Costco-obsessed couple visits 200 locations across the world ahead of new book

23 September 2023 , 01:55

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For those that want to know everything there is to know about Costco - there's a new book written by David and Susan Schwartz (Image: Courtesy David and Susan Schwartz / Hot Dog Press, LLC)

Anyone who's ever spent the money to gain entry to one of America's most iconic shopping chains and experienced the wonder that is Costco may understand this couple's obsession.

David and Susan Schwartz of New York, have officially visited their 200th Costco location after travelling around the world to see what sweet deals they could find.

For those that haven't ever visited a Costco - this giant warehouse/market originated in Seattle, Washington, and quickly spread. Here, you can find anything from all your weekly grocery shopping needs to winter coats, mountain bikes, deals on flatscreen TVs, excellent rotisserie chickens, and, if you like - tubs of mayo and other deep-fried foods.

'We’re going to at least one Costco in every state of the country and this is our 41st state,' David said in an interview last August (Courtesy David and Susan Schwartz / Hot Dog Press, LLC)

It's these items exactly that prompted the Schwartzs to start visiting more of these stores and find out what kind of products they're stocking that you probably won't see in most places. In August, the couple was in Jackson, Mississippi to check out some of the Costco locations there.

“In Jackson, Mississippi, it’s already 100 degrees. We’re going to at least one Costco in every state of the country and this is our 41st state,” David tells TODAY.com in late August. “I think we have five more states to close on 46.” There are over 850 locations of the store worldwide. You can find Costcos in Australia, Iceland, France, Japan, Mexico and the U.S. Here, we have more than 500 stores across 46 states.

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The Schwartzs have set out to visit each and every one of them. In fact, they planned to do so before the September release of their new book - but Costco proves to be a challenge. “The Joy of Costco: A Treasure Hunt From A to Z” was officially released Sept. 12.

The book, which comes with illustrations from Martin Hargreaves, details all of the best finds and little secrets that Costco has to offer. It's information most people wouldn't set out to find on their own - but will be pretty glad to know once they've read it.

“You know, there are people who go to baseball stadiums across the country. We’re the people who go to Costco wherever we go,” Susan tells TODAY.com, adding that when they would go on vacation, whether it be Las Vegas or Puerto Rico, their first stop would be Costco. “It’s a treasure hunt. It’s like an Aladdin’s cave of joy. It’s my happy place.”

The Schwartzs found something to bond over that led them to writing a book together, and in the true American spirit, that thing is a giant store (Courtesy David and Susan Schwartz / Hot Dog Press, LLC)

“We’ll have been to a Costco in each of the 14 countries around the world and then one of each of the 46 states plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico,” Susan says. The couple, who have been married for 20 years, say that their remaining stops include New Hampshire, Vermont, Kentucky, Ohio and North Carolina, which they’re headed to next."

Their book is an A to Z of facts about the store - with Z representing Costco in Zuma, Japan, which is apparently full of fascinating produce and flora, according to the couple. They've gone far and wide to see the biggest, smallest, and most talked about Costcos.

“I think our last stop is going to be Ohio, at which point I’m going to fall down on my knees and weep,” David jokes." Of course, they're doing plenty of shopping while they're visiting these locations, so this isn't a hobby for the faint of heart, or faint of wallet.

“Costco sells 3,800 to 4,000 items at most, and an average supermarket sells 40,000 items,” Susan says. “So when you walk into Costco, it’s already been pre-selected and guaranteed for quality. But you just don’t know what you’re gonna find around any corner. We walked into a warehouse in Taiwan at one point and there was like a two-foot-high bottle of Glenmorangie whisky.”

Did they buy it? Of course they did — and lugged it all the way home to Manhattan. “I saw a two-liter bottle of really fine single-malt scotch for $55. I thought, ‘Well, I’ve got to take that,’” David says, adding that the pair had to buy a new suitcase for the giant bottles.

Yelena Mandenberg