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Free Samples Are Back

When I was in college, I had a great strategy for food when money was running low at the end of the month.  There was a Sam’s Warehouse less than…

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When I was in college, I had a great strategy for food when money was running low at the end of the month.  There was a Sam's Warehouse less than 2 miles from campus.

I would drive there, walk around for 30-40 minutes and eat every free sample they had.

In two words:  Free Lunch.

I'm no longer a Sam's Club member (we're Costco members), but my affinity for free samples has never waned.  That's why when Costco banned them for safety reasons at the beginning of the Coronavirus outbreak-I understood, but I was still sad.

Well, this week Costco started bringing back free food samples in selected stores.   Now, it's not the same, but hey...beggars can't be choosers.

Samples in Costco will now be pre-packaged instead of made for you in person.   Costco CFO Richard Galanti told CNN that the company is "trying to get back to normal, as areas around the country are trying to do the same."

Charlie Nance is the Afternoon Drive co-host (along with his wife) of "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple have been with the radio station since 2006. Charlie has won the prestigious CMA (Country Music Association) Award for Radio Personality of the Year and has been a finalist for the Country Radio Hall of Fame four times. Prior to his time in Charlotte, Charlie (along with Debbie) spent more than a decade hosting successful morning radio shows in Greenville, SC; Augusta, Ga; and Birmingham, Al. As a content creator for Country 1037, Charlie writes about dream lottery windfalls, sports, restaurants and bars, and travel experiences in North and South Carolina.