How Costco is run
At the end of August 2026 Costco operated 939 membership warehouses, 647 of them in the US and Puerto Rico. It owned the land and building at 536 of those 647. Its annual report describes no franchised warehouses. (Costco annual report, fiscal 2026)
Who owns Costco
Costco Wholesale is a public company; its shares trade on the Nasdaq under the symbol COST. (Costco annual report, fiscal 2026)
Franchises like Costco
If you want to own a retail business, these franchise brands sell the closest thing to Costco, largest first.
| Brand | Cost to open | Fee | Royalty | Locations | Sales a location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7-ElevenFee $0–$800K · Royalty Share of gross profit | $165K–$1.62M | $0–$800K | Share of gross profit | 8,303−502 in 3 yrs | – |
| Circle KFee $25K · Royalty 3.5–6% | $1.47M–$2.87M | $25K | 3.5–6% | 6,071+143 in 3 yrs | – |
| Ace HardwareFee $5K · Royalty None · Sales $3M a location | $604K–$2M | $5K | None | 5,144+393 in 3 yrs | $3M |
| GNCFee $20K · Royalty 6% · Sales $484K a location | $188K–$530K | $20K | 6% | 1,960−340 in 3 yrs | $484K |
| MinisoFee $50K · Royalty No royalty; 45%–65% product share | $361K–$745K | $50K | No royalty; 45%–65% product share | 351+277 in 3 yrs | – |
| Family FareFee $10K · Royalty 56% of gross profit | $30K–$1.17M | $10K | 56% of gross profit | 102+9 in 3 yrs | – |
| Just-A-BuckFee $25K · Royalty 4% | $176K–$298K | $25K | 4% | 10−4 in 3 yrs | – |
Locations are US locations, franchised and company-owned, at the end of the latest year filed. Sales are yearly, before costs, where the brand publishes them.
7-Eleven is the largest, with 8,303 US locations, and Family Fare costs least to open, from $30,300. Ace Hardware added the most locations, +393 over 3 years. Of the brands that publish sales, Ace Hardware reports the most per location, $3M a year. The typical retail franchise starts at $198K to open; see where the money goes.
Sources
Questions
Which of these retail franchises loses the fewest owners?
Family Fare. None of its franchised locations closed, were terminated or weren't renewed over the years its latest filing covers, against 9.9% a year at Circle K. Buy-backs by the franchisor and sales to new owners don't count as exits. Failure rates by brand