 A former Price Club shopping cart | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Warehouse |
| Founded | July 12, 1976 San Diego, California, U.S. |
| Founder | Sol Price |
| Defunct | 1997 |
| Fate | Merged with Costco |
| Successors | |
| Headquarters | , United States |
Number of locations | 94 warehouses (1993) |
Area served | North America |
| Services | |
| Website | costco |
Price Club was an American warehouse club chain. It merged with competitor Costco Wholesale in 1993. The original Price Club warehouse is still open, operating as Costco location #401.[1]
Sol Price founded Price Club in 1975 after he was forced out of FedMart, another retail chain he had founded. He and several friends invested $2.5 million. The first Price Club opened on July 12, 1976,[2] in San Diego, California, at the former site of a manufacturing building previously owned by Howard Hughes.[3][4]
Club membership was initially only available to business customers, but was later opened to certain groups, such as employees of local businesses, nonprofits, and government.[1] The company charged shoppers a $25 annual membership fee to purchase bulk products at discount prices in a no-frills warehouse setting. Price Club's high sales volume enabled Sol Price to give his employees more benefits and higher wages than typical retailers. The company expanded to 94 locations throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico (joint venture with Controladora Comercial Mexicana). In 1992, Price Club generated $6.6 billion in revenue and $134.1 million in profit.[5]
Price Club merged with rival Costco in 1993[6][7] and the combined company was known as PriceCostco. Price Club and Costco initially continued to operate as separate chains, with members of either chain being able to shop at both stores with their membership cards. In 1997, PriceCostco became Costco Wholesale Corporation and all remaining Price Clubs were rebranded as Costco.