Sam’s Club makes key move to win where Costco dominates | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

Even though I’ve been a Costco member for 20 years, I remember my first trip to the store like it was yesterday. Not only was I amazed and overwhelmed by the sheer size of the store, but I recall thinking, “I could easily blow an entire paycheck in here in the span of three hours.”

One thing I didn’t do in my early days of Costco shopping, though, was load up on Kirkland Signature products. The reason? Ignorance.

Back then, I wasn’t familiar with Costco’s Kirkland line and didn’t realize what a fantastic reputation it had.

As someone who now not only shops at Costco almost every week but also writes about the company extensively, I realize just how pivotal the Kirkland brand is to Costco’s success.

As of late 2025, Kirkland Signature was generating roughly $86 billion in annual sales for Costco, making up about 33% of the company’s total revenue, according to Seeking Alpha.

And during Costco’s Q1 2025 earnings call, CFO Gary Millerchip said, “Kirkland Signature continues to grow at a faster pace than our business as a whole.”

Kevin Hart appeared in ads for Sam’s Club.

Sam’s Club

Kirkland brand is a key value driver for Costco

Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand is more than just a store label. It’s also a key driver of member trust and loyalty.

Costco is notoriously selective with its Kirkland brand, so much so that the company won’t hesitate to pull the plug on products that don’t meet its standards for price and quality.

And yes — both have to coexist for Costco to put a Kirkland product on its shelves. If a Kirkland product is high in quality but Costco can’t keep the price well below the national brand, it will generally get scrapped.

Of course, the Kirkland label is also essential to Costco’s business model. By producing so many products under the Kirkland Signature name, Costco is also to negotiate better pricing, allowing members to enjoy the savings the company is known for.

As retail expert Dave Wendland told Retail Wire, “Above all else, Kirkland Signature is trusted. This means that consumers have come to rely on the quality, consistency, and value provided by this brand.”

Sam’s Club makes Members Mark’s changes to compete with Kirkland brand

Costco’s competitors no doubt agree that the success of the Kirkland Signature brand is enviable. And there’s perhaps no bigger Costco competitor than Sam’s Club.

In a recent Kiplinger review, Costco came out a winner over Sam’s Club in terms of store brand quality. And that’s not surprising.

Member’s Mark, Sam’s Club’s store brand, has long lived in Kirkland’s shadow. But that may be slowly changing.

Sam’s Club recently announced that it reached a “100% ‘Made Without’ milestone” for all Member’s Mark food and beverage products. The company was able to remove over 40 problematic ingredients, including certified synthetic colors, artificial flavors, aspartame, and high-fructose corn syrup, without compromising on value or taste.

“Quality at Sam’s Club means more than just a great price. It means providing ingredients that members want and eliminating the ingredients they do not want,” Sam’s Club said on Walmart’s corporate website.

Some notable changes included:

Changing the company’s bakery icing to remove synthetic colors
Removing synthetic colors from the store’s famous sports drink
Taking products off of shelves that couldn’t be reformulated

The move comes at a time when consumers are becoming increasingly health-conscious.

Half of American consumers are now looking to eat more fresh foods, according to a 2024 International Food Information Council report. And 19% of consumers say they eat healthy “all the time, ” according to Food Business News citing Mintel’s Food and Drink Nutrition Claims report.

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Based on this, it’s pretty clear that Sam’s Club has made a smart decision in altering its food and beverage formulas. But the question is, will that be enough to help Member’s Mark – and Sam’s Club – catch up with Costco and its much-beloved Kirkland line?

Only time will tell. But if Sam’s Club continues to invest in its store brand, it could slowly but surely take business away from Costco given its lower membership price point.

Maurie Backman owns shares of Costco.