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Jewish Community News
December 2003
The Costco experience: an unofficial survivor's guide
Larry
Gerston wears many hats. During the recent California recall election,
people throughout the Bay Area tuned in to hear his political analysis
on KCBS Radio, and see him on Channel 11.
For the past 35 years, students at San Jose State have taken his political science courses and read his six academic books on various political topics. He has also served as a long-time columnist for the Jewish Community News and currently sits on the board of the Jewish Federation of Greater San Jose.
Most recently, however, Gerston tried his hand at something quite different — he published a book about Costco!
"It was extraordinarily therapeutic," Gerston said. "In my business I have to be very careful about what I say and how I say it. This time was a time I could just cut loose."
The book begins with Gerston recalling his first introduction to Costco. While visiting his mother in Los Angeles, she and her husband returned home with a huge flat of strawberries:
"What will you do with all those berries?" I asked, knowing that they would last but only a few days. "We'll eat some, we'll share some with the folks upstairs, and toss out whatever goes bad." "But it seems like you're losing so much," I countered. "Hardly," my mother replied. "They are so inexpensive compared to what we would pay at the supermarket that we come out ahead even if we consume only a small part of the flat."
The book continues with 145-pages of common sense guidelines for making the best use of the bulk foods warehouse store. Chapters include "Volume — Too Much of a Good Thing?" which addresses how to make best use of large purchases; "Clothes — Just Your Size(s)," which talks about clothes shopping at Costco, minus the dressing room; and "Merry Miscellany," which explains about specialty products at Costco, shopping online and more.
The Costco Experience: An Unofficial Survivor's Guide was published by the online publishing house E-Reads.com. One step up from self-publishing, E-Reads does not ask the author to pay for the layout and publishing costs, however it prints copies only as they are ordered. E-Reads arranges for books to be sold online at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, but the author is responsible for driving business to the sites. The publisher shares proceeds with the author.
Gerston did not write this book for the money. "I've written six books before and listen, you never write a book for the money," he said. "Doing something for me, I've always done it because it's a challenge. I'm always motivated by the challenge."
So far, Gerston is doing well with his efforts to get the word out. KCBS and Channel 11, which employ him as a political analyst, have both agreed to do short pieces on his book. Leigh Weimers of the San Jose Mercury News also did a short write-up. Gerston is now working on convincing Costco to distribute the book in their stores. He was turned down by the Costco book review panel, but he is trying again with a personal letter to the CEO of the company.Even if Costco doesn't end up distributing the book, Gerston said he tremendously enjoyed writing something a little off the beaten path.
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