In a function revealed Thursday, Costco Chairman Hamilton “Tony” James advised Chief Govt Journal that regardless that he is been on Costco’s board for 36 years, he nonetheless loves attending the conferences.
“I discover it fascinating,” James stated within the Q&A. “The corporate is a good window on what is going on on the earth of customers, what they’re shopping for or not shopping for.”
And what they’re shopping for, along with the beloved $1.50 sizzling canine combo, are 10-carat diamonds and gold bars. (Wells Fargo analysts present in September that the corporate sells as much as $200 million value of gold bars month-to-month.)
“A Porsche supplier in Seattle put their vehicles on the ground of a Costco, they usually bought out in per week,” James stated.
Costco had about 137 million paying members in 2024, and most, James stated, are “average-income earners nationally” however the warehouse chain additionally has “prosperous members with two instances the typical revenue.”
These members enable the corporate to do “exceptional issues” like promoting extra high-priced Dom Perignon Champagne than “anybody else” — and for many years. In 2001, for instance, the then-director of wine at Costco advised the Los Angeles Occasions that the warehouse chain was the “nation’s greatest retailer of Dom Perignon.”
Enterprise Insider experiences that, in line with information from analytics agency Numerator, millennial and Gen X households with increased revenue most well-liked procuring at Costco over the competitors.
Associated: Costco Bulks Up Most Retailer Staff’ Paychecks to Extra Than $30 an Hour.
“We have all the time recognized we might transfer something in quantity if the standard was good and the worth was nice — Rolex watches, Dom Perignon, 10-carat diamonds,” James stated.
“Prosperous folks love a great deal,” he added, although they don’t seem to be solely shopping for luxurious gadgets.
The firm’s Kirkland model is “the second-largest model anyplace,” James notes.
Costco reported internet gross sales of $19.51 billion for January 2025, a rise of 9.2 p.c from the identical interval final 12 months.
