Costco announced that Jeff Brotman, the company’s chairman and co-founder, passed away this morning. He was 74 years old.
Brotman, along with partner James Sinegal, opened the popular warehouse club retailer in 1983. Then a Seattle-based attorney, Brotman had the idea of opening a warehouse store that was more than just a business. “Do the right thing” was the company’s initial motto—as Fortune reported in December—and it still is today.
The company owes its success to lean practices that Brotman and Sinegal established at the start. For instance, the co-founders decided that Costco would not mark up any item more than 14%. It was a move that have kept customers loyal ever since.
As a result, the Issaquah, Wash.-based chain currently has 736 locations worldwide. With 511 stores in the U.S., and more than 200 across the globe, the Costco Club members can shop everywhere from Australia to Taiwan.
“The thoughts of Costco’s board, management and employees are with Jeff’s wife and family,” the company said in a statement.
After the announcement of Amazon (AMZN) acquiring Whole Foods (WFM), Costco (COST) stock recently took a dive. But some analysts shrugged off the competition, giving Costco a positive outlook for years to come.