Changes Planned for Costco in 2024

It is now 2024 and Costco has some changes in store. I found this article from the first day of January, 2024 noting six changes for Costco this year (beyond the typical product changes (It’s Gone? Discontinued Products)).

6 Changes Expected for Costco in 2024

1. Many Store Openings

The article reports that, whereas Costco opened 23 stores in 2023, it plans to open 31 in 2024, 24 of which will be in the United States.

As a Costco fan, I’m certainly glad to see any expansion of the store. 

2. A New Store Concept

According to the article, Costco plans on building a “mega-warehouse” in Fresno, California. This Costco store would be 241,000 square feet (as compared to 146,000 for the average store) and would include both the regular warehouse shopping and online order fulfillment. It would also have a drive-thru car wash, a gas station with 32 fuel pumps, and close to 900 parking spaces.

I never order from Costco online so I actually never thought about where online order fulfillment takes place. This new warehouse sounds like quite the ambitious project. I am unaware of other Costco stores have car washes. Of course many have gas stations (Got gas?) and many have large parking lots (unfortunately, often with poor parking (Terrible parking at Costco)).

3. App Improvements

According to the article, Costco has not focused too much on technology. However, it is now directing more attention to improving its app and online shopping. Some of these recent improvements include a digital membership card and a shopping list tool on the mobile app. Plans for the upcoming year include barcode scanning and online inventory lookup.

Despite my age and being someone who “should” use a lot of apps, I don’t. I am not  particularly good with technology and I don’t care about it too much (I’ve mentioned that, despite how much I read, I never got an e-reader (Benefits of a nearby Costco on a beach vacation: Part 2 of 2). Therefore, I did not view the lack of these functions as limitations of Costco. However, I know that others may find them very beneficial.

4. A Membership Price Hike

The article warms members that there will be an increase in the fee this year. According to the article, the fee has remained the same since 2017. 

I wrote recently about the likelihood of an increase in membership fees. Given the increase in prices overall over the past few years and the fact that most of Costco’s profit comes from membership fees ((Costco Executives); (Costco is getting stricter); (Increase in membership fees)), it makes sense that members will have to pay more. I don’t think it will be hard to make the increase worth it for me (Making the fee increase “worth it”).

5. A Change In Leadership

Another change the author mentions is the new CEO starting January 1, 2024. Craig Jelinek will be replaced by Ron Vachris, current Costco President and Chief Operating Officer. The article says that the new CEO has worked for Costco for 40 years. He started as a forklift driver and has worked at other roles within the company since. 

In my posts about jobs at Costco, I mentioned that some of the worst jobs may lead to better jobs (Best and Worst Jobs at Costco: (Part 2 of 2): Worst Jobs). It is inspiring to read about this long career with Costco, leading to the highest position within the company.

6. Food Court Changes

The author discusses upcoming changes to the food court. She points out that any changes to the food court tend to lead to controversy (e.g., standing tables at some stores). She mentions that one likely change is the replacement of the churro with cookies. 

Despite not eating at it, I am interested in writing about the food court at Costco, given the importance of it for many members ((Out for lunch…at Costco?); (Healthier food court items?); (Secrets of the food court)). I had not heard about the standing tables, but a little research reveals that this change has only been implemented in South Korea. I have seen several changes–or potential changes–mentioned recently. These changes include the addition of strawberry ice cream, mango smoothies, and roast beef sandwiches. I have also seen mention of the churros being taken off the menu and the potential addition of a large chocolate chip cookie. Of course, as with most food court items (except maybe the pizza and the hot dogs (Things you didn’t know you didn’t know about Costco!); (Food court nutrition: Info you may not want to know)), the specific items offered differ across store (Costco food courts around the country and the world). 

What do you think about these upcoming changes? Surprised?