Costco starts selling platinum bars

The company launched the sale of 1 oz. platinum bars on its website, priced at $1,089.99. A 1 oz. The platinum Canada Maple Leaf coin sells for the same price. Both have a premium markup of around $94.

The Swiss-made bars and coins are not available in all parts of the country and cannot be shipped to Nevada or Louisiana, the company said on its website. Also, they cannot be returned or refunded. And if you want one, you’ll have to act fast when they come in stock, as they sell out almost immediately.

(Reddit users have already started a subreddit — Costco Precious Metals — to let each other know when stock is refreshed for gold, platinum, and silver deals.)

The introduction of precious metals into its online offerings has been a boon for Costco’s e-commerce operations. Chief financial officer Richard Galanti, speaking on an earnings call earlier this year, said growth in online sales in the final quarter of 2023 was “led by sales of gold and very recently silver.”

Costco shoppers are a bit more into gold than silver. A Wells Fargo analyst note earlier this year estimated the company’s bullion sales at $100 million to $200 million per month. Sales of the one-ounce bars, which are made of 24-carat gold, began last October. The bars sell for about $2,000 each.

While the revenue numbers are significant, the research note suggests that the returns on these sales are thin at best. The real value, they say, is in how the price reinforces Costco’s value position. Think of it as a high-end version of the company’s rotisserie chicken—a way to get customers’ attention.