Who owns Cosco?

Cosco, also known as the Costco Wholesale Corporation, is a publicly owned and traded company. Here is a short history of the company:

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST)
999 Lake Dr.
Issaquah, WA 98027

Phone: 425-313-8100
Fax: 425-313-8103
http://www.costco.com

Costco Wholesale is the largest wholesale club operator in the US (ahead of Wal-Mart's SAM'S CLUB). The company operates about 470 membership warehouse stores serving 45 million cardholders in 37 US states and Puerto Rico, Canada, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Taiwan, and the UK, primarily under the Costco Wholesale name. Stores offer discount prices on, on average, 4,000 products (many in bulk packaging), ranging from alcoholic beverages and appliances to fresh food, pharmaceuticals, and tires. Certain club memberships also offer products and services such as car and home insurance, mortgage and real estate services, and travel packages.

To shop at Costco customers must be members -- a policy the company believes reinforces customer loyalty and provides a steady source of fee revenue. Three types of annual memberships are available: Business ($45 each and $35 for each additional card), Gold Star ($45; for individuals), and Executive ($100; allows members to purchase products and services, including insurance, mortgage services, and long-distance phone service, at reduced rates). Costco's card membership renewal rate is 86%.

Facing competition from discounters, including Target, that don't charge a membership fee, as well as from rival SAM'S CLUB, Costco is expanding and retrofitting its warehouses to accommodate fresh food sections and other ancillary units, such as gas stations and optical departments. Costco's foray into grocery sales has been a success. Food and sundries accounted for about 60% of Costco's total sales in 2005, making it the third-largest seller of groceries in the US behind Wal-Mart Supercenters and Kroger. However, the company has shelved plans for Costco Fresh, a new gourmet grocery format it had planned to launch in the fall of 2003. Costco is expanding its premium private-label Kirkland Signature line of some 330 items (about 15% of sales) to 500 products within five years. It also plans to grow its e-commerce business, Costco.com. New product introductions include caskets.

Despite intense competition in the crowded warehouse club market, the company plans to add up to 30 new outlets in the US and Canada by the end of its 2006 fiscal year. (Costco fell short of its 2005 goal for store openings with only 16 new locations opened, including warehouses in Japan, Taiwan, and the UK.) Through its joint venture with Mexico's Controladora Comercial Mexicana, Costco Mexico operates 27 warehouse stores south of the border and plans to add up to three new warehouses there next year. Farther from home, Costco is considering entering Australia, possibly via a joint venture such as it has in Mexico. Ultimately, the company plans to more than double its store count to 960 warehouses worldwide.

In addition to its stand-alone stores, Costco has begun opening outlets in malls to grow in congested areas, such as Los Angeles. Costco also operates two Costco Home stores, which sell furniture, and has plans for a third.

Costco Wholesale Industries, a division of Costco, operates manufacturing businesses, including food packaging, meat processing, jewelry distribution, and optical laboratories.

Despite its generally good reputation as an employer, Costco became the target in August 2005 of a national class-action lawsuit accusing the company of discriminating against women in promotions to store manager. A similar sex-discrimination suit is pending against its rival Wal-Mart Stores.