I ventured into the world of Costco the other day.  You know, that place where you go in planning to buy a couple of things and leave with a cart full of stuff, wondering “What just happened?”

As is true of most things at Costco, you usually can’t buy just one of anything.  Most of the items in their stores come in a 2-pack or multi-pack, encouraging you to buy more than you had originally planned.

This particular day, on my list of things to get was…deodorant.  I admit it, I sweat, and at the end of a long day, I’ll smell like the end of a long day if I don’t swipe a stick of deodorant under my armpits.  They basically had two deodorant packs to choose from–a pink colored assortment, obviously targeting for women and a “manly-looking” 5-pack of Degree.

Sorry Proctor & Gamble, but to me, deodorant is deodorant.  No one walks up and says to you, “(sniff, sniff) Hey, is that Ban you’ve got on?”  For that reason, it was even more surprising how the 5-pack of Degree was being marketed: it was a “Collector’s Edition”.

Do people really collect deodorants?  Wouldn’t coins or stamps be a bit more interesting?  I can’t imagine being at a friend’s house and having him say, “Wanna see my ’97 Speed Stick?”

Degree deodorant–the collector’s edition.  Somewhere there’s a private collector who’s going to get upset, but I just broke into my “Collector’s Edition” deodorant and started using it. Just remember–it makes your un-opened box set just that much more valuable.

Tim Hunter