Support Your Local Merchant

Though continuing to shop at Amazon and Costco, I have diverted more spending dollars toward supermarkets, drug stores, and other physical retail outlets. Sure, the latter is more expensive, but while saving money is the most important thing, it's not the only thing.

The stores provide local employment, immediate availability of goods, and a larger selection than Costco. I want to keep them in business; the negative externality of a half-empty mall detracts from our happiness and well-being.

And so it was that I found myself picking up a package of Hello Kitty toilet paper at the local 99 Ranch. Neither the brand nor the store has a national presence.

30 rolls for $20 wasn't an outrageous price. In fact the same quantity of Charmin costs $20 at the local Costco ($27.99 at Costco online).

I still give the nod to Charmin for the combination of strength, softness, and absorbency, but Hello Kitty TP was perfectly adequate.

And that's the bottom line.