Costco Cracks Down On Membership Sharing

CALIFORNIA, CA — Costco's infamous crowds may start to thin out thanks to a crackdown on membership sharing being initiated by the warehouse giant. It's a move that is generating long lines and strong feelings. Costco executives also expect it to generate more profit.

Costco has officially started implementing new membership scanners at locations across California as the wholesale retailer continues to crack down on unauthorized membership usage.

Now, members will be required to scan their membership cards before entering the warehouse store, and employees must confirm their customer ID images. Non-Costco members must be accompanied by a valid member to enter Costco, the company said in a statement.

The process, already rolled out at stores in Long Beach, Los Angeles, Burbank and Laguna Niguel, Roseville and Alhambra, have led to a chokepoint at some store entrances.

“If your membership is inactive, expired, or you would like to sign up for a new membership, the attendant will ask that you stop by the membership counter prior to entering the warehouse to shop. Additionally, if your membership card does not have a photo, please be prepared to show your valid photo ID. We encourage you to stop by the membership counter to have a photo taken to have on your card,” the statement read.

The new scanners have prompted jeers and cheers at Costco stores in Laguna Niguel and Los Angeles.

"It only slows down the process to get in," Anastasia De Voss of Laguna Niguel wrote on Facebook. "You have to show the card to check out, so why the redundancy?"

Other residents said the scanners were a step in the right direction.

"It's a good approach to minimize non-members just walking into the store," Los Angeles resident Engel Emrt wrote on Facebook. "It also serves as a security checkpoint. Long overdue entry procedure."

"I went to a Costco in Roseville and they are already doing this, didn't take any longer to get into the store," Aliso Viejo resident Nicole Nickell Gallo wrote on Facebook. "We did have to scan again at the checkout, it wasn't a big deal."

The company began testing the new technology in January, KTLA 5 reported. The company claims that membership sharing increased during the pandemic, eating into the primary revenue-driver for Costco. According to the SF Gate, Costco takes in about $4.6 billion in membership fees per year

And those fees are set to increase in September, the company announced.

Currently, a Costco Gold Star membership costs $60 and the Executive membership costs $120, according to the company's website. Those prices are set to rise to $65 and $130, respectively.