How to Become a Costco Vendor

New products are always welcome.

In the interest of your time, and the time of our buyers, we recommend that you review the following buying specification worksheet :

Quality

• High-quality merchandise guaranteed by our suppliers to maintain Costco’s reputation and member satisfaction
• No seconds
• National brands where feasible
• Where national brands do not reflect optimum quality and value, private label will be considered
• Private-label merchandise specification will meet or exceed the leading national brands.

Pricing

• Item presentation should always represent lowest possible acquisition price
• Item presentations should include a breakdown of all built-in costs, demos, spoils, advertising and marketing volume, rebates, and opening deals
• A complete freight evaluation of all methods of product distribution should be included in each presentation:
  
  
  • FOB Manufacturing plant / distribution centre
  • Delivered to our warehouse
  • Our preferred method of payment is electronic funds transfer (EFT)

Packaging

• All items should carry barcodes and may also need to carry the Costco item number
• Items are to be presented in labour-saving pallet packs for optimum visual presentation
• Packaging and labelling on all products must be informative, truthful and must not be in any way deceptive
• Packaging is to be environmentally friendly, and must comply with Australia packaging regulations

Product Categories

• Wholesale Items – Items carried on an ongoing basis where our wholesale members are relying on Costco to supply their daily business needs
• Treasure Hunt Items – Items that may appear on a one-time basis or in selected warehouses. These items represent high-value, high-image categories
• Seasonal Items – Items carried during a particular time of the year.

Gratuities

Costco's policy expressly prohibits the acceptance by any Costco employee of any gratuity from a vendor with whom we are currently doing business or whom we are considering for future business.

Costco Wholesale Corporation Supplier Code of Conduct

Costco Wholesale Corporation is committed to protecting the working rights and safety of the people who produce the products we sell, while recognising and respecting the cultural and legal differences found throughout the world.

Please note the following key aspects of our Code of Conduct:

RESTRICTIVE LABOUR CONDITIONS- prohibits slave labour, human trafficking, illegal child labour, illegal prison labour and physical abuse of employees;

WORK ENVIRONMENT- expects our suppliers to comply, at a minimum, with the applicable labour and environmental laws and regulations of the country where the merchandise is produced; and

FUTURE IMPROVEMENT- encourages our suppliers to work to achieve above and beyond the minimums set by local laws and regulations.

We expect our Suppliers to comply with our Code of Conduct, as compliance is one of the requirements of our Vendor Agreement. We reserve the right to conduct and will conduct audits of all applicable production facilities in order to monitor compliance with our Code. It is important to know that we may discontinue business with any Supplier who fails to comply, after reasonable notice of non-compliance.

Please see Costco Supplier Code of Conduct for full details.

Costco Confidential Ethics Hotline

We have implemented a global confidential ethics hotline as part of our continuing efforts to assure compliance with our Code of Ethics, our Vendor Code of Conduct, and other legal and ethical policies. http://www.costco.ethicspoint.com

This is a confidential tool available for use by any supplier who has reason to believe a Costco employee or supplier is in violation of these policies. (Transactional issues, such as deliveries, payments or other related items should not be addressed through this channel.)

We encourage supplier reports of possible violations of policy and other misconduct, including violations of:

• Antitrust and competition laws;
• The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act;
• Insider trading restrictions;
• Accounting, financial reporting, and internal control rules;
• Health, safety, and environmental laws; and
• Costco’s Vendor Code of Conduct.

The hotline also allows suppliers to raise issues involving personal misconduct by Costco employees or employees of Costco suppliers, including:

• Conflicts of interest;
• Gifts, favours, entertainment, and other payments;
• Confidential information;
• Political contributions; and
• Discrimination and sexual harassment.

Contacts can be made confidentially. Reports will go to the Office of the General Counsel and the Chief Compliance Officer, who will investigate and discuss with the appropriate senior executive officer.

Purchasing Quotes

We expect all vendors to consistently and voluntarily quote the lowest possible acquisition price available on all items. A vendor who does not consistently and voluntarily quote its lowest prices to our buyers will be permanently discontinued as a purchasing source for Costco.

Enquiries

For any enquiry please contact us at (02) 9469 7999.

Address:

17-21 Parramatta Rd
Lidcombe, NSW 2141

Mailing address:

PO Box 207
Regents Park DC
NSW 2143