- Costco’s new CFO won’t inherit his predecessor’s parking spot, as he hasn’t served enough time there yet.
- Costco is known for the value it places on high employee retention.
- Some employees have stayed at the company for over 30 years, and several execs started out working on the shop floor.
Costco’s CFO, Robert Galanti, retired in March after 40 years at the company, but the new CFO won’t be so quick to fill in his parking spot.
Reserved parking spaces at Costco are based on tenure rather than seniority, The Wall Street Journal reported. So despite being in the C-suite, new CFO Gary Millerchip will have to park his car across the street.
It’s an old-school way of doing things, Galanti told The Journal. “We’re a little quirky, but that’s our culture and it works for us,” he said.
Galanti, a fierce defender of Costco’s $1.50 hot dog combo, is one of the many emoployees to hold a decadeslong tenure at Costco.
The company lets its retail employees work their way to the top. CEO Ron Vachris started at the company as a forklift driver and is set to earn around $11.5 million this year in the top spot — he’s only the third person ever to hold this job at the company.
Other executives also began their Costco careers on the warehouse floor.
Todd Thull, who is listed as a VP at the company on his LinkedIn profile, started as a forklift driver 44 years ago.
Another employee, John Conlon started off “pushing carts at the original Costco” back in 1987, his LinkedIn profile reads. Now, 37 years later, he’s worked his way up to a director role at the company’s headquarters.
At least 10 other employees based at the company headquarters in Issaquah, Washington have worked there for over 30 years, according a search of LinkedIn profiles.
Business Insider was not able to independently verify the current employment of these workers.
The warehouse club boasts some of the highest employee satisfaction ratings among big retailers. In 2021, Costco raised its minimum wage to $17 per hour, far above the federal minimum hourly wage of $7.25.
Former Costco CEO W. Craig Jelinek advocated for a higher minimum wage in front of Congress in 2021. He said that it’s “good business” to cut down on the employee turnover rate.
“We’re certainly not perfect, but we try to take care of our employees, because they play such a significant role in our success,” Jelinek said.
Business Insider contacted Costco for comment but didn’t immediately hear back.
