"High hope is that we might have something open, but it's probably two or three years away." The bulk of Costco's international stores are in Canada and Mexico, where it operates 68 units and 28 units, respectively. The retailer also has 18 UK stores, as well as five each in Japan and South Korea and one in Taiwan.

Domestically, Costco is only planning two or three new markets over the next 50 store openings, Galanti says. Overall, the company has 350 units in the US and Puerto Rico.

During the next fiscal year, which starts in August, Costco management plans about 35 new store openings, just above the number planned for the current year. Seven new stores opened in its third and latest quarter, which ended May 7.