy, ie buy it, take it home, try it then if it doesn't work for you/fit bring it back. There was a fair bit of sportswear available - Champion and mavi to name a couple, and underwear by Calvin Klein and Hugo Boss for much less than what one would pay in the boutiques/department stores. If you need socks, Crocs and jocks -- there are plenty of these to be found!



At the opposite end of the spectrum - I spotted the aforementioned Cartier Tank Française watch - men's size and a 5.12ct cushion-cut diamond solitaire set in a white gold band. *sigh* One day I will have a spare $160,000.
Wow!

Toiletries & Medicines
For those who like their toiletries - this is the place to go. Most items come in multi-packs, so unit prices are very competitive. I would definitely buy items like deodorant, toothpaste, toothbrushes (great to have extras for houseguests), Olay moisturisers, body and handwash... I could go on.
After seeing the prices for these items here you will definitely notice the price difference from purchasing the same products from the local chemist.


Spotted: Double pack of Aveeno moisturising body wash in pump packs at $15.99. Will be back for these.

Office Supplies & Books

This Crayola set would makes a great present for the budding artist.

This aisle is heaven for me, but sadly, I didn't need anything. For stationery and pen fiends like me there are lots of pen sets to choose from - if you need at least 24 of them, that is. Coloured Sharpies are always fun to use! The book selection is pretty amazing, and in my opinion a great source for gifts - for both children and adults alike.
Spotted: the Twilight boxed set for $79.99. Saw a few 35+ ladies with a Twilight set in hand, and mobile in the other calling friends if they would like one too. :-)




Laundry and Cleaning Products
Ok, so this is what I really came for - sad, but true. I will definitely be back to get my Tide washing liquid and Bounce fabric softener sheets. Love!


And they even have coupons for extra savings!!

Also spotted: 12-packs of Kirkland paper towels -- extra large size
48-packs of toilet paper rolls (Kleenex Cottonelle, Sorbent, Kirkland) - this is the only way you can purchase TP from here!

Poppycock Caramel Popcorn


Need a Segway? Only $9000!

Whirlpool 8.5kg Front Loader machine... at $999, not a bad price. I'm seriously considering purchasing this to replace my current (leaking) front loader.

Food Court
After we decided to give up and just eat, we headed to the food court for the famous Costco hotdog. These are a decent size, and at $2.49 including a soda with free refill, you can't go wrong. Pizza and baked chicken rolls (these are huge!) were priced at $2.99/slice and $4.99, as was the regional addition, the Meat Pie at $2.99. We settled for a hot dog and a caesar salad ($6.49) to balance it out!


I was a bit disappointed that there were no churros or pretzels on offer though.... perhaps they will add these later. I settled for the vanilla/choc yoghurt swirl, served in a large cup -- apparently I didn't even make a dent in it.

OK, so that wasn't as "brief" as I'd originally intended. I plan to return later this week to actually do my shopping when (hopefully) crowds will have died down a bit. More to come!

You would think I read enough blogs to know how to write my own. The internal filters in my head try to process thoughts and then battle with the following questions:

Is it good enough to write?
Will anyone be interested?
Should I be writing about that topic?
Am I including too much information about myself?
Am I really that shallow (well, on many topics anyway)
Is my life interesting enough to blog about?
Do I watch too much TV? The answer: Probably.

So please bear with me while I get used to this. And thanks for popping by. Would love to see this develop into something fun.