Mid-Day Squares’ Post

It was a privilege to help launch Hapi Drinks into Costco TX this year. With 45 doors in the region (and growing), Costco TX partnered to customize a special price/pack just for them - resulting in an order of multiple truckloads. The Costco P&L is simple and transparent. They want a value against retail and a value against cost. You'll need to be prepared to achieve high velocity expectations for your Department's expectations, and there are various marketing levers you can pull to help. #cpg #retail #costco #beverage #consumerbrands

Costco Wholesale - if you built your food court as a drive up kiosk (think Dutch Bros) that consumers could drive up on the way home and grab a slice / hot dog / soft serve / etc - honestly could be a ~$500MM+ brand... equipment stack probably doesn't fit and loss leader pricing probably breaks without selling people 50lbs of cheese (so margin shrinks and need to charge more breaking the value equation) - but just generally the quality and variety and value and convenience of your food offerings / even on corner parcel of your large parking lots could drive incrementality on top line with supply chain close by / pickup lunch trial around retail stores that don't want to park and come in. Maybe add some energy drinks or dirty sodas to round out and steal share from peers but yeah I think this works if nothing else to utilize under valued parking stalls in a greater way than land leases to other vendors might from an ROI stance. 🌭

Costco is a wholesale retailer renowned for offering nearly anything at a discount, including brand-new electronics and rotisserie chickens. The wholesaler has now unexpectedly added gold bars to its inventory. Yes, the discount brand now offers one-ounce gold PAMP Suisse Lady Fortuna Veriscan bars for close to $2,000 in its inventory. The gold bars are also selling quickly, according to Costco Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti, who made the announcement on September 26 during a quarterly earnings call. According to CNBC, he claimed, "I've gotten a couple of calls that people have seen online that we've been selling one-ounce gold bars." Yes, however we only allow two per person, so after we load them on the site, they usually disappear within a few hours. #costco #costcofinds #costcodeals #costcohaul #costcobuys #costcodoesitagain #costcolife #walmart #costcofind #costcowholesale #amazon #shopping #costcoshopping #deals #costcocanada #food #couponcommunity #costcocalifornia #clearancehunter #foodie #clearance #costcobayarea #costcorun #costcoclearance #costcowarehouse #keto #costcoinstantsavings #traderjoes #costcotreasurehunts #costconewitems

Costco Wholesale 𝗶𝘀 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗽! Ever noticed how Costco isn't just about affordability but a strategic mind game? Sure, their prices are moderate, but the catch is that you're buying in bulk. While Walmart may offer similar items at lower prices, Costco's marketing mastery is what sets them apart. They've masterfully crafted the perception that their profits don't come from product sales; they earn from the yearly membership subscriptions. Plus, who can resist their famous rotisserie chicken and $1.50 hot dog combo? It's all part of the psychological game that keeps customers coming back. As for many people, $𝟵.𝟵𝟵 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 $𝟵, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 $𝟭𝟬! #Costco #marketingmastery

🛒 Costco Wholesale is increasing membership prices 💰 for the first time in 7 years . +$10/year for executive and $5 for standard, at 52M members across both at roughly 50/50 split is $7.5*52M = $390M of incremental revenue. Assuming the price increase doesn't cause increased churn...which it probably won't to any meaningful extent as the price increase is relatively small to any individual/family (especially so given Costco's typical higher HHI customer), there's no real good substitute, and it's shockingly sticky. This is the rough equivalent of: 🌭 🥤 Raising hot dog & drink combo prices from $1.50 by $2.00 to $3.50. 200M hot dogs/year *$2 = $400M. 🐔 Raising rotisserie chicken price from $4.99 by $3 to $8.99. 137M chickens/year * $3 = $411M. ^^Doing any of the two above would cause catastrophic insurrections of Costco fans but no one is really going to bat an eye at the $5-10 membership price increase. Great move. #pricing #retail #costco #strategy

The Masters and Costco Wholesale, two of my favorite things, share 1 thing in common: unparalleled pricing strategy. Both have premium products with dedicated fanbases. As such, they can charge a hefty sum for access to their product. Yet they get all this credit for keeping their food prices low. COSTCO - memberships are $60-$120/year but let's be honest, you aren't walking out of there with a cart <$200 unless you have some magical willpower. Depending on how many times you go, Costco is making hundreds or thousands of dollars off of each member every year. Yet what's the story that's always written? "Why Costco will never get rid of the $1.50 hot dog combo!" That's right, they make billions every year, yet the story is about the underpriced hot dog. THE MASTERS - If you can win the lottery, tickets aren't too bad. If not, you'll pay thousands for a ticket to the event, thousands on airfare and lodging, and even more for merch. All that but yet the experience is truly a tradition unlike any other. Scroll through Masters stories this week and you'll inevitably see the "Prices keep going up except for concessions" article. Where else can you get a Pimento Cheese sandy for $1.50 or a Georgia Peach Ice Cream Sandwich for $2.50? The point is both these brands have built an immense following but the story isn't about the admission price, its about the amazing deal once you get in. Just an absolute masterclass in pricing strategy and narrative framing.

Most know Costco for the $1.50 hotdogs and the story of Costco co-founder Jim Sinegal telling the current CEO "if you raise the (price of the) effing hot dog, I will kill you", but I don’t think people understand the level of operation and thought that goes into each Costco location: - They aim for a low ~14-15% markup on most of their products (for comparison — Walmart aims for ~45%, while Ulta / Sephora aim for ~70%) - There are only 4,000 SKU’s (products) per store and ~40% of those are curated for each region (most grocery stores have 30k+) - Costco starting pay rate is $18.50/hr, and employees get 1.5x on Sundays - Rotisserie chickens are sold at a loss and on avg only on shelves for ~2hrs per day - Was the first company to grow from zero to $3B in sales in less than six years Long live Costco!

Most know Costco for the $1.50 hotdogs, but I don’t think people understand the level of operation and thought that goes into each Costco location: - They aim for a low ~14% margin on most of their products (for comparison — Walmart aims for ~45%, while Ulta / Sephora aim for ~70%) - There are only 4,000 SKU’s (products) per store and ~40% of those are curated for each region (most grocery stores have 30k+) - Costco starting pay rate is $18.50/hr, and employees get 1.5x on Sundays - Rotisserie chickens are sold at a loss and on average only on shelves for ~2hrs per day - Costco was also the first company to grow from zero to $3B in sales in less than six years Long live Costco 🫶

𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀: 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗹 For the most part, the top three warehouse chains have similar strategies and tactics, and proximity is one of the main reasons consumers choose one chain over another. But there are some differences. Costco Wholesale Corporation’s Kirkland Signature private label meets or exceeds national brands in quality, has a very strong following, and accounts for about a quarter of the retailer’s sales. It has a reputation for being one of the best store brands in all of retail, not just in the warehouse club category. While all three retailers have strong store brand offerings, Kirkland attracts the most intense loyalty. “Kirkland at Costco is a very well-known brand with many offerings at a solid price point,” says Brian Numainville, principal at The Feedback Group in Lake Success, NY. Produce Blue Book Story 👉 https://lnkd.in/ghik7si7 #retail #supermarkets #grocery #privatelabel #clubstores #retailers

Retail Today / Retail Renaissance: Costco’s not so secret weapon, “Kirkland Signature”, the private label powerhouse. The envy of the retail world! #costco #kirkland Yes, WalMart has their new premier line “Better Goods”, Target’s “Good & Gather”, even Trader Joe’s and Aldi are known for their private brands. #walmart #target #traderjoes #aldi But nothing comes close to “KIRKLAND”, this asset is worth $60 Billion Dollars in sales a year! 💥 See attached, it’s a “who’s who” of vendor partners. From nuts, to socks, water, wine, apparel, peanut butter, olive oil to booze. #vendorpartners #apparelindustry “Kirkland Signature” spirits, gin, vodka, bourbon, whiskey, even single malt whiskey from Scotland. Costco is the largest seller of alcoholic beverages in the U.S. at $7 Billion Dollars! Costco’s business model just keeps growing stronger, with a people-first mentality and product driven. With 876 stores worldwide, producing +$260 Billion Dollars in sales. #peoplefirst #product PEOPLE - PRODUCT - PRESENTATION - PROCESS = PROFITABILITY Sales Trend: 🔥🔥🔥 February +5% March +8% April +6% #retail #retailtrends #retailindustry #groceryindustry #wine #spirits #shoppingexperience #privatelabel #TopRetailExpert