Costco. That chain of behemoth sheds selling things you’d never anticipated wanting at prices you can’t resist. Things in sizes that don’t exist anywhere else—like slabs of muffins, and hammocks of toilet paper. And, apparently, high-end jewelry at prices that aren’t very Costco at all. Prices like $419,999.99.
This tweet came from Sky reporter Jennifer Bechwati, who appears to have been the first to notify everyone about Cosco trading in jewels. But what Jennifer didn’t realise is that Costco has been doing that for years. The company refers to particularly expensive pieces as “wow” items, and according to the New Daily each one of Australia’s nine stores has at least one “wow” item.“It could be a ring, could be a pendant, could be earrings, but it’s primarily a diamond piece and they tend to hover between $300,000 and $850,000,” Costco’s jewellery buyer told the New Daily.This jewelry buyer also admitted that the half-million dollar ring had been sitting in their Canberra store since 2011. “It’s quite difficult [to sell] … we’ve sold a lot of high-end pieces but not at that price point,” she said.Surprisingly, it’s not even the most expensive item they’ve got. That particular “wow” item is a $875,000, 13.72-carat yellow diamond, available from Victoria's very own Moorabbin store. And while it’s not on their site, try to picture the flaming eyeball of a jaundiced cat, and that’s probably how it looks.So when you get married to your sixth wife, twice removed, just think of Costco—where rings cost the same, but getting busted with a Costco receipt will cost the marriage.