I am back again writing about Costco, now it is Costco Ipswich that has hit the headlines (or maybe Costco Bundamba to be correct).
Those that know me know I am a big fan of Costco and followed the first Brisbane Costco (North Lakes) through from construction to opening and beyond.
There has been speculation for a long time about the opening of the second Costco in the Brisbane area but none of the rumours have been as strong as this one.
So here’s what’s happened so far. (See below for Latest Costco Ipswich Update)
The second Brisbane Costco store had been thought to be going to a few places, namely Logan or Wacol for initial reports and I have been following those stories too.
But now out of the blue there is a new contender for the title and Costco seems to be back up to their old tricks again by not letting out much information at all.
There have been quite a few newspaper reports about the deal that has been done for Costco to open their second Costco store out by Ipswich.
Bundamba to be exact.
Costco Ipswich or Costco Bundamba?
Where is Bundamba?
If you haven’t heard of Bundamba that is ok, you aren’t alone, you have probably driven past it at some point if you live in Brisbane though.
Bundamba sits nicely in the middle of the split in the highways where the Ipswich Motorway turns into the Warrego Highway and the Cunningham Highway.
So if you are driving out to Redbank Plaza or to Ipswich you are heading in the right direction.
Bundamba is roughly 45 minutes’ drive from Brisbane City and about 15 minutes to drive from Ipswich.
This is all dependant on the time of the day you are driving and traffic congestion of course.
We all know how notorious bad the traffic can get on that highway during the peak times of day.
Where is the New Proposed Costco Ipswich meant to be?
Here is a Google Maps layout for you of the area.
There were reports from The Queensland Times that said the old Masters site was where the new Brisbane Costco was headed but they have since released more information stating this may not be true.
They are now saying that the Masters Bundamba is still for sale and that the original information they were given has been proven to be wrong and it’s the bigger piece of land next to this site that Costco has acquired.
The other information in articles that are around the web (Costco Geeks) have said that Costco is just finalising the construction plans and will be lodging the DA (development application) soon if they haven’t already.
Update:
I just read an update today in The Queensland Times online article about Costco Bundamba.
They are reporting (also others are) that a block of land behind the PUMA Service Station in Bundamba is where the new Costco will be going.
They have photos of the Under Contract sign and have contacted the owners of the block of land and they couldn’t confirm the new owners.
This would make more sense for a new Costco as it is a lot closer to the highway than the other block of land that was reported.
I have updated the map above for you with the new updated Costco location.
I’m sure there will be more stories coming out in the coming weeks and months.
Update 2:
I just read a few articles confirming that the new, the second Costco coming to Queensland will indeed be Costco Ipswich!
There were two sources reporting the impending announcement and one article I read even had the Costco Ipswich plans on it.
The plans also confirm that the Ipswich Costco will have a petrol station (gas station) which will work in favour for all of the surrounding areas as it’s been shown to reduce the price of petrol through the whole area.
Well done Ipswich and well done Costco too!
I’m sure all of the new Costco Ipswich shoppers will be happy when the doors finally open.
I’ll add to this again when I get more information.
Costco Ipswich or Costco Bundamba?
So with all of this going on the big question that will remain after the DA is lodged and the wheels start to spin is what will this new Brisbane Costco be called?
What’s in a name?
The information on the Costco Australia suggests that they mix and match with the store names.
Some are named after the city and some are named after the suburbs the Costco is in.
So they could end up naming it whatever they want to and they will, no doubt.
Another point to consider is that is Ipswich classed as Brisbane?
Not really so this new Costco, in essence isn’t Brisbane’s second Costco and there may well be another on the way in the future to take that coveted tag.
Here are the likely names for you and a few reasons why the new Costco could be named after the area.
Costco Ipswich
Chances are this is more likely as it is a city name that everyone knows and are more likely to associate with.
But what if in the future they want to open another Costco on the other side of Ipswich?
You can’t have two Costco Ipswich’s in the mix can you?
Reading more into this, if they name the Costco store Bundamba does this mean there is certainly a second Ipswich store in the pipeline at a later stage?
Costco Bundamba
This may be the name they settle on too and then people will just have to find out where this suburb is.
And they will find out where it is and the residents that live in the area won’t know hit them.
As we all know about how packed and crowded Costco’s can get!
Currently there are more Costco stores named after suburbs than the cities that they are in.
So if history is correct, this Costco should be called Costco Bundamba.
Which one will it be? Ipswich or Bundamba?
Welcome to Costco Ipswich!
Finally, it will be interesting to see how this pans out and whether it’s true or not.
And whether we will be saying “Welcome to the Grand Opening of Costco Ipswich!” or “Welcome to the Grand Opening of Costco Bundamba!”.
All the information that has come out so far seems to be a lot more correct and stronger than what we have had in the past.
Also in regards to Logan, Wacol and also the other information I received about the Gold Coast too (I’ll have to check up on that one again soon too!) of course.
But you never know, we may have the third Brisbane Costco opening up before we know it after Costco Ipswich.
Keep checking back and I’ll try to keep you up to date if I hear something.
