Costco sees more growth for its real estate empire of $ 31.9 billion and widens the production of its famous Hot-Dogs combo which gets tired of inflation

The expansion of the wholesale of Washington, based in Washington, remains robust. On the fourth quarter only, Costco opened 10 new warehouses, and he opened 27 in the full year, including three relocations, for a global total of 914.

The CEO, Ron Vachris, told analysts on the call for profits that the company planned to open 35 warehouses in 2026, including five relocations, adding: “We continue to see important expansion opportunities both at the national and international level on the markets where we are currently operating.”

Unlike most of the main retailers who are reluctantly based on rental, Costco actually has the vast majority of 900+ warehouses worldwide, amazing a real estate portfolio estimated at $ 31.9 billion in its last quarter.

BJ Feller, director general of the real estate company of Minnesota, Northmarq, carried out calculations at the back of the entry into a LinkedIn post of July 2025: Costco holds approximately 80% of its sites, between 15 and 20 acres each, evaluating conservative each location at $ 25 million at $ 35 million.

“They don’t count on the owners,” wrote Feller, “they are the owner. They sell in bulk. They operate in bulk. And they have in bulk.”

Financial director Gary Millerchip, who recently succeeded his legendary predecessor, the 40-year-old, Richard Galanti, said Thursday that land purchases included an “widen hot dog production”, among other purposes such as a new coffee roasted center.

He had “funny sales facts” for analysts, saying that “daily value articles” are extremely important for buyers, especially during the economic uncertainty. In 2025 Costco sold more than 245 million combos of hot dogs, more than 157 million roasting chickens and “enough bathing fabric to reach the moon and return more than 200 times”.

The combo of Hot-Dog and Soda of $ 1.50 came to represent the promise of Costco of perpetual low price. A case study taught in business schools is how Costco’s first CEO, Jim Sinegal, jokingly warned his successor Craig Jelinek in 2008 never to increase the price of the famous combo: “If you raise the hot dog Effing, I will kill you,” he said. “Take it.”

Jelinek opened the Costco hot dog manufacturing plant in 2009 and when Fortune‘S Phil Wahba profiled the “Costco cult” in 2024, Galanti said to him: “These two articles are fundamental.” (Combo sales amounted to 199 million at that time, which means that they increased by more than 23% in just over a year.)

To mark the 40th anniversary of the Hot Dogs Agreement, the company has deployed Coca-Cola as a partner of Soda through restoration areas around the world, returning to the roots of the signature combo.

Meanwhile, Kirkland Signature has reached the 30 -year mark by innovating its product range and increasing its share of sales. More than 30 new articles from Kirkland struck the shelves this quarter, covering everything, from organic food to household clothes and items.

The supply is increasingly local – means reducing costs while reducing environmental impact. Costco’s venerated private brand offers economies from 15% to 20% compared to national brands, a stamp against prices and inflation.

Vachris told analysts that Costco adopts a “very offensive approach … Do our best to mitigate pricing impacts”. The last appeal, he added, would be to transmit an increase in prices to the consumer, and even then, “we are going to be the last to go up and always the first to descend.”

Costco did not respond to a request for comments.

Efforts to maintain low prices have helped the profits from the fourth quarter and income forecasts. But Wall Street seemed disappointed to see a continuous slowdown in sales with comparable stores. Costco declared a 6.4% increase in sales at comparable stores for the fourth quarter, the second consecutive deceleration of this metric. Costco action dropped up to 3% Friday before bringing losses to around 1.8%.

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