Yup – you read that right. I AM a snob. More specifically…I’m a brand name snob.
Clothes? Ya right…the only “brand” I go for there is “Red Sox” LOL. Other than that – if it fits, I’ll wear it.
Shoes? Mmm…nope. If they’re comfy and cheap – I’m all over that.
So…what am I a brand name snob about? FOOD. I’ll pass over all those store-named (generic) brands in favor of my favorites. Every time. I’ve felt my hand linger over a generic food before, but inevitably, it’s always passed over for MY brand. Jif peanut butter, Smuckers Red Raspberry Jelly (with seeds), Cheerios, Kraft Mac & Cheese, Lipton iced tea…
It took me forever to gather up enough courage to try out the Costco brand things. (Kirkland is their brand name…not sure why it’s not just “Costco” … but perhaps that’s for a different post 😉 ) And the first brand name thing I tried was non-food (baby wipes, to be exact….love them!) And honestly, the only Kirkland brand thing I’ve tried and haven’t been impressed with is their pizza. I suppose part of the reason their brand is so good is because they partner up with actual brand names…sometimes you know, sometimes you don’t. For example, I know that the Kirkland brand coffee is actually Starbucks. But I only THINK the Kirkland brand chicken is Perdue.
Is the generic brand really all that different than my brand? I’m sure in some cases yes, and in some cases no…but am I willing to figure it out? With the exception of Costco…nope.
Anyone know of other generic brand names that might be worth the switch?
Filed under: food, me | Tagged: brand names, generic food, snob |
The Zimmer Zoo 
I made the kids Stop & Shop french bread pizza this weekend. As I was stealing bites of it off their plates, I could have sworn it was Elio’s (which I have an unnatural weakness for!)
Is Kirkland coffee really Starbucks?? I’ve never purchased their coffee but I will definitely pick some up now!
I think the Kirkland Signature diapers are pretty great. This post cracked me up. When we were first married, I bought generic macaroni and cheese and my husband flipped out. I thought he was joking, but NO! The man who buys his clothes from Good Will and eats everything in front of him and cuts his own hair, has a strong! opinion about macaroni and cheese; must be Kraft 🙂
Hey Nancy,
Almost ALL store brands are the exact same product as some brand name or other, made in the same factory and put in the generic store box instead of the brand name box. It seems completely weird, but true. Also, some generic brands receive higher ratings than brand names in consumer testing. Shaw’s generic mac and cheese rated higher than Kraft and Annie’s in a Boston globe article a few months back. The trick is to finding out what generic brand is also packaged by your favorite brand name company. There must be a website out there somewhere that reveals some of the name brand/generic pairings. Hmm. a project for my spare time? 🙂
I think I should add that some generic brands are manufactured by a separate company that sell to all the stores under each stores name, but is the exact same product instead of being a brand name repackaged. Every generic baby formula that I’ve encountered in manufactured by the same company and when you call them about coupons, they ask which store (Target, Walmart, BJ’s, etc, so they can send you the right coupons).
all medicine, i would say. I always buy generic of that stuff.
I also buy BJs diapers, generic milk, butter and Corn Chex.
love this post! i am picky about various things that i wish like crazy i didn’t care about. like why is it absolutely nothing else than the matching blue/pink new balance 502s for my twins? they’re $30 a pair- i’ve actually gone to walmart looking for shoes and found some for $5-$10 and can’t do it. like you, i linger there for a little while and then inevitably make the same choice over and over. clothes- i only ever bought carters and then recently found some cute sets at jcp and bought them- also they are now pushed to the back of the closet since i ended up STILL going spring/summer shopping all over again at carter’s.
as for food- i buy brand name pretty much everything but for the only reason that i grew up on only brand name stuff, and also because if you use P&G products (all my faves!) they have coupon inserts and coupled with our grocery store weekly ad and the fact they double my coupons, i can get it really really cheap and that in itself makes me happy 🙂
i’ve never been into a costco but i would assume it’s like a sams club? we genuinely LOVE some generics – shake n bake, target ziploc bags, generic sos pads, windex generic.
sorry that got so long- just had to share my $0.02!
A few months ago I switched from Pampers to Luvs diapers. The only difference I can tell is that Luvs has Blues Clues on them rather than Sesame Street. And I really don’t care what cartoon character is featured as long as they do their job! lol
I hear you! But when I lived in England and money was *tight* I closed my eyes and reached for every generic product I could. And I had *NO* issues–the products were as good as the “name” brands (or at least the US quality I was used to). But here in the US, I don’t feel generics are as good (or better) than the name brand. My experience is “you get what you pay for.” Even hubby notices and complains. I’d say the only store-brand thing I buy is bread and milk.
Happy shopping!
We are opposites here.
I am always buying the store brand (except for soup because I don’t trust store soup).
I try the lowest cost item and then if it’s yucky I move up the ladder.
Honey nut cheerios taste the same to me no matter who makes them because I mix them with Fiber One.
I DO love Jiff peanut butter.
My kids will ONLY eat Kroger brand Mac and cheese. They just don’t like Kraft. We usually get canned food, boxed food, cereal, etc. Not all cereals are as good as the original, but some are even better! I think it’s worth it to try out different things and maybe keep a list of likes and don’t likes.
This is funny – the only mandarin oranges that aren’t from China are the store brand ones (here in North Carolina). The Kirkland coffees are good (whole bean) and the Kirkland block of cheese is also good (since cheese is a food group – and down here the only large blocks of Cabot they have is the super sharp stuff) The Kirkland laundry and dishwasher soap are all fine.
The Target store brand diapers are fine -so are the wipes — but Wal-Mart’s White Cloud diapers — didn’t have so much luck with that…arg.
Store brand sunblock (Target store brand at least) is fine with me — esp since I seem to loose those tubes all over the place. Store brand deodorant — not a fan of that down here in humid-ville.
🙂
[…] of her experience when she decided to give generic brands a chance for the sake of saving cash in her blog. A.J., an self-proclaimed ametur foodie, tells of her similar experience […]