Costco offers in-home delivery service

When Costco Wholesale opened its first store in southern China in January this year, thousands of bargain hunters, some even from Hong Kong, flocked to the U.S. retailer’s outlet in Longhua District, Shenzhen.

Shoppers had to wait for several hours before they got into the bulk-buy warehouse-style store that covers a total area of 44,500 square meters with nearly 15,000 square meters of shopping space.

Popular items like strawberries and cherries were eagerly snapped up and sold out very soon after hitting the shelves. Social media were awash with images of customers filling the isles of the shopping space, many with trolleys loaded to the brim.

Shoppers queue outside Costco Wholesale Shenzhen Warehouse in Longhua District on Jan. 15, the opening day of the store. Wang Haolan

For some, the opening day shopping experience is not so good. Many complained about the huge crowds and how quickly the limited number of discounted products sold out.

“To be honest, I was a little disappointed because the queue was really long and my shopping experience was not worth it. We waited in line for almost three hours,” Shenzhen resident Wu Yongtao said after visiting the Longhua store on the opening day.

But a new service introduced by Costco Wholesale last week is expected to help shoppers solve all these problems.

The U.S. retailer announced April 19 that it has introduced an in-home delivery service in five Chinese cities by helping people take the stress out of shopping in person and brings exactly what they want right to their doorstep.

Shoppers are seen in Costco Wholesale Shenzhen Warehouse. Courtesy of WeChat account "i0755team"

The service is only available to members of Costco and membership for individuals aged 18 and above is available for 299 yuan (US$42.11) per year, inclusive of a complimentary household card. The membership is valid at any Costco warehouse worldwide.

People can simply choose the goods they want to buy on their mobile phone via the “Costco in-home delivery” WeChat mini-program.

The delivery service covers an approximate radius of 8 kilometers around a Costco brick-and-mortar store, with a minimum amount of 299 yuan and a delivery fee of 20 yuan per order.

Currently, the service is offered only in Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Ningbo, and Shenzhen.

A shopper is seen in Costco Wholesale Shenzhen Warehouse. Courtesy of WeChat account "i0755team"

Many people compare Costco’s in-home delivery service with the delivery service provided by its U.S. rival Sam’s Club, saying that the latter’s much more appealing to customers.

Sam’s Club now provides one-hour delivery service (free delivery on any order over 99 yuan), and standard delivery service (free delivery if purchase 299 yuan).

In 2020, Sam’s Club announced its one-hour delivery service covers all of Walmart China’s stores throughout the 21 Chinese cities the company is located and almost 70% of Sam’s Club online orders in China are for one-hour delivery.

In January this year, Sam’s Club its standard delivery service is available in most Chinese cities.