Inside a Costco store - How does it look like?

After all those posts, it is time to see what Costco looks in real life. For the last week we’ve been posting about all the things that make Costco such a unique and interesting retailer. We paid a visit to a Costco store in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Costco store in Honolulu

First up next to the entrance is the Costco hot dog stand where they sell their famous $1,50 hot dog combo, which includes a hot dog and a drink. Actually the price has been the same ever since from 1985. Costco founder Jim Sinegal has stated that he’d “kill the CEO who would raise the price”.

When taken the current inflation into account, the price would be somewhere over four dollars nowadays. However, the $1,5 price has become a distinguished part of Costco.

First impressions matter

Everything is big in Costco. Costco is the quintessential American retailer.

First impression of the store is “wow this is big”. The trolleys are the size of a small car and the piles of goods are very high.

However, one part that is not big is the size of the assortment. Costco stocks about 4 000 SKUs in one store. Not a lot of varieties to choose from.

The thing with Costco is, customer don’t have to choose since Costco has already done the work for them. The products are very good in quality, especially when compared to the low prices they have.

Big variety with small assortment

Food represents about 55% of Costco’s total revenue. Besides food, Costco sells almost everything from diamond rings to office chairs. That creates a feeling of a treasure hunt. This is enchanced as Costco has batches of products available only for short periods.

There is always something new to explore for every visit and the customer can make bargains every time they go to a Costco.

The big product sizes apply to the fresh section as well. One can’t buy just a banana, but you have to buy 1,5 kilograms of bananas.

A lot of products prepared in the stores

The meat and fresh produce is prepared in the store. Even though Costco is a price leader and a discounter, they still have a lot of in-store operations. The store makes their own minced meat. Customers can also order different kinds of party platters and salads.

While the assortment is quite narrow, in fresh produce they have a lot to choose from. Ready meals, cakes and food to go selection is competitive even compared to stores that are specialised in these categories.

Worth a visit

If you are on a trip to a city with Costco, it’s a must visit, for retail enthusiasts at least. ;)

Just bare in mind it is not easy to get in. You need a membership in order to buy products. Sometimes the staff is friendly enough to let you in without the card, but that is not always the case.