COSTCO WHOLESALE CORPORATION, PETITIONER Form

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Costco is a retailer that has figured out how to get its customers to pay for the privilege of shopping there, and its members decide the privilege is worth the cost year after year after year. The now global chain of warehouse stores counts more than 55 million members around the world, and around 90% of them renew their memberships each year. If you want a 25-pound bag of beans, a bucket of soy sauce or a crate full of bananas, Costco is the place to go. While you are there, you can buy a flatscreen TV, a pair of eyeglasses, some gourmet cheese and a few pairs of sweat socks. You might be astonished at how little each item costs, and yet you might end up spending much more than you planned to. Costco developed a retail recipe that might have sounded crazy when the company was founded, charging people a fee to allow them to spend money in the store. But it works, in part because Costco is a company that is run very much for the pleasure of its members, and its members are fiercely loy