Death threat from Costco co-founder actually makes sense.

Amidst surfing 110 degree winds in Vegas, another restaurant I found myself at was Main St. Provisions.

A new American cuisine restaurant, everything from duck to scallops was on the menu.

But no American dish is complete without a side of fries.

While both the duck and scallops were great and worth the money, the fries tasted, well, like fries.

As I sat there eating the fries, the story from a couple years ago where a Costco co-founder gave a death threat to the CEO came to mind.

Something along the lines of:

“If you touch the price of the hot dogs, I’ll fucking kill you.”

Crazy, right?

Eh, not really.

I wasn’t around to see it, but in the 80’s, Costco sold folks a hot dog and drink combo for a $1.50.

Fast forward 40 years, the combo’s still a $1.50.

Along with their $5 dollar rotisserie chickens, these two products are their loss leaders.

Meaning, the company is aware that they’re losing money on what they’re selling; they’re doing it intentionally.

The co-founder sees the monetary loss accrued from hot dogs as the cost of doing business.

After paying an arm and a leg for groceries, a $1.50 for a hot dog and sprite can only better the customer experience.

Now back to the fries.

Why aren’t they a $1.50?

I understand the $11 price tag; it’s in congruence with the menu.

But potatoes are cheap.

Far cheaper than beef hot dogs.

Using a multi-billion dollar company as proof of concept, why not use a play from Costco’s playbook?

Perhaps, optically, this would tarnish Main St. Provisions’ moderately-fancy diner image.

“Remember the duck and scallops we had in the arts district in Las Vegas? No, it wasn’t one dish; they were separate. I had the duck you had the scallops. There was a neon sign in the front and the interior had a upscale diner feel. Yes, that one. They were the ones that served $1.50 fries, too, with mayo.”

If loss leaders work for billion-dollar corporations selling food, why not an upscale diner?

— George