What To Do If You See Costco's Death Star Marked On Any Of Its Items

If you hear someone mention a death star, your first thought is probably the "Star Wars" franchise, where the Death Star is a super weapon with enough power to eliminate planets. If you're a fan of the Costco discount warehouse, though, death star has a related meaning. If you see a product sign and price tag displaying the death star – which is a large asterisk – inside the Costco warehouse, it means this particular warehouse is not going to reorder this item in the near future. It's possible that the warehouse will never carry the product again or will not reorder it for several months, potentially because it's a seasonal item.

To make the most out of the cost of your Costco membership, you might want to keep an eye out for items marked with the death star. It's possible that the death star Costco product is being offered at a discount as the local warehouse attempts to clear out its inventory, meaning you might be able to save some money. If you want to avoid a common mistake everyone makes when shopping Costco's home section, though, don't just assume the death star item is on sale. When the death star item's price ends in 97 cents instead of a number that ends in a "9," it is being sold at a discount.

When you look at the white sign with the product name and price tag near the product in the Costco warehouse, look in the upper right-hand corner of the tag. If you see an asterisk, it means that once the warehouse's current inventory is gone, the product will not be available in the near future. If you ask employees about the product with the death star mark, they'll probably recommend that you stock up because there's no guarantee that it will return.

If you want to buy a lot of the product, you might ask whether more of the product is available in a storage area away from the retail floor. However, it's not likely. The membership warehouse follows a just-in-time inventory system, meaning it devotes very little storage space for extra products. Costco warehouse stores typically place all the items they have in the on-floor display rather than using a back area to store items. 

Costco has more than 600 stores in the United States, and almost 40% of the inventory at any single location could be unique to that store because of regional sourcing of items. Consequently, a product with the death star at your favorite location might be available online or at another location because items being discontinued vary from store to store. You can sometimes use the Costco website to see whether products are in stock at a particular local store.

It can be unsettling to see the death star mark and discover that Costco is discontinuing one of your favorite products, particularly if it's a household item that saves you money. Even though it might be hard for you to believe, it's possible that your favorite item ends up with the death star designation because it hasn't been a popular choice among other Costco members and will be disappearing forever.

Frequently, a product with the asterisk is simply a seasonal item that may return in the future. Products at Costco that are seasonal include Christmas decorations and holiday food products. Another possibility for a product that has the death star mark is that it will be returning in a different type of packaging in the near future, meaning it will have a new SKU. It might be changing sizes, such as when a beverage goes from a 12-ounce can to a 16-ounce can. Costco might also mark an item with an asterisk when the manufacturer will be introducing a new-and-improved version. If you'd like to try to convince your local Costco warehouse to continue carrying the product or to try to bring it back in the future, you can provide feedback through the Costco website or visit the customer service desk at the store.