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Does Buying in Bulk Save Money, or is it a False Economy?

posted by martyb on Monday September 25 2017, @10:33PM   Printer-friendly
from the what-does-Betteridge-buy? dept.

Phoenix666 writes:

The entire big box economy is a big honking subsidy to people with cars living in the suburbs by the poor, the singles, the seniors, the urban, the cyclists.

It only works because of the highways and the parking lots and the infrastructure paid for by everyone (road taxes do not cover the cost of the roads) and enjoyed by the drivers. The companies charge twice as much for small packages as big ones because they can; the purchasers without cars and access to the big boxes, the ability to drive between the Walmart and the Costco and the Price Club, don't have a choice.

Read on for Treehugger's reasons. Is bulk buying bad after all?

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  • (Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday September 26 2017, @02:07AM

    by khallow (3766) Subscriber Badge on Tuesday September 26 2017, @02:07AM (#572892) Journal
    For me, the most remarkable thing about this story is not its cluelessness or delusion, but a complete lack of agency. Big box stores are unfair to the poor, people without cars, etc and we should...

    If you believe that we have to reduce our dependence on the car, then really, there are some fundamental choices we have to make: to live at higher densities in smaller spaces and to use cars a lot less. There is not a lot of room for buying in bulk in that world.

    ...believe that buying in bulk won't stick around. Wow, what a call to action to right that injustice! I guess the next time I'm loading 36 rolls of toilet paper into my SUV, I'll look around the parking lot smugly and think, "This will all go away in the future!" and look forward to living in my enlightened sardine can, enjoying my 8 ounces of corn starch.