A
warehouse club is a
retailRetailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be individuals...
store, usually selling a wide variety of
merchandiseMerchandising is the methods, practices, and operations used to promote and sustain certain categories of commercial activity.- Promotional merchandising :...
, in which customers are required to buy large,
wholesaleWholesaling, jobbing, or distributing the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users, or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services....
quantities of the store's products, which makes these clubs attractive to both
bargainBargaining or haggling is a type of negotiation in which the buyer and seller of a good or service dispute the price which will be paid and the exact nature of the transaction that will take place, and eventually come to an agreement. Bargaining is an alternative pricing strategy to fixed prices...
hunters and small business owners. The clubs are able to keep prices low due to the
no-frillsNo-frills or no frills is a term used to describe any service or product for which the non-essential features have been removed. The use of the term "frills" refers to a style of fabric decoration. Something offered to customers for no additional charge may be designated as a "frill" - for example,...
format of the stores. In addition, customers may be required to pay annual membership fees in order to shop.
The concept is similar to the many
consumers' cooperativeA consumers' cooperative is a cooperative business owned by its customers for their mutual benefit. It is a form of free enterprise that is oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit. It is a retail outlet owned and operated by consumer...
supermarkets found in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, though using bigger stores and not co-operatively owned.
A
warehouse club is a
retailRetailing consists of the sale of goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mail, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery. Purchasers may be individuals...
store, usually selling a wide variety of
merchandiseMerchandising is the methods, practices, and operations used to promote and sustain certain categories of commercial activity.- Promotional merchandising :...
, in which customers are required to buy large,
wholesaleWholesaling, jobbing, or distributing the sale of goods or merchandise to retailers, to industrial, commercial, institutional, or other professional business users, or to other wholesalers and related subordinated services....
quantities of the store's products, which makes these clubs attractive to both
bargainBargaining or haggling is a type of negotiation in which the buyer and seller of a good or service dispute the price which will be paid and the exact nature of the transaction that will take place, and eventually come to an agreement. Bargaining is an alternative pricing strategy to fixed prices...
hunters and small business owners. The clubs are able to keep prices low due to the
no-frillsNo-frills or no frills is a term used to describe any service or product for which the non-essential features have been removed. The use of the term "frills" refers to a style of fabric decoration. Something offered to customers for no additional charge may be designated as a "frill" - for example,...
format of the stores. In addition, customers may be required to pay annual membership fees in order to shop.
The concept is similar to the many
consumers' cooperativeA consumers' cooperative is a cooperative business owned by its customers for their mutual benefit. It is a form of free enterprise that is oriented toward service rather than pecuniary profit. It is a retail outlet owned and operated by consumer...
supermarkets found in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
, though using bigger stores and not co-operatively owned. The use of members' prices without co-operative ownership is also sometimes used in bars and casinos.
History
Sol PriceSol Price is the founder of FedMart and Price Club . He is considered a pioneer of the "warehouse store" retail model. He is a 1934 graduate of San Diego State University, and in 1938 earned a law degree from the University of Southern California Law School. Price was admitted to the California...
founded
FedMartFedMart was a chain of discount department stores started by Sol Price, who later founded Price Club. His first location in San Diego, California was in a converted airport hangar. It was originally a discount department store open to government employees, who paid a membership fee of $2 per...
in 1954, an early US discount store. Sol and his son Robert Price founded
Price ClubCostco Wholesale Corporation , simply known as Costco, is the largest membership warehouse club chain in the world based on sales volume. It is the fifth largest general retailer in the United States. - Location :...
in San Diego in 1976 as the first warehouse club. In 1982 discount pioneer
John F. GeisseJohn F. Geisse was a major retail pioneer. He is the author of the Better Quality Upscale Discount Store Concept in America and was inducted into Discount Store News Discount Hall of Fame in 1984....
founded The Wholesale Club of Indianapolis, which he sold to Sam's Club in 1991.
In 1983,
Costco WholesaleCostco Wholesale Corporation , simply known as Costco, is the largest membership warehouse club chain in the world based on sales volume. It is the fifth largest general retailer in the United States. - Location :...
,
PACE Wholesale ClubKmart is a chain of discount department stores in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. The chain acquired Sears in 2005, forming a new corporation under the name Sears Holdings Corporation...
and Sam's Club started operations.
BJ's Wholesale ClubBJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. , commonly referred to simply as BJ's, is a membership-only warehouse club chain operating on the United States East Coast, as well as in the state of Ohio...
was started in 1984 by ex The Wholesale Club executives and owned by
ZayreNot to be confused with: Zaire, the African country now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Zayre was a chain of discount retail stores that operated in the Northeastern, Southern and Midwestern United States from 1956 to 1990. The company's headquarters was in Framingham, Massachusetts....
.
As of 2009, four warehouse club chains operate in the United States. Costco and
Sam's ClubSam's Club is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs. Founded in 1983, it is owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., and is named after Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. As of 2008, the Sam's Club chain operates in 48 of the 50 U.S. States, and serves more than 47 million U.S....
are the largest chains. Sam's Club claims a membership base of 46 million persons and 500 stores across the United States. Costco has locations in seven other nations including Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. BJ's Wholesale Club is one of the two smaller competitor with stores located primarily in the Northeastern United States. FedMart has survived as a small company owned by West Coast enterpriser Donald L. Kirk. In January 2009, Kirk announced plans to again expand FedMart; opening 2 new FedMart stores in 2009, in currently vacant former department store buildings; as well as opening an online FedMart Clearance/Closeout store.
In New York City and surrounding areas, PEAPOD.COM, YOURGROCER.COM, and FRESHDIRECT.COM operate wholesale clubs online. No membership fee is required, but delivery fees are charged.
Alcohol sales without a membership in the USA
Many jurisdictions prohibit the discounting of liquor for promotional reasons, meaning that even in warehouse clubstores, members and non-members will pay the same price. Several examples in the United States are included below;
- Arizona
The State of Arizona is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. The capital and largest city is Phoenix. The second largest city is Tucson, followed in size by the four Phoenix metropolitan area cities of Mesa, Glendale, Chandler, and Scottsdale.Arizona was the 48th and...
- California
California is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
- Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and New York to the west and south ....
- Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. The state takes its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, a British nobleman and Virginia's first colonial governor, after whom Cape Henlopen was originally named.Delaware is located in...
- Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states, and is the only state made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August...
- Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans." Idaho was admitted to the Union on 3 July 1890 as the 43rd state....
- Indiana
Indiana is a U.S. state, the 19
th admitted to the Union. It is located in the Great Lakes region, and with approximately 6.3 million residents, is ranked 16
th in population and 17
th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38
th in land area, and is the...
- Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland." It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of...
- Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. Most of its population of...
- Michigan
Michigan is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Ojibwe term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
- Minnesota
Minnesota is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. The twelfth largest state by area in the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.2 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the...
- Missouri
Missouri is a state in the Midwest region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. Missouri is the 18th most populous state with a 2008 estimated population of 5,911,605. It comprises 114 counties and one independent city....
- New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian province of...
- New York
New York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
- Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state of the United States. The thirty-fourth largest state by area in the U.S., it is the seventh-most populous with nearly 11.5 million residents...
- Texas
Texas is the second-largest U.S. state in both area and population, and the largest state in the contiguous United States.The name had wide usage among native Americans, meaning "friends" or "allies"...
- Vermont
The State of Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd by land area, , and 45th by total area. It has a population of 621,270, making it the second least-populated state...
- Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" because it is the birthplace of eight U.S. presidents. The geography and climate of the state are shaped by the Blue...
Examples
- Costco
Costco Wholesale Corporation , simply known as Costco, is the largest membership warehouse club chain in the world based on sales volume. It is the fifth largest general retailer in the United States. - Location :...
, operates in the USA, Canada, UK and other countries
- Sam's Club
Sam's Club is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs. Founded in 1983, it is owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., and is named after Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. As of 2008, the Sam's Club chain operates in 48 of the 50 U.S. States, and serves more than 47 million U.S....
, operates in the USA and other countries
- BJ's Wholesale Club
BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. , commonly referred to simply as BJ's, is a membership-only warehouse club chain operating on the United States East Coast, as well as in the state of Ohio...
, operates in the USA only
- Makro
Makro is a Dutch-German chain of Warehouse clubs, also called cash and carries. The first one opened in 1968 in Amsterdam. In the following years stores opened in the Netherlands and in several other countries within Europe. During the 1970s and 1980s Makro extended its business to the Americas and...
, operates in Europe, previously operated in the USA
- PriceSmart
PriceSmart Inc. is a warehouse retailer based in San Diego, California, with operations in Central America and the Caribbean. It was founded by Sol Price of Price Club fame....
, operates in Central America and Caribbean
Defunct
- The Wholesale Club, merged with Sam's Club
Sam's Club is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs. Founded in 1983, it is owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., and is named after Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. As of 2008, the Sam's Club chain operates in 48 of the 50 U.S. States, and serves more than 47 million U.S....
- Warehouse Club, was a public company
A publicly-traded company is a company that has permission to offer its registered securities for sale to the general public, typically through a stock exchange, or occasionally a company whose stock is traded over the counter via market makers who use non-exchange quotation services.-Securities...
- PACE Membership Warehouse, owned by Kmart
Kmart is a chain of discount department stores in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. The chain acquired Sears in 2005, forming a new corporation under the name Sears Holdings Corporation...
, merged with Sam's Club
- Price Savers Wholesale Club, merged with PACE Warehouse Club, then merged with Sam's Club
Sam's Club is an American chain of membership-only retail warehouse clubs. Founded in 1983, it is owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., and is named after Wal-Mart founder Sam Walton. As of 2008, the Sam's Club chain operates in 48 of the 50 U.S. States, and serves more than 47 million U.S....
- Club Wholesale, turned into office supplies
Office supplies is the generic term that refers to all supplies regularly used in offices by businesses and other organizations, from private citizens to governments, who works with the collection, refinement, and output of information .The term includes small, expendable, daily use items such as...
stores, then folded
- Price Club, merged with Costco
Costco Wholesale Corporation , simply known as Costco, is the largest membership warehouse club chain in the world based on sales volume. It is the fifth largest general retailer in the United States. - Location :...
- American Wholesale Club, (1986-1989)
- SourceClub, owned by Meijer
Meijer is a regional American hypermarket chain based in Walker, Michigan. Founded in 1934 as a supermarket chain, Meijer is credited with pioneering the modern supercenter concept in 1962. About half of the company's 190 locations are located in Michigan, with additional locations in Illinois,...
- Max-Club, owned by SuperValu (United States)
SuperValu Inc. is a United States grocery retailer and distributor. The corporation is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, and has been in business for over a century. It is the third-largest food retailing company in the United States and ranks #51 on the Fortune 100 list.As of June 2,...
- Buyers Club, a Denver-based independently owned chain
- GEM & GEX Membership Department Stores (required Membership like a Warehouse Club)