The Rise of Costco: How Costco Became A Massive “Members Only” Retailer

[stewie_e]

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Costco makes billions doing what in retail might once have been thought unthinkable: charge people to shop there. The company draws most of its income from membership fees, and has a nearly 90 percent membership renewal rate. It charges very low prices on goods, rotates its inventory, and pays employees better than the retail average. But how long

Comments

[justrachna]

Just got a costco membership from groupon lol. I love it but most likely won’t renew it

[justrachna]

Also they already have christmas stuff out. I see lots of stores doing this. Anyone else notice this? Halloween stuff came out at the beginning of august

[itsalanisbitch]

Costco always puts stuff out months in advance to guarantee they will get rid of their stock.

[elderpricely]

last year I saw christmas stuff out in June

I wish there was a war on christmas, I need them to stop shoving it down my throat in the muddle of summer lmao

[spellgabbana]

i just watched a video last night from a vegan youtube account i follow and they were showing a bunch of the vegan options available at costco. some of them looked great but i can't imagine buying something bulk just to try a product!

[elderpricely]

you can return just about anything if you don't like it

[spellgabbana]

wouldn't that still a big food waste? they're not gonna put it back on the shelf.

[elderpricely]

yes

[cleanofslate]

i appreciate the fact that megan fox is charmin clean as am i.

[shinychopstick]

I've had a Costco membership since I was 18. Live within 5 minutes of one so it's my go-to gas station. It was also really useful in college when everyone kept borrowing my card. More recently, they've also been having some great members-only deals on cosmetics and skincare. I also got my new laptop and TV there bc of the 4 year warranty. Also the $1.50 hot dog + soda... man I love Costco.

Parking and the gas line is always a nightmare though, especially on weekends.

[syphilisdiller]

if you're not a member, but know someone who is, you can give them cash to buy you a gift card and then you can use the gift card to shop without a membership

also, in illinois (and probably some other states) you can buy booze there without a membership

[paixetdamour_x]

I think you can do that in Calgary Ab too. It’s separate from the actual store

[totalrecoil]

I'd add that even if you're not a member, they're still legally required to fill your prescriptions at their pharmacies at their discounted rates.

[rabbitncavylove]

I think you can use the optometrist too without a membership.