Costco to start scanning membership cards at the entrance of all its stores

return2ozma@lemmy.world to News@lemmy.world – 241 points –
Costco to start scanning membership cards at the entrance of all its stores
cbsnews.com
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Yes, but you're more likely to run into an irate person when you turn them away with a cart full of groceries then you are if you turn them away at the door. Plus it reduces the wasted time of employees who have to unload said cart.

Yep, I think this is part of the answer.

I'm guessing another is identifying which members are primarily using membership card and cash, membership attached to an alternative FOP from their in-house charge (Citi currently), and digital native customers who are all in on the ecosystem.

Those data points can be used in several manners as Costco can glean valuable marketing insights into their customer base, their shopping habits, and their frequency. More than likely it will be used in ongoing in-house charge provider negotiations to ensure favorable terms for offering their services exclusively.

Plus if you scan at the entrance and checkout, you have metrics for how long people shop in the store.

Makes more profit to let them through than to refuse them at that point.

Also, let them through and they may get a membership for next time, refuse them and they are never coming back.

They don’t need their business, and no one at Costco wants them in the store.

Then what stops anyone from just never getting a membership?

I’m talking specifically about the self checkout loophole that only came when they made self checkouts….?

Was that not obvious from responding to someone taking about that same thing?

The person you responded to does not mention self checkouts fyi

They are responding to a post specifically talking about self checkouts and the loophole that exists solely with them…

How does this need to be explained? Lmfao.

At the self checkout, the cost to return all the merchandise to the shelves costs money, to let them go through the the till is profit instead of a loss. This doesn’t exist in regular checkouts since you need to scan, at the self checkouts you don’t, so people try and abuse it.

I was literally taking what the person I responded to a little further and this tripped you guys up? Fucking hell this place is weird to have conversations on.

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What's the loophole? You still have to scan your membership card in self checkout. Or is it using someone else?

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When you look at Costco earnings, almost all of their net profit is the membership fees.

It's literally not more profit for them, especially depending on what the person is buying. Costco is able to offer lower prices than a lot of other places specifically because the memberships help make up for what would otherwise be losses on margins

Everybody knows you need a membership to shop there so why would these people (or anyone else for that matter) buy one if you let them shop and make purchases without it?

I think it might be even simpler: add membership fee to the purchase and tell them that they can finalize the process of creating a new card at the membership desk.

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