A Treasure Hunt from A to Z
From the publisher:
Join David & Susan Schwartz on a whirlwind tour of Costco warehouses around the globe. They are two of Costco’s biggest fans, yet live in one of NYC’s smallest apartments.
Since 2016, they have been to over 250 of Costco’s 850+ warehouses, plus gotten behind-the-scenes looks at depots, packaging facilities, vendors, meatpacking plants, and even a pre-opening party.
Travelling over 240,000 miles, they have visited at least one warehouse in 47 US states and 13 other countries, including Australia, Canada, China, France, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, South Korea, Taiwan, and the UK. They celebrated the launch of this book with a Yonkers to Yorba Linda Costco Road Trip, stopping to visit their favorite retailer along the way.
Topics are covered in a whimsical A to Z format, using Q&A to cover topics ranging from Cashews and Chicken to Hot Dogs and Hawaii, targeted to delight the more than 128 million Costco members and over 300,000 dedicated Costco employees. There is a Prologue that describes how the authors came to write the book, and an introduction that provides a brief narrative history of Costco and its predecessor companies.
Sample Fun Facts:
Costco sells more than half of the world’s cashews and seven times more hotdogs than all MLB stadiums combined.
When Costco changed its source of salmon from Chile to Norway it impacted the economies of both countries.
Costco sells six million pumpkin pies each year, but only between September and December
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My husband and I have been Costco members since around 1988. We had moved back to Florida and his new employer added us to their business account. Back then, only businesses could join. Hard to imagine that now! It was unlike anything I had ever seen. It was an enormous warehouse and while many things have changed over the years, that has not. Back then we would sometimes spend $100 in the store – cash or check only.
This book is a celebration of all things Costco. The authors did their homework, wormed their way behind the scenes, and even had Pennie Clark Ianniciello, the retired book buyer for the chain, help them out. I belong to a Costco Facebook group called “Costco Finds”, and my favorite thing about it is when people post pictures from Costcos in other countries. It’s always so interesting! This book also includes some facts about the Costcos in various countries, and I really enjoyed that. Sushi in Japan! All pork hot dogs in the Pacific area countries. There are stores in Europe, Asia, and Australia (and New Zealand!) Anchorage, Alaska has two stores, and one of them is the third busiest store in the chain. The Iwilei Costco in Hawaii is the busiest store in the world.
There are things I love about Costco – their employees are well treated and generally pretty happy at work. They stick to making about 14% profit on everything, so they never price gouge, not even during a pandemic. They don’t sell crap – stick to Temu or Amazon for that. They sell brand name products as well as Kirkland Signature, their in-house brand, which are priced ridiculously low, comparatively. It’s not perfect – there are things I’ve purchased and loved, and never saw them again. Some are one and done, but some I’ve bought for years and then they disappear – looking at you, Nina canned tomatoes!
Their return policy is so customer focused that they will take back pretty much anything at any time, other than the usual limitations on electronics, appliances, etc. I once bought a new mattress and ended up having to return it. It took a couple of phone calls and that was it. I’ve purchased appliances, and the price, already lower than anywhere else, included installation and hauling away the old ones. We buy tires there as well, they have great prices and great service, too.
Nowadays, I visit Costco about once or twice a month. I purchase almost all of my meat, fish, dairy, and produce there. I get my paper goods, trash bags, toothpaste, vitamins, and over-the-counter drugs like Tylenol and generic Flonase. I often buy one of their rotisserie chickens, too; it’s only $4.99 and is twice the size of the chickens I get at Publix for $9, and it’s really good! I can usually get a couple of dinners out of one chicken. My daughter gets her glasses at the optical center. I get most small appliances, computers, and other electronics there. I almost always hit the food court for their Mocha Freeze, a Starbucks frappuccino dupe at less than half the price, my husband loves their famous $1.50 hot dog and a soda, and my daughter loves the pizza. I spend around $400 every time I go; if it’s the second trip that month, maybe that will be $200. But I know I’m getting good quality in everything I buy and it is rare that any other store can match their prices. It is not surprising to me that 90% of their members renew each year.
David and Susan Schwartz did a good job with this book. It was obviously a labor of love and will appeal to Costco fans everywhere. If you’ve never been (there are still four states that don’t have a Costco!) this book will explain its popularity. As much as I love Costco, I didn’t buy this book, but I did get it from my library!
The only downside to this book is that it is only available as a hardcover – there is no ebook or audiobook. It is a very fast read; there are a lot of pictures, and it is very light on text. I read it in an hour or so. If you need a gift for someone who has everything and loves Costco, this is perfect. If you are curious, you can probably check it out of your library.
11/2024 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE JOY OF COSTO by David & Susan Schwartz. Hot Dog Press (September 12, 2023). ISBN: 978-1959505006. 272p.
Posted by Stacy Alesi 
Stacy Alesi's BookBitch.com™ 