Mustachian Conundrum (grocery trip)

[Virtus3]

I've been pondering my grocery shopping options and curious what the Mustachians think on the conundrum of biking to a more expensive store vs a short drive to Walmart market?

I have a nicer chain grocery store (Harris Teeter) that is a safe 1mi bike ride from my house or a Walmart market which is a 3.5mi drive (would not feel safe biking).

[Kwill]

What about getting a delivery from a bigger, cheaper supermarket once a month and biking to the closer shop for daily essentials?

[RWD]

I wouldn't buy groceries from Walmart regardless of how close/cheap it was. Harris Teeter isn't that expensive, right? It's not like a Whole Foods or whatever?

[Blackeagle]

I usually drive to a larger, more distant grocery every two weeks.  In between these bigger grocery runs I’ll walk to a closer, more expensive grocery store several times.

[youngwildandfree]

I would support Harris Teeter over Walmart any day of the week. I’m working on including more local farm and home grown food as well. Food and ethical production/sourcing of food is not an area of financial optimization for us.

[Catbert]

Another hard "no" on Walmart regardless of other circumstances. 

[Askel]

I go to the more expensive easily bikeable store as often as a I can. It's a personal point with me to support businesses that offer access via something besides shitty stroad.   

[Virtus3]

Thanks for the responses; that was more one-sided than I was expecting ha.

I'm assuming most peoples problem with Walmart is more their business model than the quality of the groceries. Harris Teeter is definitely not in Whole Foods territory of pricing but is substantially more expensive than Walmart or Food Lion in my experience.

[maisymouser]

Hmm, my take is slightly different. I'd place heavier weight on WHAT and HOW OFTEN I am buying items over WHERE I buy them. I don't think it matters much where I get bulk beans 2x/year, for instance. Other things that Walmart sells, like their cheap and unethical clothes and mass meat, don't make me feel very good about my purchases.

Funny enough, a few years ago I had the EXACT situation as you- a Harris Teeter <1 mile from our house and a Walmart a few miles away. I rarely went to either, though- did my shopping at Aldi, which necessitated fewer trips overall but satisfied my ethical/price needs (I love their business model!). I ended up going to HT for the occasional "oh shit, I need cilantro for this recipe" moments. I'm betting you could do something similar in your area? Aldi, Costco, etc for 90% of food items?

[Virtus3]

Hmm, my take is slightly different. I'd place heavier weight on WHAT and HOW OFTEN I am buying items over WHERE I buy them. I don't think it matters much where I get bulk beans 2x/year, for instance. Other things that Walmart sells, like their cheap and unethical clothes and mass meat, don't make me feel very good about my purchases.

Funny enough, a few years ago I had the EXACT situation as you- a Harris Teeter <1 mile from our house and a Walmart a few miles away. I rarely went to either, though- did my shopping at Aldi, which necessitated fewer trips overall but satisfied my ethical/price needs (I love their business model!). I ended up going to HT for the occasional "oh shit, I need cilantro for this recipe" moments. I'm betting you could do something similar in your area? Aldi, Costco, etc for 90% of food items?

I LOVE Aldi!! We do have one near our old house which I always used to go to; it's about a 20 minute drive now but on the way home for DW so she stops occasionally. We're also Costco members but it's about a 25 minute drive so only occasional trips there too.

[Adventine]

Thanks for the responses; that was more one-sided than I was expecting ha.

I'm assuming most peoples problem with Walmart is more their business model than the quality of the groceries. Harris Teeter is definitely not in Whole Foods territory of pricing but is substantially more expensive than Walmart or Food Lion in my experience.

Think bigger picture and longer term: Harris Teeter might be more expensive for groceries, but you'll be saving money on gas, wear and tear on your car,  and you'll get more exercise and likely reduce your future medical expenses.