Costco closes all in-store photo departments
Costco customers can still access various photo center services online
Costco bid farewell to one of the signature staples of its business: in-store photo centers.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COST | COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP. | 971.88 | +10.33 | +1.07% |
The service closed over the weekend, and as a result, customers will no longer be able to get ink refills, passport photos, photo restoration and the YesVideo Home Movie Transfer Service.
AMAZON, HOME DEPOT, COSTCO WAREHOUSES HIT BY CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAKS, LA COUNTY SAYS
However, customers will still able to access various services online at the Costco Photo Center website for delivery to home or business, including photo prints, enlargements and posters, stationery, photo greeting cards, canvas, metal and acrylic prints, photo books, calendars, photo blankets and other gifts, and business printing.
Costco declined to comment to FOX Business on the closures. However, according to an email to customers obtained by PetaPixel, the company cited "the continued decline of prints" as the reason due to the evolution of camera phones and social media.
The retailer is urging customers with any remaining orders to pick them up at their local photo center by March 28
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News of the closings left Costco customers devastated on Twitter.
"Costco is closing down their photo center I’m DEVASTATED," one user tweeted. "They had the best prices for developing film."
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Despite the permanent closure of its in-store photo centers, Costco's business has been booming during the coronavirus pandemic.
Costco reported $42.35 billion in net sales for its fiscal first-quarter last month.
Comparable sales, excluding changes in gasoline prices and adjustments for currency fluctuations, were up 17.1% year over year. When including those adjustments, comparable sales were up 17% in the U.S., 16.8% in Canada and 17.7% in other international markets. Meanwhile, e-commerce sales were up 86% year-over-year.
In the four-week period that ended Nov. 29, after Thanksgiving, comparable sales were up 14.6% to $15.67 billion.
This story, originally published on Jan. 13, 2021, has been updated.