Ron Vachris: From Forklift Driver to CEO at Costco

Ron Vachris's career at Costco began in the early 1980s with a part-time job driving forklifts. Over the decades, he worked his way through nearly every part of the business, from warehouse operations to merchandising and real estate. In 2024, he became just the third CEO in Costco's history. Let's take a look at his rise, the legacy he carries, and the road ahead.

• Growing with the company: Ron Vachris's career mirrors Costco's expansion – steady, disciplined, and built from the ground up.

• Succeeding Costco legends: When Vachris became CEO in 2024, he became only the third person to hold the role since Costco Wholesale's founding, following in the footsteps of James Sinegal and Craig Jelinek.

• Operational hurdles: As CEO, he has had to steer Costco through rising tariffs and global supply chain pressures while maintaining the company's commitment to efficiency and low costs.

Ron Vachris was born in 1965 in Staten Island, New York, but moved with his family at a young age and spent most of his upbringing in Arizona. After high school, he enrolled at Glendale Community College, where he studied business.

While in college, Vachris took a part-time job in 1982 as a forklift driver at Price Club, a warehouse membership store founded in 1976 that had grown rapidly in its early years. The company would later merge with another rising competitor, Costco, in 1993. That merger laid the foundation for the global retail giant known today as Costco Wholesale. It also proved to be the ideal place for an ambitious young employee to build a career from the ground up.

Vachris quickly took to the work and soon accepted a full-time role at the fast-growing company. His strong work ethic and deepening commitment didn't go unnoticed, earning him increasing responsibility over time.

Throughout the 1990s and 2010s, he held a wide range of regional management roles in the Northeast, with a focus on merchandising and warehouse operations. These decades gave him a hands-on education in nearly every aspect of Costco's business and a chance to demonstrate his long-term loyalty to the company.

In 2010, he was promoted to general manager of the Northwest region. Five years later, he transitioned to senior vice president of real estate development, and by 2016, he was named executive vice president of merchandising. In 2022, he became president and chief operating officer, and in 2024, he stepped into the role of CEO.

In October 2023, it was announced that Ron Vachris would succeed CEO Craig Jelinek at the start of 2024, as part of what was described as a “long-standing succession plan.”

He stepped into a leadership role at a company that Charlie Munger once called “one of the most admirable capitalistic institutions in the world.” Another vocal admirer, investor Nick Sleep of the Nomad Partnership, famously described Costco as a near-perfect example of ‘scale economies shared’.

Costco is truly a remarkable American institution, and few people have been better prepared to lead it than Ron Vachris, with his decades of ground-up experience. His appointment marked only the third time someone had taken the helm of Costco Wholesale since its founding and merger with Price Club in 1993, following in the footsteps of Jelinek and company co-founder James Sinegal.

The Costco that Ron Vachris has inherited has undeniably grown into a global retail force, operating more than 900 warehouse stores across 14 countries. As CEO, his primary focus has been continuity, maintaining the company's strong position rather than overhauling it. As he noted in the Q3 2024 earnings call: “But I can't sit here today and tell you to expect any great momentous changes in the near future. We just want to execute well.” (sourced through Quartr Pro).

Still, the competitive landscape is intense. Costco continues to go head-to-head with retail powerhouses like Walmart and Sam's Club, while also navigating pressure from e-commerce giants such as Amazon.

Further reading: Doug McMillon: Walmart's CEO, Decades in the Making

A more recent challenge under Vachris's leadership has been the growing complexity of global trade, particularly the impact of rising tariffs and shifting supply chain dynamics. These pressures have escalated through 2025, complicating sourcing and pricing strategies. In the Q3 2025 earnings call, Vachris outlined some of the steps Costco is taking to stay ahead of these risks:

Few chief executives know their company better than Ron Vachris knows Costco. From driving forklifts as a part-time job at Price Club in the early 80s to heading the giant company's global operations. A leader shaped by the company he now steers.