Costco Connection - July 2011

cover story

company
kee p

Costco members who don't fit the mold

W HO IS A TYPICAL Costco member? Is it the head of a large family or a small business, as many people tend to believe? Is it
someone from a particular age group or
income level? Certainly, there are miscon-
ceptions as to who can benefit from being
a Costco member. The truth is that Costco
members come in all shapes and sizes,
cover a wide range of demographics and
sometimes are even one of a kind.
To prepare for this chronicle, we asked
“unconventional” Costco members to send
us their personal stories. What we found is
that some Costco members may not fit the
stereotype, but they definitely fit in, and
benefit as part of, the elite Costco family.

—Steve Fisher

Feeding the menagerie

While many Costco members love animals,
some take it to extremes, using their mem-
bership to give their pets the very best.

I AM A SINGLE senior with only myself and a dog to feed—a 200-pound Great Dane. People say, “Wow! It must cost you an arm and a leg to feed him!” I reply, “Not if you shop at Costco!” He loves the Kirkland Signature™ dry dog food and Kirkland Signature biscuits and the various treats, such as Bully Sticks and chewies. And the pet beds and toys are indestructible.

It has been a monthly one-stop-shopping spree for 25 years.

I have taken single, skeptical friends to Costco, and they are all members now.

—Sabine Whitlock Placerville, California

[MY HUSBAND AND I] usually have more pet food than people food, especially cat food. We feed feral cats, so we buy 12 bags at a time.

Someone always asks us how many cats we have. We just smile and say, “One great big one!”

—Candice and Douglas Schellenger

Reno, Nevada

ONCE A WEEK we buy three 50-pound bags of your birdseed. My husband and I are avid bird lovers and feed many species of birds in our backyard. We normally get around 10 different species of birds.