Costco is a membership-only warehouse club that provides a wide selection of merchandise. It operates an international chain of membership warehouses, primarily under the “Costco Wholesale” name, that carry quality, brand-name merchandise at substantially lower prices than are typically found at conventional wholesale or retail sources.
Costco has seven hundred and seventy warehouses worldwide, including fifty-one in the United States and Puerto Rico, one hundred in Canada, thirty-six in Mexico, twenty-eight in the United Kingdom, twenty-six in Japan, thirteen in Korea, thirteen in Taiwan, eight in Australia, two in Spain, one in Iceland and one in France.
In addition to carrying merchandise from its own private label lines (“Kirkland Signature” and “Kirkland Signature Pet”), Costco also sells products from national brands such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Hershey’s & General Mills. These products are sold in bulk at discounted prices – often at rates lower than local Supermarkets.
Costco also offers meat (including rotisserie chicken), produce, deli items & bakery goods at most locations. Some locations also have liquor stores, garden centers, tire centers & pharmacies.
The first Costco warehouse opened in Seattle, Washington in 1983. The company expanded rapidly thereafter and opened its first international store (in Canada) just four years later. Today there are more than seven hundred Costco warehouses around the world.
Costco is headquartered in Issaquah, Washington and employs more than two hundred thousand people.
As of 2019 there are a total of 770 Costco distribution centers worldwide- 51 located within the United States and Puerto Rico, 100 across Canada, 36 throughout Mexico , 28 scattered throughout the United Kingdom , 26 located throughout Japan , 13 positioned throughout Korea , 13 located across Taiwan , 8 situated throughout Australia , 2 placed within Spain , 1 located in Iceland and 1 resting France .
