Shopping in Sevierville: Welcome to BJ’s Wholesale Club

What Sevierville’s latest shopping Mecca brings to the Smokies

I wanted a little more chaos, a little more of the odd, the weird, and the bizarre. And, if I’m being honest, I wanted a little more savings. 

A couple of weeks after its grand opening, I purchased a $15 discounted membership to BJs in Sevierville. And so, the wife and I chose the cold, dreary Sunday between Black Friday and Cyber Monday to see what all the hype was about. We are not members of Sam’s Club, Costco, or any of the other retail wholesale giants. However, we have gone with others a few times to see what all the fuss at those places was about, or to get specific items. 

We went to BJ’s with open minds and possibly unrealistic expectations, especially given that we have a modestly sized home and don’t really have the capacity to buy in bulk. What we found was a new retail store in full holiday bloom. But there were relatively low crowds as the rain and the cold appeared to have held some folks back. We found good deals on TVs, massive bottles of meds, large packs of toiletries, drinks, and meat, and we will have to explore the frozen and deli departments.

What is BJ’s?

It’s pretty well outlined above. It’s a massive wholesale retailer that offers electronics, groceries, some clothing items, and toys. The value appears mostly to be in buying in bulk. So, you can shave a few dollars off a handful of items and save once you purchase a membership. The savings can build up over time. 

I think I expected – in the glow of a new store in the holiday season – a few more dramatic deals. However, in fairness, there did appear to be some good deals in departments I was not in the market for. We recently got a new TV – though going through BJ’s electronics did tempt me to consider an upgrade. I saw some cool gadgets in the home and kitchen, and a few toys that were mostly within my kids’ range. 

We weren’t in pursuit of anything in particular. So we just worked our way from aisle to aisle, trying to spot deals we thought would save us compared to our regular dining. 

What do you need to know before going?

I found that I should have done some research. There were several items that seemed like good deals, but I wasn’t entirely sure. For instance? If I bought the massive two-bag set of Cinnamon Toast – 49.5 oz for $9.99, how much was I saving over my regular shopping visit for the same amount of cereal? I did a quick search just now, and it appears that I could have gotten two Giant Sized boxes – 27 oz. each at Food City for $13 total with a $1 coupon.

BJ’s also had a coupon for $4 off if I bought two 49.5-oz bags of cereal. In all, we’re looking at 100 ounces of cereal for $16 at BJs or $26 for 108 ounces of cereal at Food City. I also saw a massive tube of ground beef for $75. Since I couldn’t possibly store that much meat, I didn’t game it out, but I assume that was a good deal.

Frankly, I found myself doing a lot of math.

Honestly, if you’re going to be shopping at BJ’s, you should probably pre-game by going through and “clipping” coupons in the app. There are signs on products that also offer online coupons. However, with so many available – 542 possible coupons on our trip – it would have been easier to go through some of our frequently bought items to see what’s available. 

You should also consider the available trunk space in your car. We purchased a few “in bulk” items and ran things a little closer to filling the car with massive boxes of popcorn, drinks, and a few other things. I’m pretty sure if we’d bought toilet paper, we would have had to strap it to the roof. 

What were the best savings you found?

It’s a little hard to say because there were so many items that interested me. But I wasn’t familiar with their regular retail. In fact, it felt a little bit like being on an episode of The Price is Right but being unprepared. I know I could have used my phone to gauge prices at “regular” stores. And I did when I was interested enough. But my general feeling is that to realize serious savings, you’d need to make multiple trips to the grocery store compared to BJs. Either way, knowing your prices and comparing is key.

What deals did we find?

I suspect one of the better deals was at the gas station. They were selling petrol at about 20-cent per gallon less than the other retailers around, at least judging by the other signs I saw around town.

The deal I got the most excited for?

A large jar of Claussen pickles – one of our kids favorite snacks. We’ve been buying them at Wal-Mart for $12 or $13. They were $8.99 each. We got two. We also got some gummies – just the regular fruit kind, nothing more adventurous – a 24 pack of waters, a 20 pack of microwave popcorn. And a few other items. We spent $160 – with a couple of small Christmas presents included – for 11 items.

Truthfully, it didn’t feel like any great savings. But I’m sure that we saved more than the introductory $15 annual membership we spent. A couple of more organized trips and we might actually do some damage.

What were the strangest things you found for sale

I had hoped to find some really strange things available in bulk. Like, who needs that many moth balls? But nothing really caught my eye. There were two large bottles of Ken’s Honey Mustard salad dressing packaged together, which amused me. While it’s not an insane amount of honey mustard, it is … a lot … and it gave me a mental picture of someone, somewhere storing vats of the stuff.

I am very interested in the “other” services. In addition to tires, optical and wireless and internet – which are fairly common to the Wal-Marts of the world – BJs offers travel and home improvement options. While I’m not going to have Bjs put a roof on my house in the near future, we will do a deep dive on travel options available in the Smokies through BJs.

Is BJs worth it?

Part of this question is always reliant on your specific situation. If you’re someone who buys in bulk a lot or needs a specific sale item – like a TV – a BJs membership – especially at the $15 rate – will pay for itself easily. After that, it depends on how much work you’re willing to put into it to realize actual savings.

Have you visited the new BJs store? Let us know what you think in the comments and on the socials!