BJ's Wholesale Club
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Retail (membership warehouse club) |
| Founded | 1984 |
| Founder | Zayre |
| Headquarters | Marlborough, Massachusetts , United States |
Area served | Eastern United States, Midwest, South |
Key people | Bob Eddy (CEO) |
| Products | Membership warehouse club goods and services |
Number of employees | 25,000 (2023) |
| Website | bjs |
BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc., commonly referred to as BJ's, is a U.S.-based regional membership warehouse club chain headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts. The company primarily serves the eastern United States along with selected states in the Midwest and South, including Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana, Tennessee, Florida, and Alabama. Its principal rivals in the market are Costco Wholesale and Sam's Club.
History
Established in 1984 by the discount department store company Zayre near the border of Medford and Malden, Massachusetts, BJ's derives its name from Beverly Jean Weich, the daughter of its inaugural president Mervyn Weich. Following Mervyn Weich’s departure in 1987, John Levy assumed leadership of the company.
In 1988, Zayre sold its brand name to competitor Ames, leading to the creation of TJX Companies. The following year, TJX spun off its warehouse division—including BJ's and HomeClub (which later became HomeBase)—forming Waban, Inc. BJ's gained independence in 1997 when Waban separated it and rebranded itself as HomeBase, Inc.
Private equity firms Leonard Green & Partners and CVC Capital Partners acquired BJ's in 2011. The company later re-entered public markets in 2018.
More recently, BJ's extended its operations into Michigan by opening locations in Madison Heights, Taylor, Chesterfield Township, Canton, and Lansing, expanding beyond its traditional East Coast base.
Current Operations
Numerous BJ's clubs provide a variety of member services such as car rental options, on-site gas stations, home delivery of heating oil, optical centers, propane refilling stations, and vacation deals—services that differ depending on location. By 2008, optical departments were present in 154 clubs; by 2010, BJ's operated 104 fuel stations. However, all pharmacy services within clubs were discontinued in February 2007.
In March 2010, BJ’s revealed plans to move its corporate headquarters from Natick to Westborough, Massachusetts during 2011. On January 5, 2011, the company announced intentions to shut down five underperforming stores in the Southeast region, reduce approximately 100 corporate jobs at headquarters, and reorganize operations aiming for savings of between 78 and 82 cents per share in the fourth fiscal quarter.
On December 19, 2019, Lee Delaney was appointed CEO effective February 2020; prior to this role he served as executive vice president and chief growth officer since 2016. Following Delaney’s passing on April 8, 2021, CFO Bob Eddy stepped in as interim CEO and was officially named permanent CEO on April 20, 2021.
In November 2021, BJ’s announced plans for its inaugural Tennessee location in La Vergne, a suburb of Nashville. This store opened on June 14, 2023. Additional Nashville-area outlets are planned for Goodlettsville and Mt. Juliet.
Locations
As of , BJ's operates approximately 250 clubs throughout 21 states and employs around 25,000 full-time and part-time staff members. The company oversees three cross-dock distribution centers and utilizes third-party warehouses to accommodate additional storage requirements when necessary.
Financial Performance
For fiscal year 2023, BJ's reported revenues totaling $19.968 billion alongside a net income of $523.741 million.
| Year | Revenue
(thousands US$) |
Net Income
(thousands US$) |
Year-End Share Price
(US$) |
Number of Warehouses | Employees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 12,731,270 | 19,013 | |||
| 207 | |||||
| 2015 | 12,467,553 | 24,104 | |||
| 213 | |||||
| 2016 | 12,350,537 | 44,224 | |||
| 214 | |||||
| 2017 | 12,754,589 | 50,301 | |||
| 215 | |||||
| 2018 | 13,007,347 | 127,261 | |||
| 216 | 26,383 | ||||
| 2019 | 13,190,707 | 187,176 | 22.74 | 217 | 27,231 |
| 2020 | 15,430,017 | 421,030 | 37.28 | 221 | 32,000 |
| 2021 | 16,667,302 | 426,652 | 66.97 | 34,000 | |
| 2022 | 19,315,165 | 513,177 | 66.16 | 34,000 | |
| 2023 | 19,968,689 | 523,741 | 66.66 | 34,000 |
BJ’s returned to public trading after filing for an initial public offering on May 17th, 2018. The stock debuted at $21.25 per share with the company selling 37.5 million shares and generating net proceeds amounting to $637.5 million.
Brands
BJ's Wholesale Club offers a variety of products through its own private label lines, with some items manufactured by Richelieu Foods. In contrast to rivals like Costco's Kirkland Signature and Sam's Club's Member's Mark, BJ's utilizes several distinct private label brands customized for different product categories. The Wellsley Farms brand is predominantly used for grocery items, whereas general merchandise such as apparel, pharmaceuticals, and household goods are marketed under the Berkley-Jensen label (previously known as 'Berkley & Jensen').