‘There are never any lines’: Shopper goes to Costco’s Business Center for groceries. Is it better than regular Costco?
There's a whole other type of Costco warehouse that most people don't know about. Here's what's different about it.
Most people are familiar with Costco because of its family-friendly quantities, low-priced food court items, and electronics and home goods deals.
But apparently, this isn't the only type of Costco that exists.
Costco Business Center is similar to a standard Costco, but its items are specifically geared (and sized) to businesses, offering bulk supplies of ingredients, office supplies, cleaning products, and resellable goods.
Inside a Costco Business Center
In a viral video with more than 445,000 views, freeze-drying influencer and advocate @diy_freeze_dry shared what it's actually like in a Costco Business Center for those who've never been or are curious about whether it would be a better place for them to shop.
The TikToker said that while it may be an "unpopular opinion," she prefers to shop at the Costco Business Center when she just needs to pick up groceries for her family.
"I find the best deals here," she said.
She explained that she likes that they tend to open a bit earlier than standard Costco, likely to accommodate businesses that need to pick up supplies before their own business opens their doors to customers.
At least in New York, the standard Costco is open from 8:30am to 8:30pm on weekdays, versus the business center @diy_freeze_dry goes to which is open weekdays from 7am to 6pm—that's an hour and a half head start on the day.
On top of that, @diy_freeze_dry said she finds even better discounts at the business center and tends to be on the hunt for items that she can freeze dry and preserve.
On her last trip, she got milk for 49 cents a gallon; that's almost nothing compared to the $3.50 to $5 it goes for at other stores. She bought "a ton of it" and turned it into powdered milk.
@diy_freeze_dry went on to show that the business center has a huge cold room (meaning it's refrigerated) and offers items, like Tillamook sliced cheddar, that regular Costco doesn't have. She also saw massive tubes of ground beef for $2 a pound. It even had a big ol', 5-pound tub of potato salad for three bucks.
If you need to meal prep, this might be the place for you.
"The other best part is that there are never any lines here," @diy_freeze_dry said.
If you've been to Costco, the lines tend to get chaotic even during off-peak hours. It's even more overstimulating on the weekends.
Do I need a separate membership for the business center?
Nope! You can get into a Costco Business Center with your regular membership and don't need to be a business owner.
What are the main differences?
For starters, the products are different. More than 70% of the items at a Costco Business Center differ from their mainstream counterpart, according to the Costco site. And some tend to be much larger.
And they've removed whole product sections, like the apparel, tech, and beauty products you see at a standard Costco.
Are there a lot of these centers?
As of 2022, there were only 23 Costco Business Centers, Business Insider reported.
That's a tiny fraction compared to the approximately 625 "regular" stores in the rest of the United States.
Commenters react
"Step one: live near a costco business center," a top comment read.
"Omg I paid more than double that for the halal ground beef in regular Costco," a person shared.
@diy_freeze_dry Costco Business Center is where I always find amazing deals on foods to put in my freeze dryer! Have you been before? #freezedryer #harvestright #fyp #costco #costcofinds #foryoupage #prepper #foodstorage ♬ original sound - Freeze Dry Society
"Costco business center reigns supreme. I love that I can go in the middle of a Saturday afternoon, and the store is almost empty," another wrote.
The Daily Dot reached out to @diy_freeze_dry via TikTok direct message and comment and to Costco via email.
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