Kevin Courtney, Finally, Napa gets a Costco

Around my house, the big October event is my birthday, but not this year. The pending opening of Napa's very own Costco took center stage.

Weeks before Friday's grand opening, Cheryl began asking, "You're coming with me, right?"

My responses were not fully enthusiastic. Of course, but on opening day? Why not later when the crowds have thinned? Perhaps November?

I have Costco avoidance tendencies. For one thing, I'm not a shopper. For another, discounted prices don't necessarily thrill me. On opening day, I'd just as soon stay home and blow leaves off the deck.

Yet I worried. In a court of law, would rejection of Cheryl's invite constitute spousal abandonment?

Cheryl was not alone in her Costco euphoria. Untold numbers of Napans were also counting down the days. Mention the store's pending arrival to just about anybody and watch faces light up. Shoppers swear by that place.

I know a woman who was planning a dry run to master unfamiliar roads before opening day. Good idea, I said.

Has there ever been a store opening that generated Costco-level buzz? Whole Foods made a splash when it opened at Bel Aire Plaza — the Napa High band played at the ribbon-cutting — yet most Napans hardly blinked.

I've joined Cheryl on dozens of "Costco runs" to Solano County over the years. She thought it unfair that Solano was loaded with Costcos, but we had nary a one.

Were we too hoity-toity? Were we thought to wear only bespoke clothing? Did we not stuff our gullets like everyone else?

The Fairfield Costco is 17 miles from our house, the Vallejo Costco 20 miles. Those distances are not horrible, but they aren't wonderful either.

Our new Costco is nine miles from my Browns Valley garage. If MapQuest is correct, we can be there in as few as 14 minutes. I suspect Cheryl will now double, triple, even quadruple her Costco runs.

Napans already have a universe of shopping and specialty services at their fingertips without venturing into a former nether region of south Napa. A dozen grocery stores are closer. So is virtually every optical office, pharmacy, tire center, computer store and gas station offering equivalent products.

Should I worry about the survival of existing businesses? Will having to compete with Costco result in chamber of commerce carnage?

I'm thinking not. People prize convenience. They don't have time to chase far-flung deals on cat litter and cans of tuna. They value personal relationships with merchants and professionals. Maybe more importantly, Costco's product lineup isn't nearly diversified enough.

Then again ....

Cheryl has a shopping list for opening day. It includes salsa, paper towels, frozen pizza and salmon, with plenty of shopping cart space left for impulse buys. Cheryl will use me to fetch products from distant reaches of the warehouse store.

You can expect to see me lugging a box or two of Kirkland brand cabernet sauvignon back to our cart. Is Kirkland wine great? Absolutely not, but that very non-greatness helps us maintain a commitment to single-glass consumption on weekends.

We almost visited Costco the weekend before the official opening as we headed out of town. The gas station component — 32 fueling stations, the most of any station in Napa County — was already pumping. Diverting off Highway 29 at the Butler Bridge would have been easy.

I was jazzed. I wanted an early glimpse of the reinvented Napa Pipe site where new houses are springing up.

Unfortunately, that morning's Register said Costco was selling regular for $4.29 a gallon – much lower than its city competitors — but the AmCan Safeway was also charging $4.29.

Hearing this, Cheryl balked. Why would we divert off and under Highway 29 to Costco when we'd be going right by the Safeway?

Only after putting eight gallons into her Prius at Safeway did Cheryl discover she was paying $4.39 a gallon.

What????

It was because Safeway charges 10 cents more if you pay with a credit card. Costo would have let her use her card without paying the extra dime.

This disparity in pricing policy is a small thing, but it's significant. It's why people love Costco.

Kevin can be reached at .