$60 Costco Membership Will Increase, It’s ‘A Question of When, Not If,’ CFO Says
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Josephine Nesbit
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Nicholas Morine
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If there’s ever been a good time to join Costco, it’s now. There’s no set date on when the wholesale giant is expected to raise the prices of its memberships, but Costco’s chief financial officer, Richard Galanti, made its approach clear on the company’s latest earnings call on March 2.
“In our view, it’s a question of when, not if,” Galanti said of the eventual rate hike. When pressed as to when that price increase may arrive, the CFO replied, “We’ll let you know,” per Fox 5 New York.
Costco currently charges an annual fee of $60 for the basic Gold Star membership and $120 for the Executive membership with added perks. According to Eat This, Not That, this rate hasn’t changed since June 2017, when the fee went up $5 for gold members and $10 for executive members.
While no specific date was given, Galanti did note that the company has averaged 5 years and 7 months between membership price increases, and The Street indicated that this placed the next price hike in Jan. 2023. As of March 8, this hike had not materialized.
Costco has an extremely loyal customer base, The Street reported, with a 92.5% membership renewal rate in the U.S. The company does everything it can to protect this retention rate. While the company is aware of economic concerns facing many Americans, Galanti stated — during a previous earnings call — that the economy is not a reason to hold prices. By increasing membership prices, Galanti said the extra revenue could be used to keep prices low on some items where cost has gone up.
“We have no problem thinking about doing it — and doing it ultimately,” Galanti said during an earlier call with investors over the matter. “We feel that we’re in a very strong competitive position right now, and if we have to wait a few months or several months, that’s fine.” He added, “I’ll be purposefully coy on when that might be.”
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