Membership — Blog — Healy Chen

No soup for you

Word on the street is that Costco will begin scanning membership cards at warehouse entrances. As if the problem at Costco is they don’t check for your membership enough? Not only do they already visually check for a card at the entrance, but then they scan your card again at checkout. One time I was at self-checkout, and a team member asked to see my card, even though I already scanned it at the machine?! Nowadays you even need to show proof of membership before buying at the food court.

Of course, I get it: Costco has to protect its 4.5 billion dollars per year cash cow in the form of membership dues. Inflationary headwinds has made it difficult for Costco to keep its famously bargain prices. Much like how Netflix cracked down on account sharing, the prevailing standard operating procedure is clear: no more freeloading. A hot dog and soda for $1.50 - a menu item that Costco most certainly loses money on - is for paying members only.

I wonder if non-members have solicited members to buy food for them. Like teenagers asking an adult to go inside a gas station to buy liquor. With fast food prices in the 10s of dollars for a meal, $1.50 for a hot dog and soda just might be the closest thing to a free lunch.

I guess Costco membership “sharing” is not statistically insignificant? I mean, otherwise the company wouldn’t bother implementing account scanning at the front entrance. They want to make doubly sure the membership is active, and the cardholder is the actual person there. No more taking screenshots of the membership QR code in Costco app and sending it to your friends or relatives. (Does that even work?)

Hey, if that means less people inside of Costco during busy times, I welcome the new membership enforcement mechanism!

The greatness of Costco

Even though I live within walking distance to a Whole Foods, Target, and a Trader Joe’s, I still make the pilgrimage (in relative distance) to Costco every few weeks. It’s one of the few reasons I still own a car (other than, you know, being a huge car enthusiast) - to drive there and carry all the stuff back.

Because Costco cannot be beaten from a price per unit standpoint. I may have to buy more than I really need at that time (four pounds of oranges compared to one pound at Whole Foods), but I am paying significantly less. The key then is to have enough space to store the extra stuff until it is time for me to use it. My favorite is buying many pounds of Alaskan cod, separating them into half pound pieces, and freezing them for long-term keeping.

Fitness guys and girls: don’t forget about the sale on Optimum Nutrition whey protein at Costco. 48 dollars for 80 servings is a superb deal, from a hugely trusted brand. (Though I can remember it used to cost $48 un-discounted before the pandemic.) I took great advantage of this and bought four bags (had to go to Costco twice, since the sale limits two per customer per visit). Suffice it to say, I am set for much of 2024 on protein. (Yeah buddy! Light weight!)

Another awesome thing about Costco: clothing. For your everyday basic items, Costco offers excellent quality and low prices. Every time I visit, I take a look at what’s newly available at the clothing section. (Would that be compulsive?) I own many pants, shorts, shirts, sweaters, et cetera - all bought at Costco. It is fantastic.

I am admittedly lucky in that I get to bum off my father’s Costco membership (one account can have two cards). But even if that weren’t the case, I would happily pay the $60 for the basic Gold Star membership. Much like an Amazon Prime membership, I easily make back the annual fee in either savings or credit card points.