1 THE WAREHOUSE SAVINGS & RESELL PROFIT PLAYBOOK An Independent Member's Guide A practical guide to stacking cash-back rewards, reading markdown codes, and finding real resale margins at wholesale club stores. This is an independent guide created for members and resellers. It is not produced, authorized, reviewed, or endorsed by Costco Wholesale Corporation or any other retailer. All brand names mentioned are the property of their respective owners and are used only for identification and educational purposes. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. The 4% Cash-Back Stack 2. Executive Member Perks 3. Price Tag Codes & Markdown Secrets 4. Partner Services & Member Perks 5. Smart Buy Categories 6. Wholesale-to-Retail Resell Worksheet 7. Snack & Small-Item Resale Worksheet 8. Seasonal Clearance Opportunities 9. Travel, Auto, Insurance & Health Perks 10. Where to Keep Learning 11. Final Action Checklist 3 SECTION 1 | The 4% Cash-Back Stack This is the single highest-leverage move for a frequent warehouse-club shopper: stacking an Executive-tier membership with the club's co-branded Visa card. How it works: An Executive membership earns an annual 2% reward (capped, currently around $1,250/year) on qualifying warehouse, online, and travel purchases. The Anywhere Visa card by Citi separately earns 2% back on Costco and Costco.com purchases charged to the card (with higher rates — 5%/4% on gas and EV charging, 3% on restaurants and travel — on non-warehouse spending too). Used together on the same purchase, that's a combined 4% back. EXECUTIVE MEMBERSHIP (2%) + CO-BRANDED VISA (2%) = 4% CASH BACK Do the math first: Executive upgrades typically cost about double a standard membership. You need to spend enough per year for the 2% reward to cover that upgrade fee before it's "free money" — for most households that breakeven point is a few thousand dollars in annual spend. If you're reselling inventory through the club, you'll likely clear that easily. 4 SECTION 2 | Executive Member Perks Beyond the 2% reward, the Executive tier includes a few perks worth knowing before you decide whether the upgrade is worth it for your situation: • Annual 2% reward on qualifying purchases, issued as a certificate • Extended return windows on certain categories (verify current policy in-store — return windows are set by the retailer and do change) • Discounts on select business and consumer services (see Section 4) Note: exact return-policy windows and dollar caps change periodically. Confirm current terms at the membership counter or the retailer's website before printing this as a permanent guide. 5 SECTION 3 | Price Tag Codes & Markdown Secrets Warehouse clubs don't publish this anywhere in-store, but the pattern is well documented by longtime members and employees. Reading the last two digits of a price tag tells you a lot: Ending / Symbol What It Signals .99 Standard, full member price — no markdown .97 Store-level clearance markdown .00 or .88 Manager's final closeout — deepest discount, sometimes a return or floor model .49 or .79 Temporary manufacturer-funded promo, not a clearance signal Asterisk (*) Item will not be reordered once current stock sells out How to use this: A .97 tag with an asterisk is the strongest signal — it's already discounted and won't come back. Check the price-update date on the tag too: the longer an item has sat at a markdown with stock still on the shelf, the more likely it drops again. These are shopper-observed conventions, not official published policy, and can vary slightly by store and region. 6 SECTION 4 | Partner Services & Member Perks Business-Facing Services • Payment processing discounts through partners like Elavon • Shipping and storage discounts (e.g., portable storage container providers) • Bulk water delivery and printing/marketing service discounts Consumer-Facing Services • Auto and home insurance referral programs • Discounted auto service and parts through the club's auto program • Travel booking discounts on cruises, rental cars, and vacation packages • Pharmacy discounts and free hearing/vision screenings Specific partner names and discount percentages change over time — verify current partners on the retailer's official services page before publishing exact figures. 7 SECTION 5 | Smart Buy Categories Categories that consistently offer strong per-unit value at warehouse clubs, whether you're buying for your household or sourcing for resale: • Multi-surface and grease-cutting cleaning products (long shelf life, high per-unit savings) • Dishwasher and laundry pods sold in bulk • Nitrile/latex-free gloves — steady demand, low spoilage risk • Shelf-stable snack and candy multi-packs 8 SECTION 6 | Wholesale-to-Retail Resell Worksheet Fill this in with prices you've verified in-store or on the retailer's site. Do not publish profit percentages you haven't personally confirmed — resale margins shift constantly with clearance cycles and regional pricing. Item Club Cost Resale Price Profit Margin 9 SECTION 7 | Snack & Small-Item Resale Worksheet Same approach — small, high-turnover items (snacks, drinks, single-serve goods) can carry strong margins, but confirm real unit costs before listing any numbers. Item Unit Cost Resale Price Profit Margin 10 SECTION 8 | Seasonal Clearance Opportunities Seasonal and end-of-line inventory (personal care, small electronics, holiday goods) often gets the deepest markdowns described in Section 3. Track categories here as you find them: Item Club Price Retail Comp Profit Margin 11 SECTION 9 | Travel, Auto, Insurance & Health Perks • Discounted cruise, hotel, and vacation package booking • Free additional-driver coverage on select rental car bookings • Pre-negotiated pricing through the auto-buying program • Pharmacy discounts and free vision/hearing screenings These perks are worth factoring into your annual membership cost-benefit calculation alongside the cash-back stack from Section 1. 12 SECTION 10 | Where to Keep Learning Membership perks, price-code conventions, and partner discounts change over time. Rather than linking specific videos that may go stale or get taken down, search these terms directly for current, up-to-date walkthroughs: • "warehouse club price tag codes explained" • "Costco Executive membership 2% reward breakdown" • "Costco Anywhere Visa cash back guide" (current year) • "warehouse club clearance shopping tips" 13 SECTION 11 | Final Action Checklist • Run the Executive-membership breakeven math against your actual annual spend • Get the co-branded Visa card if the math favors stacking • Learn the price-tag codes and check dates on marked-down items • Fill in Sections 6–8 with real, verified prices before reselling anything based on them • Recheck partner services and perks periodically — they change This guide is for educational and informational purposes. It is not financial advice, and it is not affiliated with or endorsed by any retailer named within it. Verify all prices, discounts, and policy terms independently before making purchasing or resale decisions.