Costco Packaging: The Good, The Bad & The Meh

Even though Costco doesn’t carry that many SKUs (only 4,000 compared to Walmart’s 150,000), the size of the warehouse space and the variety of product can be overwhelming. During any trip I make to Costco, I always take a look at some of the Costco packaging and displays to note what grabs my attention and others that are just so-so. Since Costco is self serve, displays are the silent sales person. In addition, if there are only 2-3 brands in a category the packaging and display must work harder to capture the consumer’s attention and sell the product.

The Good Costco Packaging

iHome: I was immediately drawn to this iHome Costco packaging and display:

iHome Costco packaging side view — The Costco packaging has a hologram that changes color as you walk around the display which mimics how the product performs.

iHome Costco packaging interactive display — The Costco pallet holds an interactive counter top type display that demonstrates the product, which is interactive and inviting.

Costco Packaging for iRobot Roomba: Below is another display and packaging I thought provided great content allowing customers to make a buying decision while in store.

Fron iRobot Costco packaging — The Roomba Costco packaging is very clean and calls out key features. Since the packaging is bilingual, its great the copy was kept to a minimum.

Close-up of Roomba display — The additional details provided on the side of the display can help to close the sale for those undecided buyers.

Close-up of Costco package Roomba display

The Bad

More examples below are Costco packaging designs. Granted, not every manufacturer can afford the types of displays listed above. This means that the packaging has to work extra hard to present the product. In the following cases, the packaging designs are so cluttered that it is hard to find the benefits of the product.

HD Video Camera Costco Packaging — This is a classic case of a package trying to communicate too much. Can you tell at a glance what this product is? It is an HD Video Security DVR. I could do an entire blog on how this could be improved.

Brother Sewing Machine Costco Packaging — Another case where the package is just too busy and tries to communicate too much to the consumer. It is overwhelming.

Kirkland Costco Packaging — The product photography is really nice. Only a few features are called out on the front. I think Kirkland could be slightly larger though.

The Meh

This Costco packaging and displays missed opportunities to really showcase the product and give the consumer more information to make a buying decision.

Samsung Blu-ray Costco Packaging — This is a real missed opportunity. The packaging is nice and clean but the bottom of pallet wrap doesn’t draw the customer to the display at all. Color could have been used to add some excitement

Lorex Costco Packaging — I can guess that this might be a home security system because of the cameras on the packaging. However, all of the elements on the front of this box are the same size. Nothing stands out. Under the brand name it states: True High Definition 1080p. Beneath that in even smaller and harder to read font it says “Security Camera System”. It is always difficult displaying copy when there are three languages on the front of a package, but there are ways it can function better than this package.

HP OfficeJet Printer Costco Packaging — HP is a premium, well-known brand. This packaging is just OK. I like how the side of the box completes the image of the printer. This works well when stacked in a a club store. However, this has too much information and has no clear benefit stated on the front of the box.

Insteon Costco Packaging — This is a really clean package design but in a store like Costco, the consumer needs to know what the product is to even be considered. In very small type, it says what it is: A Home Control Starter Kit. A clear benefit needs to be stated on the front of this packaging.

Because of the business I’m in, even a quick trip to the store ends up being a critique of sorts. These examples really drive home how important packaging and displays are to selling more product—especially in a club store environment.

Patty Jensen

VP, Account Services — JDA, Inc. Retail Ready Design

Patty Jensen is Vice President of Account Services at JDA, Inc., a graphic design firm that specializes in supporting companies’ branding and retail efforts with a Unified Marketing approach.

The Good Costco Packaging

The Bad

The Meh

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