Posted on 07/22/2005 7:17:48 AM PDT by TaxRelief
... Some Wall Street analysts assert that CEO Jim Sinegal is overly generous not only to Costco's customers but to its workers as well.
Costco's average pay, for example, is $17 an hour, 42 percent higher than its fiercest rival, Sam's Club. And Costco's health plan makes those at many other retailers look Scroogish. One analyst, Bill Dreher of Deutsche Bank, complained last year that at Costco "it's better to be an employee or a customer than a shareholder."
Mr. Sinegal begs to differ. ...Good wages and benefits are why Costco has extremely low rates of turnover and theft by employees, he said. And Costco's customers, who are more affluent than other warehouse store shoppers, stay loyal because they like that low prices do not come at the workers' expense. "This is not altruistic," he said. "This is good business."
...Costco's stock price has risen more than 10 percent in the last 12 months, while Wal-Mart's has slipped 5 percent. Costco shares sell for almost 23 times expected earnings; at Wal-Mart the multiple is about 19. Mr. Dreher said Costco's share price was so high because so many people love the company. "It's a cult stock," he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
A Costco was built not too far from my work about two years ago. They tore down about 10 acres of woods to put it up, right next to a residential development. Other than the opening day, I have never seen the parking lot more than half full. Usually, there are only about 30-40 cars in the lot. I can't imagine how they are making any money.
> At least we can say Sinegal puts
> his money where his mouth is
You mean he puts his shareholders' money where his mouth is.........
I can go on and on but you should get the message by now. Maybe not though, since you were so stupid to make a statement like that in the first place.
Definitely not the case here. The only time you'll the a half empty parking lot at either of my Costco's is on a weekday BEFORE the place opens. I'm not kidding either. The Costcos by me (King of Prussia and Montgomeryville) are always mobbed.
Costco's bulk items are good quality...
Sam's Club sells cheap crap in bulk.
I would shop there is Karl Marx himself was checking cards at the door.
Wal*Mart sells cheap crap.
I'll buy that...;^)
I quit shopping at Costco after I found out about their DNC contributions. Fortunately, we have an excellent Sam's Club that's every bit as good as Costco.
My local Costco is clean, the two Wal-Marts define dirty. If that is the byproduct of communism it's of a variety I haven't read about.
Ive found that by the time I take defective goods back to Walmart I haven't saved any money any way.
That was a joke, right? No, I've actually shopped at the Kaohsiung Costco. Bought hotdogs, apple pies, and Quaker Granola Bars.
"When you shop at Wal-Mart, your money goes to commies in China. When you shop at Costco, your money goes to commies in the US."
Actually Walmart and Costco get allot of their stuff from Communist China. In fact allot of it is the SAME stuff and Walmart is What I refuse to do is finance communism in MY country. What I also like about Walmart is they have the audacity to sell Christian books - Bibles etc.! Can you iamgine that! When was the last time you saw that in Costco?
Given the subsequent response, ... {grin}
"When you shop at Wal-Mart, your money goes to commies in China. When you shop at Costco, your money goes to commies in the US."
Which begs the question. Which group is more dangerous to the US? I say the commies in the US.
Quote: even if he misses the irony that it is a capitalist society that allows him to foster his pro-worker environment.
So you want other american workers to earn less/slave wages so the goods you buy will be cheaper. Of course I'm sure you don't put yourself in the same category and take a lower wage.
I agree with you fairly often but, in this case, you have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.
I'm not a ketchup connoisseur - is there really a difference? Is Heinz the Rolls Royce of ketchup?
I shop at Wal-Mart and Costco - they're right next to each other near my house. Both are always crowded, but Costco seems to do a better job of getting you through the checkout quickly. I wish Costco would stay open longer.
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