Remember the days when going to the store would be an experience? I’m not talking about an experience dodging a deadly virus, either.
Rather, there once was a time where stores cared about shopper’s experiences as they browsed the aisles. You see some artifacts of that time today. One of the longest-standing is Costco’s Hot Dog and Soda combo.
The combo got its start in 1984. The idea was to leave the customer with one last transaction that would make them feel well taken care of. The hot dog and soda accomplished just that.
The price of the combo hasn’t changed since it’s inception. It’s been $1.50 and hopes to stay that way in perpetuity. It isn’t an easy task to keep the price so low, however. It should have gone up long ago with factors of inflation and distributor price changes. Still, Costco has worked really hard to keep that price as it’s always been.
How hard? When Costco co-founder and CEO Jim Sinegal passed the reigns on to W. Craig Jelinek in 2012, he threatened to kill him if he changed that price.