Costco: Company Description Costco operates a chain of membership warehouse clubs and offers two types of annual memberships: Gold Star and Business. In the US and Canada, either costs $60 per year and an Executive upgrade is available for $120. Prices vary in other countries. The company opened its first warehouse in 1983 in Seattle. Costco operated a total of 782 warehouses as of September 2019. The company offers products in a wide range of categories, including fresh and packaged foods, home appliances and apparel. Costco also offers gasoline and pharmacy services at some locations. [caption id="attachment_99773" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Source: Company reports[/caption]   Key Events Overview: 2017–2019 Over the last three years, Costco has focused on expanding its footprint by opening numerous warehouses and venturing into new markets including China, Iceland and France. Costco opened its first store in Iceland in May 2017 and its first store in France in June 2017. In August 2019, Costco opened its first warehouse club outlet in China and plans to open a second between the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021. It also plans to open its first outlet in New Zealand in 2021. During the three-year period, Costco has stepped up its investment in e-commerce and omni-channel capabilities. In June 2017, Costco partnered with Instacart to provide same-day delivery service for perishable groceries.Toward the end of 2017, Costco introduced its own two-day delivery service called CostcoGrocery for shelf-stable grocery products. At the end of its first quarter, ended November 25, 2018, the company announced that it was testing pick-up lockers for BOPIS orders at 10 locations. During its second quarter, ended February 17, 2019, Costco enlarged its BOPIS product selection and opened its first fulfilment automation center to support its growing e-commerce operations. Figure 2. Costco: Events Timeline, 2008–2019 [wpdatatable id=37]

Source: Company reports/S&P Capital IQ/Coresight Research