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Costcos latest promotional offering just dropped, but members arent rushing to claim it. At select warehouse club locations, members can now take home complimentary 3-pound bags of Gala apples. The shopping warehouses unique business model, wherein membership fees contribute largely to its revenue, means that it focuses on plugging its membership more than advertising specific products. Costco puts significant effort into encouraging people to join, or upgrade and renew, existing memberships. In the past, Costco has offered enticing items like tote bags to coax customers into automatic membership renewals, but the promotional bag of apples is not as appealing, according to one Costco member. Giving away apples is like giving away white bread, they told TheStreet. Its fine, I guess, but not very interesting. Its certainly not going to get me to do anything different. Costco has previously been successful in pushing customers to upgrade to the Executive tier, which is $130 annually, with customers earning 2% cash back on most purchases, compared with $65 for the basic level. In June, for example, Costco started unveiling a new membership feature that allowed Executive members to shop one hour earlier than regular members during weekdays and Sundays, and half an hour earlier on Saturdays. The perk was generally well received. The company reported a 1% boost in sales at the end of September, and Executive memberships increased by 9%, according to CFO Gary Millerchip. Which might explain why the apples that followed seemed to fall a bit flat. Whats more, Costco shoppers have complained about employees tirelessly approaching them about memberships. Another customer told TheStreet that his membership makes sense for the amount that he shops, but he continues to face pressure. The last few times Ive gone to check out, Ive gotten the third degree about my membership, he says. Its getting really old. For years, Costcos membership system has served the brand well. But its apparent that taking a few steps in the wrong direction could turn people away. Ava Levinson This article originally appeared on Fast Companys sister publication, Inc. Inc. is the voice of the American entrepreneur. We inspire, inform, and document the most fascinating people in business: the risk-takers, the innovators, and the ultra-driven go-getters that represent the most dynamic force in the American economy.
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E-Commerce
As the year winds down, many leaders find themselves in a familiar ritual: closing the books, reviewing revenue targets, and drafting ambitious financial goals for the year ahead. These practices are important. But after years of designing teams and advising organizations at different stages of growth, Ive come to believe that the most valuable year-end ritual has little to do with money alone. Instead, its about setting nonfinancial metrics alongside your financial ones. Revenue tells you where your business landed. Nonfinancial metrics tell you why and whether the success youre chasing is sustainable. They reveal the health of your organization from the inside out, often long before that health shows up on a balance sheet. The quiet stretch between Christmas and New Years is an ideal time to step back and ask a different set of questions. Not just Did we hit our numbers? but What did it cost us to get there? And What kind of organization are we becoming in the process? Why Financial Metrics Alone Arent Enough Financial metrics are essential, but they are lagging indicators. By the time revenue dips or margins tighten, the underlying issues such as burnout, disengagement, inefficient processes, or stalled innovation have often been present for months or even years. Nonfinancial metrics, on the other hand, act as early signals. They help leaders understand whether the systems, culture, and behaviors inside the organization are aligned with long-term success. Consider employee engagement. Teams that feel trusted, challenged, and supported tend to deliver better work, collaborate more effectively, and stay longer. Gallup research shows that highly engaged teams deliver significantly better business outcomesincluding up to 23% higher profitability and 41% lower absenteeismindicating that engagement metrics act as early predictors of future performance rather than just retrospective measures. Or look at client satisfaction. Loyal clients dont just renew contracts; they deepen their engagement and/or refer others and become partners in growth. Operational efficiency, learning velocity, and innovation milestones similarly tell a story about whether an organization is built to adapt. When these indicators are strong, financial results often follow. When theyre ignored, revenue gains can be fragile or short-lived. Making the Intangible Measurable One reason leaders shy away from nonfinancial metrics is the belief that theyre too soft to track. But meaningful doesnt have to mean vague. The key is choosing a small number of metrics that reflect what actually matters in your context. A startup might track time to decision or experiment-to-launch cycles. A growing team might focus on employee engagement scores, internal mobility, or manager effectiveness. A client-facing organization might prioritize retention, net promoter score, or qualitative feedback trends. These metrics dont need to be perfect or overly complex. What matters is consistency and intent. Even a quarterly pulse survey or a structured retrospective can surface patterns that financial numbers alone wont reveal. For individuals, the same principle applies. Instead of setting only income or productivity goals, you might track energy levels, learning hours, or the quality of your working relationships. These nonfinancial indicators often predict performance more accurately than output alone. Turning Reflection Into Ritual The end of the year offers a rare pause: a liminal space where urgency softens and perspective sharpens. Rather than rushing straight into next years goals, consider making reflection a deliberate leadership ritual. Start by reviewing the nonfinancial signals from the past year. Where did momentum build naturally? Where did friction show up repeatedly? Which systems supported your work, and which quietly drained it? Then, as you look ahead, set intentional nonfinancial metrics alongside your revenue targets. Ask yourself: If we succeed financially next year, what must also be true about our people, processes, and culture? Write those answers down. Revisit them quarterly. Talk about them as openly as you discuss financial performance. A Different Kind of New Years Resolution New Years resolutions often fail because they focus on outcomes without addressing the conditions required to sustain them. Nonfinancial metrics flip that script, shifting attention from sheer output to the inputs that make great work possible. In doing so, they offer a more humane, and ultimately more effective, approach to leadership and work. They remind us that organizations arent machines that run on numbers alone. Theyre living systems shaped by trust, clarity, learning, and adjustment. As the year draws to a close, you can still set ambitious financial goals. Just dont stop there. Pair them with measures that reflect the kind of organizationand leaderyou want to be. Because when you measure what truly matters, the numbers tend to take care of themselves.
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E-Commerce
For 10 years, I obsessed over finding a 70s-era corduroy car coat like the one Wynona Ryder wears in the first season of Stranger Things. Not a vintage inspired fashion version, but an American classic turned velvety with wear. That meant thrifting at resale shops. Always on the lookout, I never scored because the outerwear selection in my size (large) was bleak. But today I am thrifting in the age of Ozempic, when women jettison entire wardrobes as an act of reinvention after dramatic weight loss, often monetizing through consignment and resale. As a result of all the larger sizes flowing into stores, I finally possess my unicorn: a heritage LL Bean corduroy coat as soft as cashmere in the groovy retro color of faded citron, all for the price of a burger at my neighborhood pub. Where once I had trouble finding my size, the popularity of GLP-1 drugs produces almost too many possibilities. Winter has always been my wardrobe low point: black, black, and, for a little fun, maybe some charcoal gray. But now my closet looks like I am in the wrong house. Color! Texture! Print! Thanks to Ozempic, selections are vast and wildly diverse, and prices are low. A thrifting bonanza I am not on the consignment hunt for couture; I am shopping for solid regular women brands that are still in good shape even as resale items because they arent fast fashion. Although Ive never been a blazer wearer, I now have two: bouclé wool in deep sienna and a tuxedo-style smoking jacket with green velvet lapels and buttons. Each great closet addition cost me less than two bowls of pho. Women arent selling off wardrobes because their clothing is out of style. The use of GLP-1 drugs can radically shift sizing so that even beloved items have to go, and Im far from the only one taking advantage of this quality thrifting bonanza. According to data from online resale marketplace ThredUp, the annual Capital One Shopping report, and spending behavior analysts Consumer Edge, the 2025 U.S. secondhand market is worth an estimated $56 billion (up 14.3% from 2024) and visits to resale stores were up 39.5% in 2025 (compared to Q2 2019), with an 80% rise in thrift and consignment spending among GLP-1 users. There are many reasons people frequent resale shops, from the economical to the environmental. Approximately one-third of clothing and apparel items purchased in the U.S. over the past year were secondhand, saving manufacturing resources and carbon emissions. A renewed sense of discovery But to me the best part of thrift shopping is cultural. Frequenting resale shops can provide that lovely convivial experience we once had when our shopping companions were friends, not phones. Im often surrounded by other shoppers inspired and excited by the prospect of what we might find and open to the unexpected. Because the nature of resale makes the clothing one-of-a-kind, theres a sense of discovery and camaraderie with shared conversations about a garments value and discussions about fit even among strangers. With expanded size range and diversity of brands, todays resale stores are more like independent boutiques, which are harder and harder to find due to the financial hardships based in fluctuating consumer habits. These old-school stores were vision-led, with gut-sense merchants assembling intentional collections from many different brands, often with an artisanal vibe. Their small inventories were always percolating, bubbling up something new, in contrast to brand-led stores offering mass-produced clothing under the same label: racks of algorithmic-driven styles that may work conceptually in the boardroom, but not so much in the dressing room. How to pick your spot Because people tend to sell quantities of clothing close to home, the best way to thrift in the age of Ozempic is to pick a shop in an area where women are likely to wear the brands you want to find and go there regularly. My usual spot is on a cobblestone-lined street in a village-like neighborhood a short train ride away from the center of the city where I liveonce called a railroad suburb. Look for a well-lit, well-organized store where the clothing is neatly hanging on uniform hangers. If you do become a regular and see the same garments week after week, move onthat store isnt getting enough traffic to keep things interesting. Because you dont have to settle. Closet upheavals due to GLP-1 drugs are plentiful, giving us lots of options. So, experiment until you find your own resale sweet spot, then start building the wardrobe youve always wanted: Their loss is your gain.
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E-Commerce
Want more housing market stories from Lance Lamberts ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. During its earnings call on Wednesday, executives at Lennara giant homebuilder with a market capitalization of $27 billionsaid the federal government is working on a plan to help alleviate strained housing affordability. Lennar executives said federal officials are actively engaging with homebuilders and industry groups to better understand constraintsand to avoid policies that could unintentionally damage supply. While no specific program was outlined, management suggested it would be surprising if no meaningful action emerged in 2026, given current discussions. Here’s what Stuart Miller, co-CEO of Lennar, said on its December 17, 2025, earnings call: I think the crystal ball around government activity is really complicated, but I can tell you that a number of homebuilders have gone in to see critical officials within the [federal] government. We have received a lot of attention. There’s a lot of thought process going on. You’ve seen trial balloons put out around various types of programs. What’s interesting is that the government has been very tuned in to the industry to make sure that they’re not walking into unintended consequences. So whatever is done, that it be constructed properly, is important. And to your question of you know, do I think that something will come out in 2026? I’d be surprised if something isn’t done. I think affordability is very much on the table. It’s a political issue right now, and I think across the country, you’re hearing the drumbeat of that being a primary focal point, and politically it’s important that someone pick up the mantle and do something to address it, rather than just throw money at it. So it’ll be interesting, and we’ll have to sit back and wait and see what comes out. This week, Americas second-largest homebuilder, Lennar, reported additional gross margin compression in the past quarter, as it had to spend more on incentives to maintain sales volume amid the soft housing market environment. To maintain sales in this softer market, Lennar spent an average of 14% of the final sales price on incentivessuch as mortgage rate buydownsin Q4 2025, up from 10% in Q4 2024. In normal times, Lennars sales incentive rate is around 5% to 6%. On its typical sale, Lennar spent $62,837 on incentives last quarter, according to ResiClubs analysis published on December 18. Whats interesting is that Lennar appeared to suggest to analysts on December 17 that whatever the federal government is cooking up could be enough to improve housing market conditions and reduce Lennars currently elevated incentive spending/improve margins. According to Miller: The strategy is: Let us [Lennar] build the volume that the country and the consumers need. Let’s make it affordable at this time where affordability is so strained, and let’s find ways to make ourselves more efficient, and let’s expect that something is going to come through the governmental ranks to support that affordability and enable the market to enter the housing market, and the reduction in incentives is going to flow through to our margin. What kind of action does Lennar think the federal government could take that would be meaningful enough to reduce incentive spending and expand margins? Lennar didnt say. Back on November 8, Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte and President Donald Trump announced that the administration was exploring a 50-year mortgage option to help lower some homebuyers monthly payments. Within minutes of the announcement, a sizable backlash erupted on social media, and Pulte began walking back the idea. Amid that 50-year mortgage backlash, Pulte also floated the idea of portable mortgages. It remains unclear what he meant by portable (for example, an expansion of assumable mortgages?), whether such a policy would be legal, or how seriously the idea was being considered. The Trump administration previously discussed the idea of Freedom Citiesselling off more federal land that could be used to build housing and new communities.
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E-Commerce
Theres something incredibly compelling about a brand-new year. A fresh start beckons, with each day untroubled by your past decisions. Whatever mistakes you made in 2025 are old news. They were sooo last year. Youre a new person now with new priorities, new habits, and new strategies. Its in this spirit of new-leaf-turning-over that nearly a third of American adultsand almost half of 18- to 29-year-oldsdecide to make New Years resolutions for the coming year. Unfortunately, making resolutions doesnt work. Baylor College of Medicine reported in January 2024 that 88% of people who make resolutions abandon them within two weeks. That doesnt mean change or improvement is impossible. It just means were going about it wrong each year on January 1 by declaring, This year will be different! If youd like to improve your finances, your health, your relationships, or any other aspect of your life in 2026, try some anti-resolution strategies for making the year greatsince your resolutions probably wont live to see Groundhog Day. Why resolutions dont work Before choosing the best anti-resolution strategy for 2026, its a good idea to understand the psychological reasons why resolutions just dont work. One of the problems has to do with the fresh start the new calendar year offers to us. We are anticipating a “new year, new you” moment for ourselves, which often leads to unrealistic and overambitious goals. We love to tell ourselves the story that we could go from broke and couch potato on December 31 to frugal and running 5Ks on January 1 through willpower alone. This story doesnt give us room for struggle, frustration, or failure. Additionally, a New Years resolution is an external motivation. That decision to change comes about because the calendar is changing and not because of an internal push to change. This means that when the external motivation has disappearedat about the same time Planet Fitness has stopped airing New Years membership deals 24/7weve usually moved on, too. Finally, we often make resolutions that require us to give something up. Financial resolutions ask you to deprive yourself of luxuries or conveniences, like streaming services or DoorDash when youve had a rough day. Health resolutions expect you to live without ice cream or fried foods indefinitely. While the intention behind these deprivation resolutions is goodsaving money or improving your cholesterol levelsyou cant expect to white-knuckle your way through these losses for an entire year. Humans are wired to be loss-averse, which means the pain of giving up things we like feels more intense than the pleasure we enjoy when we receive the same treats. Unresolved in 2026 Looking at the start of a brand-new year makes me want to harness the excitement and enthusiasm of starting over with brand-new behavior. But Ive learned over the years that I need actual strategies that will help me change my habits if I want to make lasting improvements to different areas of my life. The strategies that work tend to have these things in common: The changes are bite-size. Rather than changing your entire life, you should focus on little habits you can adopt one day at a time. You leave room for imperfection. Pobodys nerfect! And you will not pick up your new habit without mistakes, setbacks, and failures. Plan for them. You want to make the change. We often make resolutions that dont really reflect our actual wants or motivations. But change happens only when we want it to. The change adds something to your life. Rather than making you feel deprived, habit change should offer some kind of benefit that you can name. Here are the anti-resolution strategies that will make 2026 your best year ever. 2026 Bingo In December 2024, instead of setting resolutions, I created a “2025 Bingo” board, after seeing several individuals on social media posting about the trend. For this gamified goal-setting exercise, come up with 25 different aspirations you would like to achieve in 2026 and fill a 5-square-by-5-square poster board with them. Setting your 2026 intentions this way offers a number of benefits. First, it allows you to keep thinking about your goals throughout the year. For example, I ran a 5K in October of 2025, filling in that square of my bingo board very late in the year. Had I simply resolved to run a 5K in January, I would certainly have forgotten about it by fall. [Photo: Emily Guy Birkin] In addition, by giving yourself 25 spaces, you have room for audacious, silly, unrealistic, and embarrassing goals. While some of my goals were entirely within my control, such as running the race, going to the theater, and visiting a new state, there were other goals that I only had some control over, such as my goal for a certain level of income and my long-term goal to get a Wikipedia page. (Did I mention you can put embarrassing goals on here?) If you decide to create a “2026 Bingo” card, consider giving yourself a free space in the middle, and aim for five in a row by the end of the year. Whether or not you make it, youll set yourself up to think about what you want and how you can get itand you’ll have some fun with it. Set monthly resolutions Part of what makes a New Years resolution so daunting is the fact that youre trying to make a change that will last for the entirety of 2026. But committing to a change for a single month is much more doableand it can lead to long-lasting behavior change. For example, studies show that people who take part in the annual Dry January sobriety challenge do not return to their former drinking habits after the month ends. Additionally, they tend to make long-term changes to their drinking habits and see sustained health benefits after takng part in just one Dry January challenge. Start thinking about what you would like to tackle each month. Perhaps you might focus on paying down debt in January. February could be when you focus on your taxes. March might be about getting your retirement planning started. Another benefit of this strategy is that you dont have to decide all at once what your resolution will be for each month. As the year progresses, you can make new resolutions for each month as you reach them. And even though your focus may change from one month to the next, you can feel confident that youll reap benefits from each months focus long after it ends. Find your 2026 mantra You may have seen people talk about choosing a word for the year (often in the same corners of the internet where you might find people with unironic “Live, Laugh, Love” decor). The idea behind a word for the year is to choose a guiding ideasuch as abundance, grace, or explorationthat you will use to focus your mindset for the year. Health writer Tara Parker-Pope describes these as nudge words and says choosing one will nudge you toward positive change whenever you think of it. But rather than a single word, you may find it even more helpful to adopt a phrase for the year that embodies the change you want to make. For example, if you are hoping to pay off debt, the mantra “Slow and steady wins the race” could be a regular reminder to keep making payments whenever you can. Alternatively, the phrase “Progress, not perfection” could be a good mantra for someone who puts off contributing to their retirement account for fear of making suboptimal investment decisions. And someone who is trying to save up for a down payment might adopt the mantra “Any amount of money I can set aside today is better than none.” Because even saving a couple of bucks consistently will add up over time. Plan for all of 2026, not just January New Years resolutions may feel good on January 1, but they dont last. Not only do we make unrealistic and ambitious plans for ourselves with traditional resolutions, but we are also trying to make changes based on external motivation. No wonder the vast majority of resolutions fail before February. To make changes that will really stick in 2026, your strategy needs to rely on bite-size changes that dont require perfection and that add something beneficial to your life. Creating a 2026 bingo card allows you to choose 25 goalsfrom the sublime to the ridiculousand will keep you invested in your goals all year long. Setting monthly resolutionssimilar to the annual Dry January sobriety challengemakes it less intimidating to adopt new habits while reaping the long-term rewards. And choosing a mantra for 2026 can help nudge you to make the positive changes you want to see in your life.
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E-Commerce
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