Creating a more rewarding member experience

In fiscal 2015, Sam’s Club’s commitment to creating the most valued membership organization in the U.S. contributed to growth in net sales, operating income and enhanced member engagement. Overall net sales increased 1.5 percent to $58 billion, while comp sales, excluding fuel, were up 0.6 percent. Membership income grew 10.3 percent, driving operating income growth, without fuel, of 2 percent to $1.9 billion.

Delivering exceptional value is what a Sam’s Club membership is all about, and we’re finding more ways to strengthen our member engagement. We expect that our increased hourly wages and additional investments in training, announced in February, will provide greater career opportunities for our club associates and allow us to continue delivering award-winning service to members. In addition, Plus members appreciate the benefits of our Cash Rewards program. Response has been strong, increasing the percentage of members who choose to become Plus members. Putting money back in the pockets of Plus members after they make qualifying purchases at the club significantly enhances the value of this membership. And, all of our members are enthusiastic about our cash back credit card. This secure, chip-enabled 5-3-1 MasterCard^® offers the best cash-back program in the market. We’ve also expanded our portfolio of services to provide more convenience and value. We’re helping small business members take care of back office needs by providing easy access to leading providers of affordable health insurance plans, payroll services, merchant payment processing and legal services. Our goal is to curate a suite of anywhere, anytime business member services with exclusive savings that make the Sam’s Club membership the most valuable “business card” for these members, while supporting the small business community. We also launched a Sam’s Club Travel app in December to give all members faster access to outstanding travel savings.