If you were asked to go to a store that was as big as a warehouse, had no signs to help, no advertisements to know what you are getting, no bags to pack the things you buy AND you had to pay a membership fee to be allowed in, would you do it? Of course not, and yet today Costco is revolutionizing shopping in America and internationally.
The strange model has seen huge numbers of customers become Costco apostles, devout in their membership to the large warehouse store. The reason they do it is simple, they feel they are making incredible savings every time they visit. While most people go to Costco to purchase something small they could end up leaving with lawn furniture, funeral caskets or diamond rings. The store changes its inventory constantly and is always offering a new bargain. This has made people both love and hate the store in much the same way people love and hate both McDonald’s and Starbux.
Costco is now the second-largest retailer in the world, behind Walmart. There are 785 warehouses around the world with 546 in the US and the rest spread across Canada, Mexico, Japan, Australia, the UK, Taiwan, Spain, Iceland, France, China, and South Korea. If there isn’t a Costco in your country yet then be patient because they are slowly taking over the world. The latest country on the list of Costco conquests will be New Zealand in 2021.
Costco now has over 100 million members worldwide and operates in more sections of the economy than can be mentioned including an auto program, a photo store, travel, car dealerships and more. The biggest selling item in Costco though is toilet paper. The company sells more than a billion rolls of toilet paper each year, enough to wrap around the Earth more than 1200 times. The company is an incredible example of how far people will go for a bargain, even if it requires them spending far more than they intended.
