The Schwartzes set out on a mission to visit at least one Costco in every state and one in every country that has one. On Sept. 8 the Costco couple will complete that mission, and the final destination happens to be Cincinnati.
“We’ve been around the world in seven years and Cincinnati is the last stop,” Susan Schwartz tells CityBeat.
On Friday, the Schwartzes will visit the Costco Wholesale store in Liberty Township, where they hope to discover “Cincinnati chili,” and celebrate a successful end to their mission.
Naturally, the couple has written a book about why they love Costco so much and what they’ve learned about the retail giant throughout their journey. The Joy of Costco: A Treasure Hunt from A to Z will be released Sept. 12, nearly coinciding with Costco’s 40th anniversary celebration on Sept. 15.
The coffeetable-style book is a colorful culmination of fun facts and tidbits of history they’ve learned about Costco by talking to employees and executives. Costco did not fund or encourage the Schwartz's journey in any way, the Schwartzes tell CityBeat, but they did offer the book to Costco executives for a voluntary fact-checking session.
Each letter of the alphabet represents one or more Costco facts. For example, “H” stands for hotdogs. According to the book, Costco sells more hotdogs than all major league baseball stadiums combined. “H” also stands for hearing aids. The book says that Costco provides hearing aids for a “fraction of the cost of most other places.”
“X” and “Z” were “problem letters,” according to the couple. They found a Costco in Zama, a suburb just outside of Tokyo, Japan to fill the “Z” slot, and one in Xalapa, Mexico, where they uncovered some interesting Costco facts unique to that area. “C” is appropriately the letter with the most entries.
“We've loved Costco for a very long time,” David Schwartz tells CityBeat. “Susan and I, when we got together, we found that we had been to Costco in our previous lives. And wherever we would go on holiday we would usually take a hotel room that had a kitchen and was near a Costco so we could buy food and go and cook in our rooms.”
By Sept. 8, the Costco couple will have been to more than 230 of Costco’s 800-plus locations around the world. That includes 14 countries and 46 states. Maine, Rhode Island, West Virginia and Wyoming are the only states that do not have at least one Costco Wholesale store.
“We've been to all the countries now and to at least one warehouse in each. Right now, we're in Vermont, it's our 43rd of 46 states,” Susan Schwartz told CityBeat in an interview on Aug. 30. “And then, we're going to New Hampshire tomorrow. So we have two left, Kentucky and Ohio. Ohio will always be a very special memory."
David Schwartz plans to "cry and kiss the floor" when the couple finally sees the Cincinnati location, Susan Schwartz says.
“We just love the shopping experience,” David Schwartz says. “We love the value for money. We love the quality. We love the whole thing.”
Photo: Provided by David and Susan Schwartz.
David and Susan Schwartz in front of a Costco Wholesale store.
In 2016, the idea for a Costco-centric book was born. Today, they are gearing up to see 100,000 copies printed, which will be available on Amazon and in most places where books are sold. The couple is thrilled that Costco itself will carry the books, and they’re also proud to distribute to a number of independent bookstores around the country.
“Part of the business model at Costco is they sell only 3,800 items,” Susan Schwartz says. “They're very, very selective. And they rotate things quite frequently to keep it interesting. So you know, we were just grateful that they cooperated with us.”
The Schwartzes will be at the Costco Wholesale location in Liberty Township at 7135 Veterans Blvd. on Sept. 8 to wrap up their journey. The Joy of Costco will be on sale Sept. 15 at select Costco locations, on Amazon and most places books are sold.
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