Costco members can now score great deals on Instacart, Uber, DoorDash and other brands.
The wholesaler has long offered third-party gift cards at discounted prices and is now offering them to several food delivery services.
Gift cards from the three companies are currently being sold for $79.99 in $100 packages, a discount of about 20 percent, investment firm Oppenheimer said.
The addition of new companies to Costco’s gift card offerings is part of a broader effort to improve the company’s non-food offerings.
Costco has also recently expanded its store offerings to include items such as Nike clothing, Dyson hair dryers and Hydro Flask water bottles.
Costco has added new business areas to its gift card offering
The warehouse chain also sells gold bars in this category, which, according to a Wells Fargo analysis, account for monthly sales of around $200 million.
Costco’s non-food business grew in both June and July, and that trend is expected to continue, Oppenheimer said.
“We continue to see improvements in the quality of Costco’s Treasure Hunt, from stronger brands in apparel/consumer durables to a more extensive assortment of gift cards with in-store discounts,” analyst Rupesh Parikh Parikh told clients.
“Against the recent mixed backdrop of discretionary performance, we believe this has contributed to a significant improvement in non-food category trends and the company’s outstanding performance.”
Costco gift cards seem like a good deal at first glance, but if you change your mind, they are non-refundable.
The store also offers its own gift cards, which make great gifts for non-members.
Costco gift cards can be purchased by any existing member and redeemed by anyone.
Gift cards can be purchased in person at stores or on the Costco website.
Additionally, Costco gift cards are non-refundable to the purchaser and cannot be exchanged for cash.
However, they can be used for all purchases in stores, from groceries to electronics.
The addition of new stores to Costco’s gift card offering is part of a broader effort to improve its non-food offering
The store also offers its own gift cards, which can be a great gift for non-members
In addition to the improvement in non-food sales, Costco shares, which rose more than 37 percent this year, also benefited from the news of the increase in membership fees.
In September, the chain’s standard membership price will rise $5 per year, from $60 to $65, the first increase since June 2017.
The Executive tier – which offers a 2 percent discount on all Costco purchases for the year up to a total value of $750 – will increase by $10 to $130 per year.
In the three months ended Feb. 18, Costco generated $1.11 billion in membership fees, nearly 2 percent of its total revenue for the quarter.
That means Costco is earning over $4 billion annually from fees—a figure that will likely rise even further with the increase.
