AmEx dumps Costco

[scottIN]

Wow!

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/compa...lit/ar-AA9jKNr

Costco must have just been beating the crap out of AmEx for them sever ties. And I'm sure they ran all the numbers & predictions forwards & backwards, but I'd have to think that Costco cards were a huge part of their business. And the thing is, it's not that that business simply goes away - it goes to one of their competitors.
I've got both personal & business Costco / AmEx cards, and not sure what I'll do. May not keep them if one of the other card companies offers similar deals w/ Costco.

[wantonebad]

Originally Posted by scottIN

Wow!

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/compa...lit/ar-AA9jKNr

Costco must have just been beating the crap out of AmEx for them sever ties. And I'm sure they ran all the numbers & predictions forwards & backwards, but I'd have to think that Costco cards were a huge part of their business. And the thing is, it's not that that business simply goes away - it goes to one of their competitors.
I've got both personal & business Costco / AmEx cards, and not sure what I'll do. May not keep them if one of the other card companies offers similar deals w/ Costco.

Not so sure it wasn't the other way around... Amex charges more than any other CC in merchants fees. All the costco accounts were Capital One many years ago and I'm sure Amex lulled them in with great rates and then slowly increased them. That's what I suspect but have no proof.

[JohnAndrew]

I've heard that Sam's is going away from Discover.

[rr-nyc]

Costco was negotiating rates and Amex walked away.

It looks like Costco finally found a company that doesn't cower to the "Costco rules". Costco won't miss a beat and will probably benefit from accepting other credit cards.

a 3.4% decline in Amex billings may be tough to make up which s why their stock dipped

[salem65]

Holt Renfrew here is Canada, also just dumped their Amex store card.

[Kingair]

This hurts Amex I am pretty sure

How many cards are we talking about ?

[salem65]

Originally Posted by Kingair

This hurts Amex I am pretty sure

How many cards are we talking about ?

I would imagine it would hurt Amex pretty bad. Amex was the only Card Costco accepted.

[Chewbacca]

costco canada went with Cap1 mastercard in Dec 2014.

the thing about costco is they grind suppliers to hold margins for them. the amex business wasn't even much to their bottom line (reported by analysts in canada) because most costco'ers pay the balance same day and only use the cards at costco. amex also has to pay the annual cash rewards.

amex also relied on selling the purchaser metrics to marketers but you can only sell so much diaper and chicken breast buyer profiles info until the marketers get the point.

the good thing for consumers is they can now use any master card and not just the cap1 card. and that should get more people in costco stores. which costco may already have figured out.

[wantonebad]

Yeah from what I read it was definitely Amex that pulled the plug, strange but then again Amex does things their own way. For me, and don't get me wrong I'm not an Amex fan, you can't base the winner/looser on what wall street does hours after the news is made public. That has nothing to do with the two businesses, it's the analysts making predictions on who looses based on their models, private investors then follow suit in the knee-jerk wall street two step. JMHO

[Angrypuppy]

Between the 15,000 bonus points for spending 30k going away and now this, I'm shopping for a new card.

AMEX no has the value for me to justify the yearly fee.

Now I'm trying to figure out what to do with ~200,000 amex points.

[Kingair]

Originally Posted by salem65

I would imagine it would hurt Amex pretty bad. Amex was the only Card Costco accepted.

And now I am stuck with mine . . . .

I'll wait on what they have to offer

Only used it to shop at Costco and buy some fuel there

[77T]

I'd say AMEX will come around. They could be replaced by mobile payment system in a NY minute if Costco went ApplePay or another model.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[T. Ferguson]

It was an odd alliance anyway. Costco certainly doesn't reflect the upscale image Amex likes to market, and Costco is not about to overpay anyone, including it's credit card provider.

Sounds like a deal that just wasn't penciling out anymore for either company. It happens.

[rr-nyc]

Originally Posted by T. Ferguson

It was an odd alliance anyway. Costco certainly doesn't reflect the upscale image Amex likes to market, and Costco is not about to overpay anyone, including it's credit card provider.

Sounds like a deal that just wasn't penciling out anymore for either company. It happens.

Actually, they share similar demographics. The average income of a Costco customer is $85,000 yr (ave household income for an amex card holder is $100,000 yr)

54% of Costco's customers are considered wealthy or affluent while less than 15% of Costco customers are considered low income or poor.

[SUBversive]

I'm getting kind of sick of Amex and their attitude of late.

[HogwldFLTR]

I've used the Costco Amex for many year and have had to carry an MC to cover the places that won't accept Amex. I won't mind if Costco goes some other way.

[1st amg]

I learned this a few months ago in Canada and have since cancelled my Amex, I was only using it at Costco.

[T. Ferguson]

Originally Posted by rr-nyc

Actually, they share similar demographics. The average income of a Costco customer is $85,000 yr (ave household income for an amex card holder is $100,000 yr)

54% of Costco's customers are considered wealthy or affluent while less than 15% of Costco customers are considered low income or poor.

But you're letting truth get in the way of perception.

[Culley22]

Only reason I had an Amex was Costco...it'll go away now.

[Ed Rooney]

Originally Posted by Angrypuppy

Between the 15,000 bonus points for spending 30k going away and now this, I'm shopping for a new card.

AMEX no has the value for me to justify the yearly fee.

Now I'm trying to figure out what to do with ~200,000 amex points.

Switch to a no fee Amex card, or transfer the MR points into one of the many programs that take them.

[Frosty]

Originally Posted by Kingair

And now I am stuck with mine . . . .

I'll wait on what they have to offer

Only used it to shop at Costco and buy some fuel there

Same here. It had no other value. Amex did not charge me for the card, maybe because it was for Costco.

[Tri-Tip]

The current contract with Amex runs through March, 2016, so it's a year before anything changes.

I have the Costco AMEX card and use it nearly everywhere. It's rare these days that a place doesn't take AMEX. I'll take the percentage back in cash (just got my voucher for this last year), and the card is free.

Majority of my Costco purchases are gas, as they are almost always 20 cents less than other stations, so I'll just switch to whatever other card they partner with.

[amh]

No biggie, I just won't have a single reason for amex now. Let's hope they switch to visa.

[mtrunner]

Looks like Costco is going with Citi and Visa:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/costco-n..._whats_news_us

I couldn't be happier that they decided on Visa.

[Hooper]

Originally Posted by culley22

only reason i had an amex was costco...it'll go away now.

x2

[SUBversive]

Sorry to change the subject but Amex customer service these days is horrible. It's outsourcing of customer service was at low levels like I experienced with sirus radio. I will never use that service again and I'm glad to read this kick in the shins to Amex.

[WatchTimes]

Amex Plat still has the best concierge services.
The annual fee is easily recovered if you travel.
They pay for my Global Entry Card, they give me a $100 airline credit for baggage fees or anything charged when flying (booze, food, movies etc)
Late Check Out and free breakfast with many hotels.
The car insurance ($19 for the entire rental) is a steal!
They have gotten me GREAT seats in sold out concerts as well as many other perks.
I was given a Barclay Visa Black card free as they were soliciting Platinum members and I cancelled the card after 6 months, just not real benefits and their concierge services were lousy!
If you do not travel and take advantage of the perks the card is not worth it.

As for the stock price drop, that is fine! I utilize these little fluctuations to buy more... Long term I do not think Amex is going anywhere, they are still growing in Asia and the Middle East... They also offer a direct invest DRIP program which is nice for long term.

[rr-nyc]

Originally Posted by WatchTimes

Amex Plat still has the best concierge services.
The annual fee is easily recovered if you travel.
They pay for my Global Entry Card, they give me a $100 airline credit for baggage fees or anything charged when flying (booze, food, movies etc)
Late Check Out and free breakfast with many hotels.
The car insurance ($19 for the entire rental) is a steal!
They have gotten me GREAT seats in sold out concerts as well as many other perks.
I was given a Barclay Visa Black card free as they were soliciting Platinum members and I cancelled the card after 6 months, just not real benefits and their concierge services were lousy!
If you do not travel and take advantage of the perks the card is not worth it.

As for the stock price drop, that is fine! I utilize these little fluctuations to buy more... Long term I do not think Amex is going anywhere, they are still growing in Asia and the Middle East... They also offer a direct invest DRIP program which is nice for long term.

The Amex Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance is automatic if you use your card to pay for the rental and you are supposed to decline any and all insurance. Otherwise, you are using the rental company's insurance and not the one provided to you by Amex. The downside, and what most people do not know, is that rental cars with an MSRP over $75k, full size SUV's like Suburbans, full size vans, and antique or classic cars are not covered under the policy.

Barclay sent me the black card too. They waived the first year fee of $495. The second year, I told them to close the account but they offered to waive it one more year and I just got the third year waived again.

To be honest, there are so few lounge clubs in the US but a lot in Europe. The clubs are just as nice as Delta but not as crowded.

[cjohns]

Originally Posted by SUBversive

I'm getting kind of sick of Amex and their attitude of late.

Kinda sounds like Rolex,, Our way or the highway ??