Costco Buyers are a small percentage of Costco employment. They represent less than 1% of Costco’s work force. With each buyer in charge of buying millions of dollars of products per week and hundreds of millions annually you can imagine the stress and strain they are under to bring in items their members will buy today!
It is said the average Costco buyer has over 20 year of Costco experience; with the large majority in buying offices. Buying offices are scattered across the US and in other countries, each category buyer having their own criteria, reviews and deadlines. It is like a maze of dizzying information by department, sub-department, category, sub-category, nationally, regionally, internationally, corporately and so on. A Costco vendor or supplier or a company desiring to be a Costco vendor or supplier requires a great deal of patience, organization, and determination to get to the right Costco Buyer.
Costco Buyers are said to be unique in their buying habits and review. Others say Costco Buyers are callus to the reality of manufacturers, service providers and distributors. Costco Buyers are also said to be ruthless and unfair. The fact is a Costco Buyers job is to buy the right products (brands) that meet the conceived need of their members. A Costco Buyer is to bring the Costco member back year after year through a well thought out buying process.
So how do you make a Costco Buyer happy? It is it is recommended to work with a Costco Expert, Costco Vendor Guide, Costco Sales Representative, Costco Specialist, Costco Broker, Costco Product Placement or Costco Product Broker. All-in-all they are the same with the exception of the different levels of experience: novice, experienced, expert and veteran. In general each level can be defined by the number of years, how many items sold or promoted and the specific category experience they offer. A novice will have less than 3 years of experience and largely take a supportive role in the product pitch or placement process; they have very limited knowledge of the categories and department nuances. An experienced Costco Product Broker will have 3-10 years of sporadic product pitch or placement with direct and supportive roles in the product placement process; the experience is not likely to encompass all Costco categories. Beware of the specialists who cross over to several retailers like Sam’s Club, Costco, BJ’s Warehouse and more, they may have the years but have watered down their experience through broad sales. An expert Costco Broker has 10 or more years of Costco specific experience, knowledge, and established reputation as well as relationships. A veteran has many years of Costco employment combined with many years of Costco product placement expertise.
Costco Buyers work with Costco Product Placement experts the majority of the time. Why? Most companies want to serve the Costco Buyers needs right from the start and continue the process with expert assistance. Always consider using Costco expertise before using your own limited sales force to sell to Costco Buyers.
