North America's "most unique" Costco opens in Vancouver

[vid]

To lump Wal Mart with Future Shop is unfair to Wal Mart.

[hollywoodnorth]

Originally Posted by He11razor

Costco opens Yaletown warehouse store
Official calls new store 'most unique'

Vancouver's downtown dwellers will no longer have to trek out to the 'burbs for their big box shopping with the opening today of Costco's first warehouse in a core urban residential area.

"It is the most unique Costco in the world," said Robin Ross, Costco's regional marketing manager for Western Canada.

Ross said while San Francisco has a Costco downtown, this is the first project of its kind where the warehouse has been built as part of a residential and commercial project in the heart of the city.

Part of Concord Pacific Group's Spectrum project, the new Costco warehouse on Expo Boulevard anchors a residential development of four highrises being built on the edge of Yaletown.

Outside, the 127,000-square-foot retail outlet won't much resemble its suburban siblings that come in on average at a heftier 140,000 square feet. Instead of being surrounded by asphalt, the store has two floors of underground parking.

Inside shoppers will still recognize the familiar towering Costco shelves of merchandise -- complete with cases of soup, a selection of cereals in sizes geared for the average fraternity and bread by the loaf or by the dozen.

But in a twist that caters to downtown demographics, the new store will add a selection of products Costco shoppers won't find in the suburban warehouses.

"In terms of merchandising it is going to be pretty different from what you would find in another Costco," said Ron Damiani, Costco's assistant vice-president of corporate communications. "It is going to tend to be higher end and recognize that a lot of people in the downtown core are condo dwellers."

The regular food offerings will be augmented with an expanded deli selection of "home ready meals" or HRM's -- the grocery buzzword describing the shopping needs of multi-tasking downtown families and singles.

The cheese selection has been expanded to bring in products that might appeal to shoppers who aren't just looking for cheese to slap on a school sandwich.

In clothing, a popular area for Costco shoppers, the brands will include such upscale names as Louis Vuitton, Ross said.

"This is a place where you can buy tires and a two carat diamond ring for $19,699," he said.

Ross said the decision to open a store in the downtown core was made to meet the demands of "one of the most densely populated areas in North America.

"I think sometimes there is a misconception that Costco is always about bulk food products," he said. "Coming into a Costco, the first thing you hit is major appliances and electronics, plasma TVs, iPods and high end electronics.

"I think that fits very well into the downtown market."

Ross said the store won't just attract downtown dwellers, but he said the retailer realized many of those in the densely populated core wouldn't bother heading far from home to find a Costco warehouse.

"What is unique about the marketplace are the travel patterns," he said. "People who live downtown don't really leave downtown to shop."

interesting to read this again after 15 years.

I regularly shop at the Downtown, Richmond and Burnaby Stores. I can assure you there is nothing that Downtown has that the Suburban stores do NOT have. its the other way around.

Also the "we have more cheese downtown" is a odd one. Seems the same to me. As for the Louis Vuitton. I wonder how long that lasted?

[JHikka]

I heard once that this Vancouver location didn't sell memberships and if someone wanted a Costco membership they would still have to travel to a suburban one. True or exaggerated?

It was mentioned to me in the vein that Costcos are suburban and niche'd for a specific demographic and that not offering them at this Vancouver location was a choice to make it more difficult for undesirables to get memberships.

[SFBruin]

Just hearing the word Costco makes me wanna eat a soft pretzel in a cold, soulless warehouse.

Thanks a lot everyone.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by JHikka

I heard once that this Vancouver location didn't sell memberships and if someone wanted a Costco membership they would still have to travel to a suburban one. True or exaggerated?

It was mentioned to me in the vein that Costcos are suburban and niche'd for a specific demographic and that not offering them at this Vancouver location was a choice to make it more difficult for undesirables to get memberships.

I don't know who would be classed as "undesirable". In San Francisco, the store is in the South of Market neighborhood which may be one of the city's most diverse in that it houses lots of tech businesses, a share of loft condos but also plenty of wandering homeless. Its parking functions as parking for the "bridge and tunnel" patrons of surrounding clubs and night spots when the store is closed.

The store's patrons include an awful lot of small merchants including the Asian proprietors of family-owned restaurants and of the city's ubiquitous corner markets (it's common to encounter CostCo's Kirkland-branded products being resold in these small markets). The parking lot certainly contains its share of higher-end cars. And they do sell some very pricey jewelry and electronics.

But you can get a membership there as I did. And the "customer service" deal is always busy.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by SFBruin

Just hearing the word Costco makes me wanna eat a soft pretzel in a cold, soulless warehouse.

Thanks a lot everyone.

Hot dog for me and I visualize happy workers. CostCo is famous for treating its workforce well.

[SIGSEGV]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

I don't know who would be classed as "undesirable". In San Francisco, the store is in the South of Market neighborhood which may be one of the city's most diverse in that it houses lots of tech businesses, a share of loft condos but also plenty of wandering homeless. Its parking functions as parking for the "bridge and tunnel" patrons of surrounding clubs and night spots when the store is closed.

The store's patrons include an awful lot of small merchants including the Asian proprietors of family-owned restaurants and of the city's ubiquitous corner markets (it's common to encounter CostCo's Kirkland-branded products being resold in these small markets). The parking lot certainly contains its share of higher-end cars. And they do sell some very pricey jewelry and electronics.

But you can get a membership there as I did. And the "customer service" deal is always busy.

Yes, I remember parking in the Costco parking lot when driving up from Palo Alto to go to Slim's, which is apparently defunct now? That's too bad, I went there like 20 times in undergrad...

Hell my first date with my now wife as at Slim's... (Cute is What We Aim For and Ace Enders, July 26 2008, lol).

[JHikka]

Originally Posted by Pedestrian

I don't know who would be classed as "undesirable".

The unhoused, destitute, poor, or Indigenous. It's obvious that Costco builds stores in suburban, more affluent areas to purposely avoid inner-city and urbanized peoples and to capture upper middle-class families and business as much as possible, so it's always interesting when they venture in to having a more downtown/urban location.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by JHikka

The unhoused, destitute, poor, or Indigenous.

I believe you meant to use the word "indigent".

saying that "indigenous" people are undesirable in 2021 is very un-PC.

[SIGSEGV]

Originally Posted by JHikka

The unhoused, destitute, poor, or Indigenous. It's obvious that Costco builds stores in suburban, more affluent areas to purposely avoid inner-city and urbanized peoples and to capture upper middle-class families and business as much as possible, so it's always interesting when they venture in to having a more downtown/urban location.

I mean.... https://www.google.com/maps/@41.8625...7i16384!8i8192

[biguc]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

I believe you meant to use the word "indigent".

saying that "indigenous" people are undesirable in 2021 is very un-PC.

But accurate to how racist people in Western Canada are.



I tripped when I read the first page of this, saw a miketoronto post. Then I saw it was from 2006.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by SIGSEGV

Yes, I remember parking in the Costco parking lot when driving up from Palo Alto to go to Slim's, which is apparently defunct now? That's too bad, I went there like 20 times in undergrad...

Hell my first date with my now wife as at Slim's... (Cute is What We Aim For and Ace Enders, July 26 2008, lol).

Yes, it's been replaced by a rap club or something.

I actually am beyond my club years but I did bump into (literally) Boz Scaggs at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant Postrio in SF once.

[C.]

Originally Posted by miketoronto

Not to rain on the parade, but I can't say this is that great.

Its just one more step of turning downtown into the suburbs.

Why go to COSTCO for cheese, when downtowns are suppose to have market areas full of different cheese vendors who actually know about that stuff?

Why go to COSTCO for a ring, when downtown is suppose to have tons of unique jewelry stores?

I don't know. Places like this will just eat away at the stuff that actually makes downtown a unique place.

Wow. I don’t know where to start. Why don’t downtown residents deserve a Costco. Why are only suburbs should have this as a shopping choice. It’s not like Costco kill the surrounding retail in the suburbs. In fact, it’s just the opposite as it’s a destination and surrounding businesses benefit.

EDIT

Lol. I just realized this is a 16 year old thread!!! lol

So I assume this Costco is a huge success and a vibrant edition to downtown Vancouver. The dire predictions of demise of downtown did not come true.

[Pedestrian]

Originally Posted by miketoronto

Why go to COSTCO for cheese, when downtowns are suppose to have market areas full of different cheese vendors who actually know about that stuff?

Because it'll be half the price at CostCo as it would be at your boutique cheese shop and CostCo quality is very high. Their Kirkland-branded products are often superior to even national brands but when it comes to cheese I mostly buy French and Italian imports and what CostCo sells is just as good as any cheese shop but less expensive. Same goes for the wine they sell incidentally. People who shop there regularly understand this and it's why they buy those products at CostCo and rarely anywhere else.

It's your loss that you are content to pay more than you should be.

[iheartthed]

Originally Posted by C.

So I assume this Costco is a huge success and a vibrant edition to downtown Vancouver. The dire predictions of demise of downtown did not come true.

Does this Costco still exist? If it does, is it still North America's "most unique" Costco? Did any Costco competitors follow suit in Vancouver? So much in the world has changed since this thread was started, lol.

[dktshb]

Originally Posted by fflint

It's very frustrating to read that premise repeatedly, and to consistently challenge it, to no avail. That may very well be the case in Montreal and Toronto, but that is not a universal truth. It is simply divorced from the reality of where I live.

Where I live, ordinary produce markets, small independent grocers, and corner stores charge notoriously high prices--much, much higher than Safeway or Costco--for emphatically inferior merchandise. If one wants better quality produce than is available at Safeway or Costco, the gourmet-foodie markets aim to please--at truly astronomical prices. Nowhere--not even the farmer's markets--will sell better merchandise at a lower price than the supermarkets and Costco here where I live.

I go to Costco there on Harrison but get all my vegetables at West Portal Produce. Their produce is much better quality and cheaper than Safeway or Costco.