Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My husband retired from the military after 20 years. We settled down in a place that has no commissary for miles. I miss the stellar deals at the commissary! I could feed our family for 1/2 of what we currently pay. I really have nothing more to add, just that I wish we lived by one.
We live 26 miles and a 45+ minute drive to our nearest commissary. We have too many places to shop on the way, so we only go to the commissary maybe once or twice a year.
Last edited by Poncho_NM; 03-15-2016 at 07:28 PM..
The Commissary at Malmstrom AFB (240 miles away) send trucks down the the local reserve Center once a year so the local reservists and retirees can do some shopping.
I got one of the new ID cards a couple years ago. Sometimes the reader at the MAFB gate works with my card, sometimes it doesn't. Therefore, we seldom go to the commissary any more.
My wife was working for DECA when I retired, rotating around: cashier, cash cage, grocery, produce and warehouse. Then we moved to Maine and she transferred to a store here. At this store she did a year as a meat cutter, then was produce manager for a year. While in produce she got a bunch of contracts with local organic farmers, for lower prices than the distributor offered. The customers got excited and wrote a lot of letters praising the lower priced local organic produce, and my Dw got an award for that. Now she rotates mostly between warehouse and cashier.
When Dad retired in pre silicon Austin, we were half way in between Bergstrom and Ft. Hood. Every so often, I would be sent up to the Ft. Hood commissary with a cooler in the back of the station wagon.
Finally, while I don't have one currently, it seems that growing up, there was always a dedicated freezer, be it chest or stand up, in every house or almost every house.
Recently talked to a military wife. She the commissary prices (Fort Jackson, SC) for electronics were attractive but for typical household needs (food, supplies, etc.), WalMart was as cheap and they had more selections.
I'm a military spouse. We use the commissary for meat sales, stock up and freeze, but for the most part, Aldi undercuts the commissary for produce, and WalMart and similar stores either equal or undercut processed goods and "center aisle" items. Especially now that we are approx 600 miles from the nearest Navy base, and have to drive 45 minutes to the nearest Army base, post exchange and commissary...apart from periodic stocking up on meat, it's not necessarily worth it to make the drive. If my husband has to go there for something else, we'll tack on a commissary stop, but rarely make a special trip.
Last edited by TabulaRasa; 03-12-2016 at 12:30 PM..
Recently talked to a military wife. She the commissary prices (Fort Jackson, SC) for electronics were attractive but for typical household needs (food, supplies, etc.), WalMart was as cheap and they had more selections.
Electronics would be at the exchange versus the commissary (commissary is pretty much exclusively grocery items). Exchange prices on things like electronic, housewares, clothing, etc. can be quite good; I find there's more bargains there than with the commissary. My experience with the NEX (Navy Exchange), though, is that they deal almost entirely with name-brand vendors (which is to be expected for electronics, but for things like, say, housewares, house brand will suffice), so even though you're getting a deal on the name brand, it would be even cheaper were a house brand available.
Electronics would be at the exchange versus the commissary (commissary is pretty much exclusively grocery items). Exchange prices on things like electronic, housewares, clothing, etc. can be quite good; I find there's more bargains there than with the commissary. My experience with the NEX (Navy Exchange), though, is that they deal almost entirely with name-brand vendors (which is to be expected for electronics, but for things like, say, housewares, house brand will suffice), so even though you're getting a deal on the name brand, it would be even cheaper were a house brand available.
The best part about buying name brands through the NEX is no tax. That sometimes makes it more attractive for the bottom line vs buying from a big box store.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
