I’m fairly certain Costco has lower prices and profit margins than Target. So it’s not “on the other end on all of those” with Target being intermediate.

Costco also sells in much larger sizes, so while the price may be lower on a per unit basis, you often pay more overall. It’s a trade not everyone wants, e.g. lack of space to store bulk goods in a small apartment. Costco, Target, Amazon, et al compete on some sort of n-dimensional plane with price, size, shopping experience, brand, etc all play a part. It’s not a line.

Costco's high barrier is the membership cost where they derive a substantial amount of their profit.

A few years ago, I would agree with you on profit margins at Costco.

I do not see deals anymore. Sure they like to bundle (especially in threes), but the product is usually the stuff that isn't selling elsewhere, and the price isn't much if the consumer divides by 3.

I used to buy there all the time because of the no question asked return policy. That has changed. They question a lot more than electronics returns too.

Oh yea, most high end watches you see in the case are Grey Market bought, and have no manufacturer's warranty.

What's keeping Costco happy is the membership fees. That is pure profit.

the spectrum seems accurate for the employee pay I think.

Walmart uses their market size to force suppliers to produce special packaging for Walmart that is a slightly different sized box for many food items, where that product is a bit lighter than the same sized box at another retailer. The catch is Walmart advertises their price, which looks lower in print, but if one purchases that product at Walmart and also at another grocer you will find the Walmart version is slightly more expensive by weight, holds less than the other same sized box but labeled with the correct weight. Only a careful consumer will notice that Walmart costs more, if calculated by weight.