Spending Behavior at BJ’s Wholesale Club Remains Solid
Delivering value is essential in today’s uncertain environment, and shoppers are flocking to BJ’s Wholesale Club to find it – as shown by the company’s strong financial start to the year.
For the company’s first quarter, ended May 3, comparable-club sales increased by 1.6% year over year (YoY). Excluding the impact of gasoline sales, comps rose 3.9% YoY, led by traffic growth.
Membership fee income jumped 8.1% year over year to $120.4 million. This increase was primarily driven by strength in membership acquisition, retention and higher-tier membership penetration across both new and existing clubs, as well as the increase in annual membership fees, which became effective in January 2025.
“We are strengthening membership quarter after quarter,” noted Chairman and CEO Bob Eddy during the company’s earnings call. “We’re growing total member counts in new and existing clubs and upgrading more members into our premium tiers while keeping our renewal rates strong. Higher-tier members spend more and are more likely to renew, driving greater lifetime value.”
The company reported that gross profit surged to $969.5 million in its Q1, compared with $883.4 million in Q1 of fiscal 2024. Merchandise gross margin rate, which excludes gasoline sales and membership fee income, increased by 30 basis points over the same quarter of fiscal 2024. BJ’s reportedly continues to manage the business to drive profitable growth across the broader merchandise assortment.
[RELATED: BJ’s Opens 1st Club in New York’s Staten Island]
“Our advantaged structure allows us to consistently offer up to 25% off grocery store prices, and we are committed to maintaining this edge,” said Eddy. “Beyond pricing, we deliver value through our highly curated assortment, which we have dramatically improved over the past few years. We renovated our general merchandise business to regain credibility in our treasure hunt.”
Digitally enabled comparable sales growth was 35% in Q1, reflecting two-year stacked comp growth of 56%. BOPIC, Express Pay, curbside pickup and same-day delivery have all helped fuel double-digit growth in digitally enabled comp sales each year for the past four years.
BJ’s is using technology to achieve greater labor efficiencies to accommodate the continued growth of its digital business. “Over the past 18 months, with the product location data provided by our autonomous inventory robots and the help of AI, we developed and rolled out tools that optimized order batches and pick routes,” said Eddy.
Adjusted EBITDA increased by 20.9% to $285.8 million in Q1 of fiscal 2025. BJ's achieved earnings per diluted share of $1.13 and adjusted earnings per diluted share of $1.14.
Tariff Talk and Looking Forward
Tariffs have been top of mind for companies and consumers alike in recent months.
“BJ’s is less impacted by imports than many of our competitors, but tariffs aren’t new to us, and we have a great team to help us find our way in an incredibly dynamic environment that’s been changing by the day,” said Eddy.
“And while upward pressure on costs may drive prices higher, we are doing everything possible to minimize the impact to our members," he continued. "Moreover, we will invest for the long term, as we should gain share in a market disrupted by rising prices.”
BJ’s is keeping its initial full-year guidance unchanged, which includes 2%-to-3.5% comp sales growth, excluding gas, and $4.10-to-$4.30 adjusted EPS.
The club retailer remains on track to open 25 to 30 new clubs over the next two years.
Marlborough, Mass.-based BJ’s currently operates 255 clubs and 190 BJ’s Gas locations in 21 states. The company is No. 28 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2025 list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America.
