Costco exec quietly confirms bad news for all members this month - which means fewer savings this holiday season

A Costco executive has quietly confirmed some bad news for members who are hoping to find the same deals they got last Christmas.

Costco customers have to pay membership fees of between $60 and $120 a year - which helps the retailer keep prices low in its 600 stores across the US. The company's famous hotdog and soda deal, for example, has cost $1.50 since 1985. 

Last year, several major retailers ended up with excess inventory - including big-ticket items such as televisions - as data from previous periods during the Covid-19 pandemic was no longer reflective of spending habits. 

Many shoppers splurged during Covid lockdowns - as they found themselves with excess money to spend. This meant that in 2022, many retailers ended up with extra merchandise amid dwindling demand - which they then sold for deep discounts. 

This year, however, Costco chief financial officer Richard Galanti suggested there will be fewer of these extreme discounts during the holidays.

During the company's fourth quarter earnings call, according to The Street, Galanti said: 'Our year-over-year margin improvement has, in part, been due to fewer markdowns due to better inventory positions this year than last. Our inventories, overall, are in good shape.'

In short, the company has corrected its stock levels to better reflect shopping habits - which means there will be less unwanted stock left over this year.

Galanti told investors earlier this year that shoppers had reined back on spending on bigger and more expensive items such as refrigerators and TVs - and were favoring cheaper chicken and pork products over beef. 

In the latest earnings call, however, Galanti added that prices at the retailer would not be significantly affected by 'shrinkage' or inventory losses due to theft. 

Other stores, including Target and CVS, have had to close outlets due to rising shoplifting and organized crime. 

Galanti told DailyMail.com that inventory loss was less of an issue for Costco as only fee-paying members are able to enter the warehouses. 

'You have to show your picture ID when you come into our warehouse so the fact that it's member-only is a positive,' he said.

The uniform layout of most Costco warehouses also imposes physical barriers between thieves and precious inventory.

'We've always had one way in and one way out and people checking receipts at the door,' he added.

Most retailers that operate in malls instead have multiple entrances and exits.

In a report summarizing its 2022 financial year, Costco noted that 'by strictly controlling the entrances and exits and using a membership format' it was able to maintain inventory losses 'well below those of typical retail operations.'

Costco also sells items in bulk, making it hard for smaller items to be snuck past the staff members who are checking customers' receipts as they leave.

'Many items are larger-sized items and when you have smaller, larger value items they're in packaging that is much bigger,' said Galanti. That includes items like Gillette razor blades, which come in oversized flat packaging.

Galanti told investors that inventory shrink did spike by around 0.02 percent when self-checkout machines were introduced in some warehouses during the pandemic.

But he told DailyMail.com he was not especially worried about that uptick or afraid to continue deploying them in future.

'Mistakes are made,' he said. 'Even on the exit door, we find mistakes both ways.'