The Innovative Way BJ's Wholesale Club Plans To Up Its Game
"If you can't beat 'em, join 'em," they say, and that's certainly one viable strategy for dispatching with the competition, provided you're actually geared up to "join 'em." For BJ's Wholesale Club, which competes against the biggest warehouse club players like Costco and Walmart's Sam's Club (via Statista), it's not necessarily practical or even possible. Due to the sheer size of their respective footprints, both Costco and Sam's Club are able to leverage economies of scale that are not necessarily available to BJ's (at least not at the same levels) in order to keep their operating costs and prices competitive, according to TheStreet. But don't count out BJ's Wholesale Club just yet.
Since the start of the pandemic, BJ's has been enjoying a boost in sales. On the company's fourth quarter earnings conference call on March 3, 2022, president and CEO Bob Eddy told investors that, notwithstanding a challenging fourth quarter 2021, the year, overall, was the most profitable in BJ's history, with membership at an all-time high and plans to open 11 new clubs in 2022. And that brings us to the innovative way that BJ's is planning to up its game.
BJ's knows its strengths and it's planning on playing to them
According to President and CEO Bob Eddy, BJ's strengths lie in its fresh and perishable offerings, per The Motley Fool. Starting with the opening of new clubs in Florida, Michigan, and New York, BJ's will put the emphasis on building and finessing its fresh and perishable foods, which Eddy says are a "critical reason why our members shop our clubs." That being said, "we can do much better in terms of the assortment, quality, and freshness of these items," Eddy noted.
Accordingly, the plan is for the new clubs in these three states to offer an expanded selection thereof, along with what they already offer in terms of groceries and other household essentials, plus an "exciting assortment of fashion for the family, seasonal items, toys, hot tech, and a selection of local products." But the newest jewel in the BJ's crown would appear to be a new location in Warwick, Rhode Island.
Referring to it as a "small box pilot," Eddy told investors that the Warwick store will be known as "BJ's Market," and that it could become the model of future expansion for the chain. However, for the time being, it will "function as an innovation lab for us to test out new assortments, displays, product demonstrations, and convenience initiatives." There is no word yet on when this "first of its kind" store (via WPRI.com) will open, so stay tuned as details develop.