Costco is taking a new step in an ancillary business that has traditionally been a way to drive in-store foot traffic to on-site warehouses and foster membership loyalty — cheap gasoline. The retailer is in the process of building its first standalone, members-only gas station in Mission Viejo, California — a roughly 17,000-square-foot facility with 40 pumps and multiple underground fuel tanks, according to city planning documents . Unlike traditional Costco locations, the site will offer fuel only, with no on-site warehouse. (There is one a few miles away .) The grand opening is set for late June, according to Cliff Jones, city planning and economic development manager. Costco has a second standalone gas station under construction in Honolulu, Hawaii, with completion there expected in 2027, according to the project’s website . We reached out to Costco for comment on the initiative and did not hear back. For investors, the big question about these member-only gas stations is whether the moves can help reaccelerate membership growth — a high-margin, predictable revenue stream for Costco that has slowed. Jim Cramer thinks the added convenience and visible savings at the gas pump could serve as another entry point into the Costco ecosystem that will help “attract new members.” That could be especially true if the hostilities in the Mideast were to continue to keep oil and gasoline prices higher over the long term. The current arrangement of gas stations and warehouses on the same site is already a meaningful business for Costco, which tends to attract even more motorists during times of elevated gas prices, with the hope that they also poke their heads into the stores while they’re there. “It was about 10% of net sales in 2025,” Raymond James analyst Bobby Griffin said, noting the company operates about 750 gas stations and sells more than 8 billion gallons annually. Gas is one of the clearest ways Costco demonstrates value to members. Griffin said that prices at Costco’s pumps are about 20 to 30 cents a gallon cheaper — an important incentive, with oil prices soaring to four-year highs as the Iran war was in its fourth week. The national average of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.98 per gallon, according to AAA on Thursday , up nearly 27% from a year ago. While that dynamic makes gas a powerful tool for Costco to drive both in-store traffic and loyalty, the standalone format branches out from the traditional model. Griffen described the initiative as an “interesting kind of test,” adding Costco is likely evaluating whether more convenient gas locations can drive incremental visits — especially from customers who don’t regularly shop at warehouses. The Raymond James analyst has a buy-equivalent outperform rating on Costco and a price target of $1,100 per share. Mizuho analyst David Bellinger framed the move as consistent with Costco’s long-standing strategy of reinvesting value back into members. “If the member is asking for that,…
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