# GNC vs. the world



## AKIRA (Aug 14, 2009)

So my co worker is trying to get "back into shape" and hes asked for advice, some of which is supplementation.  I told him to stay away from GNC cuz of their prices.  I suggested some internet sites, along with the local Vitamin World.  Next thing I know, hes comparing prices to me.

GNC has still got that Gold Membership shit going on that you pay $15 once a year.  There is a retail price, a sale price (if its on sale), then a gold member price, all of which decreases linerally.  PLUS, there is some sort of special they do on the 1st week of your membership which is 20% off everything.

I suppose depending on the product you want, you can get a cheap item, depending if its on sale and a gold member item.  But if its not, the 1st week of every month since you join, its 20% off everything.

Ok, there is a lot of second hand info here and what I want to know is if GNC is still as shitty as before and my co worker is confused.

In other words, quick answers stating "just stay away" wont cut it.  I need real research here.

Thanks.


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## I.C.P. (Aug 14, 2009)

They do have good prices on genr8 vitargo with the gold member account.I used their stuff 20 years ago when i was a noob.And went back in with my girlfriends son this last week cause she has discounts she can get.Their stuff is ok,but can be high in price on some things.If your friend can get good discounts i say go for it.


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## Arnold (Aug 14, 2009)

AKIRA said:


> what I want to know is if GNC is still as shitty as before and my co worker is confused.



GNC prices are still high even with the 20% discount, check out the prices here and compare: www.massnutrition.com


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## nni (Aug 14, 2009)

what it comes down to is if gnc has a crazy sale, then their prices match, or come nearer to online prices.


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## Arnold (Aug 14, 2009)

nni said:


> what it comes down to is if gnc has a crazy sale, then their prices match, or come nearer to online prices.



the only time I've seen a good deal at GNC is if they're doing a clearance on products that expire within 30 days or have been discontinued.


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## Pirate! (Aug 14, 2009)

If you make a large purchase during the last half of the month and purchase/renew the gold card at that time, you get a reasonable deal on most products that are on sale.


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## AKIRA (Aug 14, 2009)

Prince said:


> GNC prices are still high even with the 20% discount, check out the prices here and compare: Massnutrition.com | Bodybuilding and Sports Supplements at Prices Wholesale to the Public!



Some of the products are cheaper at GNC than massnutrition.  However, there arent many of them.  For instance, Syntha 6 is cheaper at GNC, but No-explode is not.

However, shipping comes into play (on both parties), but youd get the products asap at the store with no shipping cost.  Now the price difference maybe overlapped by PAYING for a membership, but its only once a year.

I am not trying to play devils advocate here, this is the exact same shit my co worker threw at me.  Hard to dispute.  Oh, my co worker even went a step further and said he could bypass the gold card member fee by using  someone else's.

I ended up saying do what you want.


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## Berto (Aug 18, 2009)

These guys would disagree:  Supplement Price Comparisons

Also note that you can save a lot on sales tax by finding a cheap store out of your state.  I live in CA so ordering from somewhere like bb.com or Bulk Nutrition saves me 10% over AllStar.


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## gncWATCHDOG (Mar 30, 2010)

*Stay away from GNC*



Robert said:


> the only time I've seen a good deal at GNC is if they're doing a clearance on products that expire within 30 days or have been discontinued.


 
Not only is GNC expensive,, their help is incompetent. They will sell anything to anyone regardless of the health risk -- and then never take responsibilty for the junk they sell. Their clerks are not trained to know the difference between glutamine and creatine. Their objective is to meet sales quotas. I wouldn't buy a protein bar at GNC any more.... Stay Away. Your life may depend on it.


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## gncWATCHDOG (Mar 30, 2010)

*Stay away from GNC*



AKIRA said:


> So my co worker is trying to get "back into shape" and hes asked for advice, some of which is supplementation. I told him to stay away from GNC cuz of their prices. I suggested some internet sites, along with the local Vitamin World. Next thing I know, hes comparing prices to me.
> 
> GNC has still got that Gold Membership shit going on that you pay $15 once a year. There is a retail price, a sale price (if its on sale), then a gold member price, all of which decreases linerally. PLUS, there is some sort of special they do on the 1st week of your membership which is 20% off everything.
> 
> ...


 

GNC clerks don't have a clue about what they are selling. They are not 
trained about the products they sell and some are sold in doses or quantities that are not healthy for you. They sell some products that are banned in Europe and are detrimental to your heart. Their prices, except at Gold Card time are ridiculously high..I wouldn't waste time or money on GNC...find a store with informed clerks who really know what they are talking about...not people who will sell you anything just to make a commission.  You are better off at Vitamin Shop, or a local store that has informed salespeople


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## dave 236 (Mar 30, 2010)

Some GNC stores are franchised to individual owners. These stores(most anyway) tend to have better prices on certain items and usually have better employees.The corporate stores pretty much all seem to suck as they hire cheap and tow the company line.In the end I think it's like most other businesses the management of the stores makes a difference.


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## quark (Mar 31, 2010)

The only problem I have with MassNut is their shipping fees. They have pretty good prices and sometimes they have sales that are incredible. 
 As a rule I think GNC is overpriced but they also have some really good deals if you pay attention to the ads or emails they send out. An example I took advantage of is Ultimate Nutrition IsoMass gainer 10lb jug. They had a buy one get one 1/2 off going. With the gold card I paid $5 less per jug than I could have ordered online, even paying the tax.


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## jcar1016 (Mar 31, 2010)

Robert said:


> the only time I've seen a good deal at GNC is if they're doing a clearance on products that expire within 30 days or have been discontinued.


 Bingo!  
Plus Gnc store employees more often than not are retarded and WILL sell you shit they have no clue about.  Just a suggestion go in GNC and ask for recomendations about a product that your already knowledgable about and listen to the bullshit sales pitch your given.  Its really not the employees fault they get told what to say.  And IMHO GNC has a reputation for carrying and selling substandard products.  For an "Industry Leader" they sure sell a buch of shitty products


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## fredlabrute (Mar 31, 2010)

Goto bodybuilding.com and compare prices!!!!


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## soxmuscle (Mar 31, 2010)

I wouldn't spend a dime at GNC, not when Vitamin World and Vitamin Shoppe are far superior retailers with far superior prices.

Either way, going online is the way to go and in bulk.  

What all does your friend need anyway?


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## PushAndPull (Apr 1, 2010)

jcar1016 said:


> Bingo!
> Plus Gnc store employees more often than not are retarded and WILL sell you shit they have no clue about.  Just a suggestion go in GNC and ask for recomendations about a product that your already knowledgable about and listen to the bullshit sales pitch your given.  Its really not the employees fault they get told what to say.  And IMHO GNC has a reputation for carrying and selling substandard products.  For an "Industry Leader" they sure sell a buch of shitty products



I'll second this.

Sometimes i'll buy from retailers for the convenience. Mainly I buy from Costco, but the other day I saw that GNC had some sort of sale going on and since i'm running low on creatine I went in there to check it out. I asked if they had Nature's Best creatine, but they didn't have any. He asked me why I wanted that and not the GNC creatine. I said that Nature's Best makes there products here and they're free from imports (I don't want anything from China). He say's "yeah, that's a good idea" looks at the back of the GNC creatine and says "doesn't say where they make it" and then I left.

WTF do they teach their employees about their company and products? Obviously, not much.


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