How Asian is your Costco? Help us find SoCal's most 'Asian Costco' for Lunar New Year

Ada Tseng
·2 min read
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Birds are perched above a Costco store in Mountain View, Calif., Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007. Costco Wholesale Corp. on Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007 said its fiscal first-quarter profit rose 11 percent as sales and membership fees both grew. The results were in line with Wall Street expectations, but its shares slid almost 5 percent in morning trading on disappointment at Costco's operating margins especially in its gasoline operations. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma) ORG XMIT: CAPS137
Costco has become extremely popular in Asian American communities. (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press)

Last weekend, when my family was shopping at Costco, one of the free sample lines caused a shopping cart traffic jam. It was the new Bibigo Korean-style crunchy chicken with sweet & spicy sauce, featured in this month's Costco coupon book (it’s $4.50 off!).

I got in line. If there’s anything Costco shoppers can’t resist, it’s getting free samples and assessing whether to take advantage of the small window of opportunity to avoid paying full price for an item.

When Business Insider reported last year that the average Costco shopper was a married Asian American woman between 35 and 44, it seemed to shine a spotlight on me. My (also Asian American) husband is an even bigger Costco die-hard. He loves checking out warehouses in different cities because the inventory varies from location to location. Are we a Costco stereotype?

As Lunar New Year approaches on Feb. 10 — and some Costco locations start bringing out Year of the Dragon alcohol, desserts and even gold — my L.A. Times colleagues and I have been wondering: Which are the most “Asian Costcos” in SoCal? And how did Costco become such a hit in Asian American communities?

Please help us in our investigation by filling out the form below by Jan. 18. Tell us about the goods you’ve seen on display and any other stories or anecdotes you’d like to share.

J Way Taiwan boba milk tea and Wangloaji herbal tea at Costco.
J Way Taiwan boba milk tea and Wangloaji herbal tea at Costco. (Ada Tseng)

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.