The top Costco competitors are Walmart, Amazon, Home Depot, The Kroger Company, Target, Kmart, Lowe’s and others. Costco is a wholesale retail corporation that was formed during the year 1976 and is headquartered in Washington, United States. It is a popular chain of membership-only warehouses at the global level. This brand is also famous for its retail in organic food, rotisserie chicken, prime beef, and wine.
Costco’s prices have gained a lot of customer to their business. It follows low-cost operation by optimizing all the processes that gain minimum cost and also get maximum output.
Costco has streamlined the distribution network to have a global reach. It maintains a four-fold approach that focuses on carbon footprint reduction, enhancing warehouse energy management system, design initiatives to develop an environmental responsive business.
As of May 2023, it generated a revenue of $53.648B while its Market Cap was $241.46B and net income $1.302 billion. Costco gross profit for the quarter ending May 31, 2023 was $6.473B. Costco operating income for the quarter ending May 31, 2023 was $1.679B
It has its operations in many countries and provides an attractive value proposition to its loyal customers and due to which it does sees some top competitors.
Through this article, let us discuss the top Costco competitors.
Table of Contents
Costco’s top 17 competitors include:
1) Walmart
- Product Type: Hypermarkets
- Industry: Retail
- Founded Date: July 2, 1962
- Founders: Sam Walton and James “Bud” Walton
- Headquarters: Bentonville, Arkansas, United States
- Area Served: 24 countries
- Current CEO: Doug McMillon
- Revenue: $161.632B (July 31, 2023)
- Market cap: $424.15B (August 21, 2023)
- Number of employees: 2,100,000 (2023)
A top Costco competitor, Walmart is an American multinational retail corporation that was established during the year 1962 and is headquartered in Arkansas, United States.
Their products are also available online. Walmart mainly focuses on its pricing and low price is its motto. Walmart’s internal logistics system makes use of great initiative and innovative methods and technology. It has an excellent system to track its products performance in each store and country. Walmart is famous for providing a unique experience to both online and offline shoppers. It also provides a gift card system to its loyal customers to encourage them to purchase more from them.
Walmart has expanded internationally and currently operates approximately 10,500 stores and clubs in 20 countries
Walmart net income for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $7.891B. Walmart gross profit for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $39.782B. Walmart total assets for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 were $245.053B.
Walmart involves the use of information technology to support its international logistics system. By this, it is easy for them to track the performance of individual products at all locations. The company has a strongly focused strategy to empower human resource management and development. Walmart has grown to great heights over the years, and due to which it is seen as a top Costco competitor.
2) Amazon
- Product Type: E-commerce
- Industry: Technology
- Founded Date: July 5, 1994
- Founder: Jeff Bezos
- Headquarters: Seattle, Washington, United States
- Area Served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Andy Jassy
- Revenue: $134.383B (June 30, 2023)
- Market cap: $1374.53B (August 18, 2023)
- Number of employees: 1,541,000 (2022)
Amazon is an internet Costco competitor that was formed during the year 1994 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Amazon which initially started as an online bookstore has seen a lot of response from the customer side. Hence it has decided to expand its online business operations to many products along with books.
At present, Amazon has a solid base of customers who frequently purchase from them. Gradually it expanded its business operations into the selling of many products like toys, apparels, electronics, accessories, footwear, home and kitchen, and many more. It has come up to the level that people recognize Amazon as an E-Commerce giant. Amazon has a robust CRM that keeps track of the customer’s buying pattern.
Amazon gross profit for the quarter ending June 30, 2023 was $65.010B. Amazon net income for the quarter ending June 30, 2023 was $6.750B.
This helps them to provide individual items or related items of preference that has been captured through their purchases or items visited. Moreover, many customers are repeat buyers thereby resulting in low cost of acquisition of new buyers. Amazon has an excellent delivery network that is well-structured to make the product available in remote locations. It has been successful after many acquisitions and due to which it is a top Costco competitor.
3) Home Depot
- Product Type: Home improvement retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded Date: June 29, 1978
- Founders: Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank
- Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
- Area Served: United States, Canada, Mexico
- Current CEO: Marvin Ellison
- Revenue: $42.916B (July 31, 2023)
- Number of employees: 518,100 (2023)
- Market cap: $329.13B (August 18, 2023)
Home Depot is an American home improvement company that sells construction products, tools, and services. The company was formed during the year 1978 and is headquartered in Georgia, United States. It has its main business operations in Canada, the US, and Mexico.
It also sees its position in the sector value as it operates in the retail sector. It is ranked second in the retail sector thereby providing a massive strength to grow and expand. It is the largest retailer in the world and has a huge power over its competitors.
The total number of people employed by Home Depot exceeds 518,100. By 2023, it’s Market Cap and net income were $329.13B and $4.659B respectively. Home Depot gross profit for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $14.157B.
It has a huge product portfolio and a unique collection of products. Home Depot provides Eco Options Program for customers who prefer eco-friendly solutions. At present, the company has about 9000 products in its category.
4) The Kroger Company
- Product Type: Home improvement retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded Date: June 29, 1978
- Founders: Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank
- Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
- Area Served: United States, Canada, Mexico
- Current CEO: Marvin Ellison
- Revenue: $10.085B (April 30, 2023)
- Number of employees: 430,000 (2023)
- Market cap: $34.14B (August 21, 2023)
Yet another Costco competitor, The Kroger Company is a supermarket chain company that was formed during the year 1883 and is headquartered in Ohio, United States. It is the largest supermarket chain in the United States. With nearly 2,800 stores in 35 states under two dozen banners and annual sales of more than $132.5 billion, Kroger today ranks as one of the world’s largest retailers.
The company provides the best prices for the highest quality products. Kroger is a fully integrated retail store that owns operations from manufacturing of food products to sale and promotion. Its main strength is its multi-brand, multi-format retail operations that provide a good experience and economies of scale. The various innovative services provided by Kroger are in-store health clinics, financial services, Disney magic selections for kids, in-store consultants, and many more.
Kroger net income for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $0.962B. Kroger gross profit for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $10.085B.
It has a huge product portfolio with many popular private label brands. It is popular for its dairy products, bakeries, groceries, and many more. The private label brands of the company are very popular with the customers and due to which it is a top Costco competitor.
5) Target
- Product Type: General merchandise retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded Date: May 1, 1962
- Founder: George Draper Dayton
- Headquarters: Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
- Area Served: United States
- Current CEO: Brian Cornell
- Revenue: $24.773B (July 31, 2023)
- Number of employees: 440,000 (2023)
- Market cap: $60.56B (August 18, 2023)
Also a top Costco competitor, Target Corporation was established during the year 1902 and is headquartered in Minnesota, United States. It is one of the largest department store retailers that provide a chain of retail store.
It provides household items, food and pet supplies, apparel, accessories, home furnishings, etc. Target has its business operations in the United States and also available online. The merchandise of Target is affordable yet stylish. It has established a partnership with many designers and dealers to provide products at a low price.
Target is a general merchandise retailer with stores in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. According to their corporate website, 75% of the U.S. population lives within 10 miles of a Target store. Target has 1,954 stores in the U.S., 56 supply chain facilities, and 30 office locations globally.
Target gross profit for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $6.975B. Target net income for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $0.835B. Target operating income for the quarter ending July 31, 2023 was $1.197B.
Target has adjusted its pricing strategy in accordance to the trends in the market and has introduced schemes like ‘Low-Price Promise’ and ‘Expect More pay Less’ to provide value addition at low prices to the customers. This will enhance the customer base and provide a competitive advantage. It also has loyalty programs to attract customer loyalty.
6) Kmart
- Product type: Discount department store
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1962
- Founders: Sebastian S. Kresge and James Walter Scripps
- Headquarters: Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States
- Area served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Joshua Braverman
- Revenue: $5.7 billion (H1, 2023)
Kmart Corporation is a retail industry that was established during the year 1899 and is headquartered in Michigan, United States. Kmart is an American big-box department store. It places its prices low to enable customers to purchase from them always. Today, Kmart has more than 300 stores across Australia and New Zealand, serving millions of customers every year.
It offers huge products like apparel, footwear, bedding products, jewelry, health and beauty products, toys, food, sporting goods, automotive, pet products, and many more. It basically targets customers from the middle class and blue-collar customers. Most of the stores are located in urban areas with concentrated populations.
Kmart also has a special layaway plan for people who prefer to pay in installment. It has excellent customer service in place and is brand loyalty is high among the customers. It provides great quality of food and perishable articles and due to which it is a top Costco competitor.
7) Lowe’s
- Product type: Home improvement retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1921
- Founders: Lucius Smith Lowe and Carl Buchan
- Headquarters: Mooresville, North Carolina, United States
- Area served: United States, Canada, and Mexico
- Current CEO: Marvin Ellison
- Revenue: $22.347B (April 30, 2023)
- Number of employees: 307,000 (2023)
- Market cap: $128.53B (August 18, 2023)
Lowe’s is a retail industry that was formed during the year 1946 and is headquartered in North Carolina, United States. Lowe’s provides better offers and improvised service for various home appliances. Lowe’s serves more than 14 million customers per week and globally it is the largest home improvement retail brand.
The company has its presence on the NYSE & S&P 500 component. This brand has a strong recognition in the Fortune 500 companies. It has a strong brand reputation and it is a financially stable company. The company’s home improvement stores have a wide selection of nationally branded merchandise like GE, LE, Samsung appliances, Whirlpool appliances, etc.
Lowe’s has a workforce of 307,000 people who drove its sales to $22.34 billion in the year 2023. In the same year, the company’s Market Cap is $128.53B. As of January 28, 2022, Lowe’s operated 1,971 home improvement and hardware stores.
Lowe’s reported total sales of approximately $88-$90 billion for fiscal year 2023, which is a 52-week year (comparisons to full year 2022, which was a 53-week year). Lowe’s reported net sales of $22,347 million for the first quarter of 2023, which ended on May 5, 2023. Lowe’s annual gross profit for 2023 was $32.257B.
The company sources its merchandise from about 7,500 vendors across the globe. It has reached to top 50 in trademark applicants according to the United States Patent and Trademark Office and because of this; it is a top Costco competitor.
8) Sam’s Club
- Product type: Membership-only warehouse club
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1983
- Founders: Sam Walton
- Headquarters: Bentonville, Arkansas, United States
- Area served: United States, China, and Mexico
- Current CEO: Kathryn McLay
- Revenue: $84.3 billion (fiscal year ending January 31, 2023)
- Market cap: 16.5 billion U.S. dollars (2023)
Sam’s Club is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs that was formed during the year 1983 and is headquartered Arkansas, United States. Sam’s Club is owned and operated by Walmart by serving almost 40 million customers. It mainly targets urban middle and upper-class customers.
The brand provides quality and value to their customers through its various services in retail. It is ranked among the top in sales volume among the warehouse club in the United States. It operates about more than 600 membership warehouse clubs in the United States.
Sam’s Club has a strong brand name and effective marketing strategies. As Sam’s Club is globally distributed its customer base is about 50 million, It is strongly backed by Walmart and due to which it is a top Costco competitor.
9) Best Buy
- Product type: Consumer electronics retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1966
- Founders: Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler
- Headquarters: Richfield, Minnesota, United States
- Area served: United States, Mexico, and Canada
- Current CEO: Corie Barry
- Revenue: $9.467B (April 30, 2023)
- Market cap: $17.21B (August 22, 2023)
- Number of employees: 90,000(2023)
Also regarded a top Costco competitor, Best Buy is an American multinational electronics retailer. It was formed during the year 1966 and is headquartered in Minnesota, United States. Earlier established its reputation as an audio specialty store in the name of Sound of Music, it became popular.
Over the years of its establishment, it had undergone few re-structuring of its business operations and started its operations on consumer electronics. It has the largest consumer electronics store in the United States and it exists in about 1047 locations.
Best Buy net income for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $0.244B. Best Buy gross profit for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $2.150B.
It is also a strong player in online commerce and is the sixth largest e-commerce store in the United States. It is estimated that it has about 31 million users a month. Having its operations in top countries like Canada and Mexico, it is indeed a top Costco competitor.
10) Aldi
- Product type: Discount supermarket
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1946
- Founders: Karl and Theo Albrecht
- Headquarters: Essen, Germany
- Area served: United States
- Current CEO: Jason Hart
Aldi is a retail industry that was established during the year 1946 and is headquartered in Germany. It is a common brand of two German families owned discounted supermarket chains. It has about 10,000 stores in about 20 countries and is estimated a combined turnover of about 50 billion pounds.
The chain of retail stores was formed by two brothers named Theo Albrecht and Karl and at present, it consists of two main divisions – AldiSud and Aldi Nord. The main strength of the company is its pricing. Aldi provides discount store chains and due to its low price, it has received a great customer base.
The discount grocer, which frequently opens multiple new stores per week, revealed plans to add a total of 120 new locations in 2023, bringing Aldi’s store count nationwide to more than 2,400 by the end of the year.
It is owned by Einkauf GMBH. In Germany, Aldi Nord operates around 35 companies and 2500 stores with AldiSud operating around 32 companies and 1600 stores.
This discount store has a lot of support from the customer providing a wide range of choices at feasible prices. Due to its low prices of products, Aldi stores provide more savings than the other shopping places. It provides a good product mix and due to which it is a top Costco competitor.
11) Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA)
- Product type: Retail pharmacy and health and wellness products
- Industry: Healthcare
- Founded date: 2014
- Founders: Walgreens Boots Alliance
- Headquarters: Deerfield, Illinois, United States
- Area served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Rosalind Brewer
- Revenue: $35.415B (May 31, 2023)
- Number of employees: 325,000 (2022)
- Market cap: $22.91B (August 18, 2023)
Walgreens is an American company that operates the second-largest pharmacy store chain in the United States, behind CVS Health. It specializes in filling prescriptions, health and wellness products, health information, and photo services. Walgreens was founded in Chicago in 1901, and is headquartered in the Chicago suburb of Deerfield, Illinois.
The company employs more than 325,000 people and has more than 86,000 healthcare service providers, including pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, nurse practitioners, and other health-related professionals. Walgreens is committed to making health and well-being within reach for everyone on a daily basis.
Walgreens net income for the quarter ending May 31, 2023 was $0.118B. Walgreens gross profit for the quarter ending May 31, 2023 was $6.589B.
12) Tesco
- Product type: Grocery and general merchandise retailer
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1919
- Founders: Jack Cohen
- Headquarters: Welwyn Garden City, England
- Area served: Europe, Asia, and South America
- Current CEO: Ken Murphy
- Revenue: $79.842B (2023)
- Number of employees: 336,926 (2023)
- Market cap: $22.63B (August 21, 2023)
Tesco is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Welwyn Garden City, England. It is the market leader of groceries in the UK, with a market share of around 28.4%. Tesco operates stores in various formats differentiated by size and range of products sold, including large, small, dotcom only, and one-stop.
Tesco was founded in 1919 when Jack Cohen started selling additional groceries from a stall within the East End market of Brixton. Tesco has shops in Ireland, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Slovakia. It also supplies six stores to date in Spain (including Ibiza), Portugal, and Gibraltar that operate under the name The Food Company.
Tesco annual gross profit for 2023 was $4.445B, a 30.05% decline from 2022. Tesco annual net income for 2023 was $0.905B.
13) CVS
- Product type: Retail pharmacy and health care provider
- Industry: Healthcare
- Founded date: 1963
- Founders: Stanley Goldstein, Sidney Goldstein, and Ralph Hoagland
- Headquarters: Woonsocket, Rhode Island, United States
- Area served: United States
- Current CEO: Karen S. Lynch
- Revenue: $88.921B (June 30, 2023)
- Number of employees: 300,000 (2022)
- Market cap: $85.81B (August 21, 2023)
CVS Health is a leading health solutions company in the United States. It was founded in 1963 by brothers Stanley and Sidney Goldstein and Ralph Hoagland. The company’s name stands for Customer Value Stores. CVS Health has grown significantly over the years, expanding its in-store pharmacies and specialty pharmacy business, which focuses on expensive drugs to treat complex or rare diseases like cancer or HIV.
CVS Health has also launched PharmaCare, a pharmacy benefit management company providing a wide range of services to employers and insurers. The company has over 7,000 retail store locations, MinuteClinics, specialty pharmacies, and corporate offices.
Having been founded in 1963, CVS has expanded to employ more than 300,000 persons. Its sales by the end of June 2023 were approximately $88.92 billion. The Market Cap was close to $85.81 billion in August 2023. CVS Health net income for the quarter ending June 30, 2023 was $1.901B.
14) BJ’s Wholesale Club
- Product type: Membership-only warehouse club
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: February 6, 1984
- Founders: Mervyn D. Weich
- Headquarters: Marlborough, Massachusetts, United States
- Area served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Bob Eddy
- Revenue: $4.723B (April 30, 2023)
- Market cap: $9.37B (August 22, 2023 )
- Number of employees: 34,000(2023)
BJ’s Wholesale Club is a membership-only warehouse club chain based in Marlborough, Massachusetts, operating in the eastern United States in addition to Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana. The company provides a curated assortment focused on perishable products, continuously refreshed general merchandise, gas, and other ancillary services to deliver a significant value to its members. BJ’s Wholesale Club offers 25% or more savings on a representative basket of manufacturer-branded groceries compared to traditional supermarket competitors. The company has 227 warehouse clubs and 159 BJ’s Gas stations in 17 states. BJ’s Wholesale Club is constantly expanding and planning to open new locations in Tennessee and Alabama.
BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings net income for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $0.116B. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings gross profit for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $0.880B. BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings operating income for the quarter ending April 30, 2023 was $0.187B.
15) Carrefour
- Product type: Hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores, and cash-and-carry stores
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1959
- Founders: Marcel Fournier, Denis Defforey, and Jacques Defforey
- Headquarters: Massy, France
- Area served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Alexandre Bompard
- Revenue: $87.543B (2022)
- Market cap: $13.25B (September 12, 2023 )
- Number of employees: 346,666(2022)
Carrefour is a French multinational retail and wholesale corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, grocery stores, and convenience stores. It is headquartered in Massy, France, and is the eighth-largest retailer in the world by revenue.
Carrefour has been in the large food retail business for 60 years, continuously striving to make its products both affordable and accessible to everyone. The company has undertaken a vast store renovation program to give all its stores the Carrefour identity. The Champion brand disappeared and was replaced by Carrefour.
Carrefour SA annual gross profit for 2022 was $17.187B. Carrefour SA annual net income for 2022 was $1.42B.
16) Schwarz group
- Product type: Grocery and discount supermarkets
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1930
- Founders: Josef Schwarz
- Headquarters: Neckarsulm, Germany
- Area served: Worldwide
- Current CEO: Gerd Chrzanowski
- Revenue: € 154.1 billion (FY 2022/23)
- Number of employees: 575.000 (FY 2022)
The Schwarz Group is a family-owned multinational retail group that operates grocery shops under the Lidl and Kaufland brands. It is headquartered in Neckarsulm, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, and is among the top retail groups in the world with 550,000 employees in 32 different countries. The Schwarz Group is the largest European retailer and the fourth-largest retailer in the world by revenue. The group operates supermarkets in most European countries and is currently expanding in the United States. The Schwarz Group stores sell mostly private label brands and Schwarz group also operates own production facilities for baking goods, soft drinks, or ice cream. The Schwarz Group is also involved in the collection, sorting, and recycling of recyclable materials.
Schwarz group had annual sales revenue of 154.1 billion Euro in 2022. Schwarz group has 575,000 employees as of 2022.
17) Auchan retail
- Product type: Hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores, and online retail
- Industry: Retail
- Founded date: 1961
- Founders: Gérard Mulliez
- Headquarters: Roubaix, France
- Area served: 13 countries
- Current CEO: Yves Claude
Auchan is a French multinational retail group founded in 1961 by Gérard Mulliez and is owned by the Mulliez family. It is one of the world’s largest retailers with a direct presence in France, Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania, Hungary, Ukraine, Russia, Taiwan, and Senegal. Auchan is a retailer that selects its products and producers, that knows its customers and knows that no two are alike.
Auchan is notable for being a rare example of a Western company continuing to operate in Russia after the country’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, as well as actively funding and supporting Russian military effort.
Last year, Auchan generated €3.2bn ($3.5bn) in sales in Russia, representing around 10% of its global sales. Auchan operates a network of 231 stores and an e-commerce service, employing around 30,000 staff in Russia.
Conclusion
Retail industries are in huge demand and Costco being a wholesale retail corporation brings out various innovations to get the best for the customers.
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