Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (2024)

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Jim Sinegal and Jeff Brotman first dreamed up the idea for Costco Wholesale in 1982. Brotman, who died in 2017, was an attorney who was inspired to open a European-style wholesaler after taking a trip to France. Brotman told CNN in 2009 that he ended up cold-calling Sinegal, and the two hit it off. Sinegal was a retail executive who'd previously worked under the businessman Sol Price at a warehouse club called FedMart. Price had founded his own chain, Price Club, on July 12, 1976, in San Diego. Price Club exclusively offered memberships to small-business owners. Sinegal and Brotman later told CNN that they planned to essentially "clone Price Club" when they launched the first-ever Costco in Seattle in 1983. Years later, Price Club and Costco merged to become the Costco we all know and love today. But the first warehouse bearing the Costco name kicked off its grand opening with a business show on September 15, 1983. Back when it first opened its doors, Costco offered business owners memberships for a $25 annual fee. Meanwhile, "Group Gold" Costco members could shell out $30 a year to gain access to the warehouse chain. Sinegal told the Motley Fool that the chain's first 100,000-square-foot warehouse was a "pretty simple facility" that lacked "many of the enhancements that we've added to the business since then." In 2009, he also told CNN that the "crowds weren't overwhelming" at first, but "business built up" gradually. Sinegal served as Costco's CEO from 1983 until his retirement in 2011. Costco's low-priced, bulk-size offerings ended up catching on with shoppers. Less than a year after it was founded, Costco began to expand across the Pacific Northwest ... ... launching stores in Portland and Spokane in 1983. Sinegal explained the chain's rapid expansion to the Los Angeles Times in 1985, saying, "We are working to get established in certain markets, to preempt those markets." The emergence of Sam's Club, Walmart's answer to the influx of members-only warehouse clubs, also spurred further expansion. "When Walmart announced it was going into the discount warehouse business, we had to compete and grow quickly," Brotman told CNN in 2009. "That's why we expanded as fast as we did," the Costco cofounder said. By the end of 1984, 200,000 Americans had become Costco members. That same year, The Associated Press dubbed both Price Club and Costco as "key players" in the wholesale-retail game. Costco filed for an IPO on December 5, 1985, according to the company's website. Price Club had already gone public back in 1980. Investopedia calculated that anyone who bought 100 shares of Costco — at $10 a pop —would have made $138,768 by December 1, 2018. Just three years after opening its doors, Costco was a $1 billion company, Sinegal told CNN. At that point, the chain boasted "17 locations, 1.3 million members, and 3,740 employees," according to Costco's website. Costco and Price Club merged in 1993. Initially, the new company went by PriceCostco, ultimately switching to the name Costco Companies Inc. in 1997. A former employee who started at Price Club in 1984 and stayed with the company for 20 years told Business Insider that initially after the merger, there was a slight divide between "red" Costco warehouses and "blue" Price Club warehouses. "When I was a corporate auditor for the company, the first thing the folks at the warehouse would ask me is, 'Are you red or blue?'" he said. But he added that employees eventually got on the same page. "It wasn't really a bad thing," the former employee said. "Price Club had evolved into a different animal, and Costco really took us back to bare bones."
  • Costco has existed in some form since 1976.
  • That’s because the modern-day company is the product of a 1993 merger between Costco and Price Club.
  • The first warehouse bearing the name Costco, however, opened in Seattle in 1983.
  • Costco provided Business Insider with historical photos of the chain’s inaugural warehouse.
  • Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Costco is a staple of the big-box-store landscape. It’s been around for a while and has attracted a devoted flock of members thanks to its low prices and bulk sizes.

But the wholesale retailer’s origin story is a bit complicated. You see, modern-day Costco is actually the result of a 1993 merger between Price Club and Costco. Price Club kicked off in 1976, and Costco followed suit seven years later.

Read more: 50 foods that Costco employees and members love

Costco provided Business Insider with a number of photos of the company’s first warehouse.

These images provide a glimpse into what making a Costco run would've looked like back when Ronald Reagan was in the White House and "Maniac" was topping the Billboard charts.

Jim Sinegal and Jeff Brotman first dreamed up the idea for Costco Wholesale in 1982. Brotman, who died in 2017, was an attorney who was inspired to open a European-style wholesaler after taking a trip to France.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (1)

Foto: The first Costco in Seattle.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: "Service Management: The New Paradigm in Retailing"

Brotman told CNN in 2009 that he ended up cold-calling Sinegal, and the two hit it off.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (2)

Foto: Inside an early Costco.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: CNN

Sinegal was a retail executive who'd previously worked under the businessman Sol Price at a warehouse club called FedMart.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (3)

Foto: Costco cofounder Jim Sinegal in 2002.sourceAtsushi Tsukada/AP Images

Source: "Service Management: The New Paradigm in Retailing"

Price had founded his own chain, Price Club, on July 12, 1976, in San Diego. Price Club exclusively offered memberships to small-business owners.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (4)

Foto: A Price Club shopper walks the aisles in 1992.sourceKeith Beaty/Toronto Star via Getty Images

Source: Costco

Sinegal and Brotman later told CNN that they planned to essentially "clone Price Club" when they launched the first-ever Costco in Seattle in 1983.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (5)

Foto: The first Costco in Seattle.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

Years later, Price Club and Costco merged to become the Costco we all know and love today.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (6)

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Foto: A Price Club employee gets to work in 1992.sourceKeith Beaty/Toronto Star via Getty Images

Source: Microsoft

But the first warehouse bearing the Costco name kicked off its grand opening with a business show on September 15, 1983.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (7)

Foto: A flyer announcing the opening of the first Costco.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Back when it first opened its doors, Costco offered business owners memberships for a $25 annual fee.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (8)

Foto: The sign explaining different types of memberships at Costco in 1983.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Meanwhile, "Group Gold" Costco members could shell out $30 a year to gain access to the warehouse chain.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (9)

Foto: The membership desk at Costco in 1983.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Sinegal told the Motley Fool that the chain's first 100,000-square-foot warehouse was a "pretty simple facility" that lacked "many of the enhancements that we've added to the business since then."

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (10)

Foto: Inside an early Costco.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Motley Fool

In 2009, he also told CNN that the "crowds weren't overwhelming" at first, but "business built up" gradually. Sinegal served as Costco's CEO from 1983 until his retirement in 2011.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (11)

Foto: Inside an early Costco warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: CNN

Costco's low-priced, bulk-size offerings ended up catching on with shoppers.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (12)

Foto: A member pushes a cart through a Costco warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: CNN

Less than a year after it was founded, Costco began to expand across the Pacific Northwest ...

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (13)

Foto: A crowd flocks to Costco in 1983.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

... launching stores in Portland and Spokane in 1983.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (14)

See Also
Costco is opening 11 new locations through November – see the full list

Foto: A display of Costco's phone products.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

Sinegal explained the chain's rapid expansion to the Los Angeles Times in 1985, saying, "We are working to get established in certain markets, to preempt those markets."

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (15)

Foto: Costco members in a warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: The Los Angeles Times

The emergence of Sam's Club, Walmart's answer to the influx of members-only warehouse clubs, also spurred further expansion.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (16)

Foto: Sam Walton launched Sam's Club in 1983, just a few months before Costco opened.sourceAssociated Press

Source: Sam's Club

"When Walmart announced it was going into the discount warehouse business, we had to compete and grow quickly," Brotman told CNN in 2009.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (17)

Foto: Members visit a Costco warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: CNN

"That's why we expanded as fast as we did," the Costco cofounder said.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (18)

Foto: Inside an early Costco warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: The Los Angeles Times

By the end of 1984, 200,000 Americans had become Costco members.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (19)

Foto: Shoppers flood a Costco in 1983.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

That same year, The Associated Press dubbed both Price Club and Costco as "key players" in the wholesale-retail game.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (20)

Foto: Merchandise in an early Costco.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Newspapers.com

Costco filed for an IPO on December 5, 1985, according to the company's website. Price Club had already gone public back in 1980.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (21)

Foto: Crates in an early Costco.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

Investopedia calculated that anyone who bought 100 shares of Costco — at $10 a pop —would have made $138,768 by December 1, 2018.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (22)

Foto: Longtime Costco executive Cynthia Glaser in 1983.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Investopedia

Just three years after opening its doors, Costco was a $1 billion company, Sinegal told CNN.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (23)

Foto: Costco members —and cofounder Jim Sinegal —near the checkout aisles.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: CNN

At that point, the chain boasted "17 locations, 1.3 million members, and 3,740 employees," according to Costco's website.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (24)

Foto: An early Costco warehouse.sourceCourtesy of Costco Wholesale

Source: Costco

Costco and Price Club merged in 1993. Initially, the new company went by PriceCostco, ultimately switching to the name Costco Companies Inc. in 1997.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (25)

Foto: A Costco member shops at a warehouse in 1991.sourceDouglas Burrows/Liaison/Getty Images

Source: Costco

A former employee who started at Price Club in 1984 and stayed with the company for 20 years told Business Insider that initially after the merger, there was a slight divide between "red" Costco warehouses and "blue" Price Club warehouses.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (26)

Foto: A Costco employee in the 1990s poses with merchandise.sourceDouglas Burrows/Liaison/Getty Images

"When I was a corporate auditor for the company, the first thing the folks at the warehouse would ask me is, 'Are you red or blue?'" he said.

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (27)

Foto: A Costco member picks up groceries in the '90s.sourceClarence Williams/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

But he added that employees eventually got on the same page. "It wasn't really a bad thing," the former employee said. "Price Club had evolved into a different animal, and Costco really took us back to bare bones."

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (28)

Foto: A Costco member peruses clothing in the '90s.sourceMel Melcon/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Are you a current or former Costco employee with a story to share? Email [emailprotected].

Here's what Costco looked like when it first opened in 1983 (2024)
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