Steve sent a message to W. Craig Jelinek – President and Chief Executive Officer of Costco Wholesale Corporation email address that said:
My renewal was up 9/30/16. I am an AMEX cardholder since 1984. I have been a COSTCO member for a couple years now and have always been able to use my AMEX. You decided to make a huge switch which caused us to have to buy a Visa gift card to shop at your store which is an extra $4.95 each time on top of your $55 charge for the privilege to shop in your store for one year. ( I have a VISA debit card but do not want to use that and risk a hacker getting into and draining my checking account that you hear so much about. AMEX is much safer where that is concerned and stand behind their customers 110% which is why I have been a loyal member with them since 1984) Sam's Club sent me an offer for a free year's membership and the ability to use my AMEX. So, when I received the renewal notice, I called your corporate office number on the notice and gave them a chance to retain my business instead of me going to Sam's Club. They transferred me to your Menomonee Falls, WI store since I live in that town. I originally got one of the managers named Freddie and he told me, "I seem like a better customer for Sam's Club so I should go there." I was so flabbergasted that someone would tell me that, I called corporate back and they seemed appalled by that comment and said they would have the store manager, Doug Peters call me. I talked to Doug today and he told me the same thing basically. He said there was nothing he could do to give me anything off of my membership to retain me and just let me go to Sam's Club just like that. It must be nice to have that great of business to just let customers go to the competition especially after the AMEX / CITI transfer fiasco that I have read all kinds of complaints about. I just thought you would want to know about this treatment of your customers by your management staff at this store.
Thanks for your time.
Steve and Kim
