Costco Is Expanding This New Member Perk

There are quite a few perks that you can take advantage of if you pay the $60 annual Gold Star or $120 Executive membership fees at Costco. Members, of course, gain access to the retail chain's warehouses, gas pumps, and food courts. They also have the opportunity to save big on bulk groceries, chicken coops, and diamond rings.

In recent years, Costco also began giving members access to a growing list of curated products from its top suppliers. Now, the warehouse chain is expanding this new perk in a big way. (Related: The Best & Worst Costco Bakery Items—Ranked!)

Since 2017, "Costco Next" has provided its members with the ability to purchase specific items directly from suppliers for at least 20% less. This program features "brands' popular products that are often in limited supply," CNN's Nathaniel Meyersohn reports. Recently, the retailer "ramped" up the available offerings.

The list of brands currently available on "Costco Next" includes: "America's favorite charging brand" Anker; luggage company Briggs & Riley; outdoor supplier Klymit; K-Beauty brand Most Inc.; and outdoor lighting company Volt.

To purchase a featured product, Costco members simply have to enter their first and last names and membership number. Then they're taken to the supplier's website, where they can shop with special pricing.

"Costco Next is a special category that showcases an expanded selection of curated items from some of Costco's most trusted suppliers," the website for the program says. "At Costco Next, you'll have the opportunity to purchase products directly from a Costco Next supplier's site, where you'll enjoy special members only values. This innovative approach to marketplace expansion, helps us achieve our goal of bringing a larger, more diversified selection of goods to our members, while increasing the value of our Costco membership."

The warehouse chain applauds the program for increasing "the value of our Costco membership." CNN notes that it also provides a way for Costco to signal to online shoppers that it is "more than just a physical store" amid fierce competition from Amazon.

For more on what's happening at the warehouse in your neighborhood, check out: