How to Save By Purchasing a Cookware Set
There’s already a lot of research out there on the best types of pots to choose whether you get nonstick, hard anodized, 18/10 stainless steel, copper core etc, etc. Having seen my mom use the same Revere stainless steel cookware set for over 30 years from her wedding, I opted out of any of the fancy technologies for 18/10 stainless steel. The current Revere didn’t seem as durable to me as the set my mom has so I went for All-Clad, hoping that it will last as long as I can cook. However, not everyone likes the weight of the All-Clad (or the price) so for this blog I decided to compare prices for a Calphalon Tri-ply 18/10 stainless steel set from Macy’s.
This 13 piece set, featured on the right, cost $399.99. To demonstrate how much you can save in getting a set rather than keeping or purchasing individual pots I actually priced out each pot to find out if there is actually a savings in purchasing the set. The table below shows the prices.
| Pot Type | Individual Cost | |
| 1 | 8″ omelet pan | $29.99 |
| 2 | 10″ omelet pan | $39.99 |
| 3 | 1.5 quart sauce pan | $81.99 |
| 4 | 1.5 quart lid | $0.00 |
| 5 | 2.5 quart sauce pan | $96.99 |
| 6 | 2.5 quart lid | $0.00 |
| 7 | 4.5 quart sauce pan | $139.99 |
| 8 | 4.5 quart lid | $0.00 |
| 9 | 3 quart saute pan | $160.00 |
| 10 | 3 quart lid | $0.00 |
| 11 | 6 quart stock pot | $99.99 |
| 12 | 6 quart lid | $0.00 |
| 13 | 6 quart pasta insert | $0.00 |
| Bonus | 6 piece utensil set with crock | $49.99 |
| Double Bonus | 5 quart dutch oven set | $250.00 |
The total cost, if purchased individually, is $648.94. As the 13 piece set is priced at $399.99, the savings is $248.95 which is more significant than I thought it would be.
In addition, Macy’s often runs bonus and double bonus sales for purchasing cookware sets. Currently for Calphalon they are offering a 6 piece utensil set with crock and a 5 quart dutch oven set. They say the added value is $299.99 for a total savings of $548.94.
It seems this is produced just for the double bonus.
The double bonus seems to be a great added value but when you look closely bonuses are not really that great. In this case, it’s likely that you already have a utensil set, or in the least wouldn’t want a $49.99 utensil set. The dutch oven is actually not one that Calphalon even sells on its own. I couldn’t find it in any catalogue which means that it is probably a cheaper knockoff of its nicer Dutch ovens and produced especially for this “double bonus” – meaning that it’s not really a $250.00 value. If you could manage to swap out these bonuses for other Calphalon products of similar prices at Macy’s you’d be much better off.
My recommendation would be to find the set that you like and to get real bonuses added in and not these fake ones. See my blog here on the topic. As I explained in this earlier blog, if you choose a set smaller than what you actually need and augment it with pots as these double bonuses instead of their selections you’ll be much better off.
