Why Costco's Founder Would 'Kill' Over a $1.50 Hot Dog

"If you raise the effing hot dog, I will kill you." Costco's co-founder Jim Sinegal said that about a $1.50 hot dog, as his successor Craig Jelinek tells it. The hot dog and soda have cost $1.50 since 1985. Fifty cents more would bring in about $100 million a year, so why does a company that made $9.2 billion last year still refuse? Because the hot dog was never the product. You are. How Costco really makes money: the markup cap, the $4.99 chicken bait, the moocher crackdown, the 2024 fee rise, and why about half its operating profit comes from a piece of plastic. Skits with the Spreadsheet Guy are dramatised; he is fictional and stands for "the numbers", not any real executive. Real people's words appear only as sourced quotes. Figures are from Costco's fiscal 2026 results (year to 30 August 2026) unless noted. CHAPTERS 0:00 The threat 0:30 The promise 2:10 The trick 3:50 The bait 4:51 The moochers 5:49 The payoff 6:25 You're the subscriber SOURCES Costco, Q4 and fiscal 2026 results, 8-K (24 Sep 2026): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/da... Costco, Form 10-K, fiscal 2026: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/da... Costco Q4 FY2026 earnings call transcript (The Motley Fool, 24 Sep 2026): https://www.webull.com/news/156604354... 425 Business, Jelinek on hot dogs and the Sinegal quote (18 Apr 2018, archived): https://web.archive.org/web/202110231... The Seattle Times, Q&A with Jim Sinegal (15 Nov 2009): https://www.seattletimes.com/business... NPR, why the $1.50 hot dog price isn't changing (4 Jun 2024): https://www.npr.org/2024/06/03/nx-s1-... Fortune, CEO Ron Vachris on the hot dog price (21 Mar 2026, updated 4 Jul 2026): https://fortune.com/article/costco-ho... Seattle Business, Costco's first warehouse (Sep 2019): https://www.seattlebusinessmag.com/re... HistoryLink, Costco timeline: https://www.historylink.org/File/3609 Supermarket News, obituary of Sol Price (21 Dec 2009): https://www.supermarketnews.com/finan... US Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U all items: https://data.bls.gov/timeseries/CUUR0... Fortune, Inside Costco: The Magic in the Warehouse (3 Dec 2016): https://fortune.com/costco-wholesale-... FMI, Supermarket Facts: https://www.fmi.org/our-research/supe... CNN, Why every Costco product is called Kirkland Signature (5 Feb 2022): https://www.cnn.com/2022/02/05/busine... CNN, Costco's $4.99 rotisserie chicken (11 Oct 2019): https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/11/busine... Food Dive, Costco's in-house poultry production (24 Sep 2018): https://www.fooddive.com/news/costcos... CNN, How Costco sells such cheap gas (31 May 2026): https://www.cnn.com/2026/05/31/busine... CNBC, Costco's gold bar sales (9 Apr 2024): https://www.cnbc.com/2024/04/09/costc... CNN, Costco cracks down on membership moochers (7 Aug 2024): https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/07/busine... CNBC, first membership fee rise since 2017 (10 Jul 2024): https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/10/costc... CNN, the fee rise takes effect (3 Sep 2024): https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/03/busine... FOX Business, tariff refunds go mostly to lower prices (25 Sep 2026): https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/c... What's one thing in your life that hasn't changed price since 1985? Tell us in the comments. #Costco #BusinessExplained #HotDog