Supplier Field Guide — Pacific White Shrimp Venture
Costco DC Walkthrough — Step by Step
Working name: North 49 Shrimp Co. · Format: meet & greet / exploratory visit
Format: meet & greet on Costco property
Mode: observe, listen, ask questions
Step 0 — Pre-meeting (last 60 minutes before arrival)
0Walk in calm and credible
Drive over and last 30 minutes in the parking lot
What to bring (kept light — this is a guest visit, not a pitch)
- Notepad (not phone) for capturing the buyers' answers verbatim — phones look distracted
- One slim folder with: 1-page venture overview (no financials), regulatory roadmap one-pager — only opened if explicitly asked
- Bottled water in the car for after
No business cards today. This is a first-contact meet-and-greet — the relationship is being introduced, not transacted.
What NOT to bring
- Pricing sheets or volume commitments of any kind
- The Atarraya brochure (premature — share it later, in writing)
- A camera. Never photograph inside a Costco DC unless explicitly invited
Do not discuss the venture in the Costco parking lot, lobby, or any public Costco area. Save substance for the inside conference room.
Step 1 — Receiving dock & inbound flow
1Watch how product arrives — this is your future cold chain
First 10–15 minutes of the walk
The buyers will tour you through the dock. Mode: curious guest. Ask, don't lecture. Every observation here becomes input to your operational plan.
Things to notice quietly (and write down after)
- Dock-door count + active simultaneous unloads — tells you delivery-window pressure
- Trailer types (reefer, dry, ambient) and the temperature display on the seafood reefer
- Pallet stack height, slip-sheet vs. pallet-jack workflow
- Receiving-paperwork process — paper, scanner, EDI ASN integration
- Time from dock-door open to product in cold zone (this is your eventual SLA)
- Whether seafood is staged in an ante-chamber or goes straight into the freezer
Things to ask while walking
"What's your typical delivery window for a regional seafood supplier — booked appointments, drop-and-go, or live-unload?"
"What temperature must product hit on the trailer for you to receive it without a deduction?"
"What's your tolerance on a missed appointment — is it a chargeback, a deduction, or just a black mark?"
"What pallet configuration do you most prefer for shrimp — 2-lb-bag master cases stacked tier-and-bond, or floor-loaded?"
Don't volunteer your own logistics solution. You are 8 km from this DC. They will figure it out faster than you can sell it. Just absorb how they receive.
Step 2 — Cold chain: refrigerated + frozen storage
2The freezer is where Costco's quality discipline lives
10–15 minutes through the cold zones
This is the single most informative part of the walk. How a DC stores seafood tells you everything about what they expect from a supplier.
Things to notice
- Freezer temperature setpoint (look for the digital readout — typically -20°C / -4°F for frozen seafood)
- Refrigerated zone temperature (typically 0–4°C for fresh)
- Pallet labeling — GS1-128 barcodes? RFID tags? Lot codes visible from forklift height?
- Inventory turnover signals — how full is the shrimp section? How fast are they cycling product?
- Whether there is a separate live-product holding area
- Cleanliness, organization, drainage — Costco's GFSI standards mean these are usually exemplary
Things to ask
"For frozen shrimp, what minimum shelf-life do you require at receiving — 12 months, 18 months, 24 months?"
"For fresh / refrigerated seafood, what's your maximum days-on-hand and how many days of remaining shelf-life do you require at delivery?"
"Do you ever stock a live or never-frozen seafood program at this DC? If so, what's the protocol?"
"What's your traceability standard for a recall — what data do you need on every case to execute a one-up / one-down trace?"
If you see live lobster tanks but no live-shrimp program: that's the gap your venture fills. Quietly note it. Do not pitch it in the moment — write it into the follow-up proposal.
Step 3 — The shrimp case / retail floor (if accessible)
3If they walk you onto the warehouse retail floor
5–10 minutes — only if invited
Some BC DCs are co-located with a Costco warehouse retail floor; some are pure distribution. If they walk you out to the floor, this is your free competitive intelligence.
Things to notice in the seafood case
- Shrimp SKUs currently on the floor: count sizes (16/20, 21/25, 31/40), packaging (2-lb bag, master case), price per pound and per pack
- Country of origin labels — Vietnam, India, Ecuador, Thailand
- Kirkland Signature vs. branded — where Kirkland sits, what brands flank it
- Fresh shrimp section (if any) — refrigerated packs, "Wild Caught" vs. "Farm Raised" labeling
- Any "Local" / "BC" / "Pacific Northwest" shelf-talker programs
- Roadshow / Special Event signage — visible cue that the Roadshow program exists
Things to ask gently
"Which of the shrimp SKUs on the floor today is your highest-volume mover?"
"Have you ever run a 'BC-grown' or 'local-fresh' seafood SKU here? How did it perform?"
"Does your Roadshow program ever include a fresh or live seafood vendor?"
Don't openly compare your future product to the SKUs on the shelf in front of the buyers. Just observe. Save the pricing and positioning conversation for the sit-down.
Step 4 — Sit-down: the venture in 3 minutes
4Articulate the project briefly when invited
10 minutes total — speak for ~3 of them
The buyers will turn the conversation to "tell us about what you're building." Keep it short. Three points, then stop and let them respond.
"Thanks again for the tour. Briefly — we're building BC's first indoor Pacific White Shrimp farm. Phase 1 is twenty Atarraya containerized biofloc units in a Langley/Abbotsford industrial facility, producing about 5,500 pounds a month, year-round. Phase 2 scales that to a hundred units. We're not competing on frozen-commodity pricing — we compete on freshness, traceability, no-antibiotics-ever, and same-day harvest-to-DC. We're inside 8 kilometres of this building. Twelve-minute reefer drive. No air freight, no twelve-day container."
"We're at the stage where we want your input on whether a domestic-fresh program — Roadshow consignment or BC-regional SKU — is worth structuring formally, before we commit the next round of capital."
Then stop. Let them respond. Their first reaction is data.
Don't pitch financials. Don't quote a price-per-pound. Don't promise a launch date. Don't talk for more than 3 minutes without breathing.
If asked technical questions about Atarraya, answer briefly and offer to send a one-pager. Do not pull out a brochure. The brochure is for follow-up email, not the meeting.
Step 5 — Sit-down: certifications & food safety
5The honest cert answer
5–8 minutes
Buyers will ask: "What certification do you hold today?" Be honest, then pivot to the roadmap.
"We are pre-operational. We don't hold ASC or BAP today. We've mapped the full pathway: SFC licence and BRCGS Issue 9 within ten to eleven months of first harvest — that's the minimum to ship to you. We're layering BAP 2-star in Year 1 Q4 and ASC farm certification at the sixteen-month mark. We're building the facility to those standards from day one, so audits become a verification, not a remediation."
"Until certification is achieved, we understand we'd be limited to a non-Kirkland regional pathway, or supply under your Improver Programme — which we'd love your guidance on."
Costco's stated requirement (from public docs)
"Only sells farmed shrimp and prawn products that meet the highest bars for sustainability — certified by ASC, BAP 2 star plus, Recommended by Ocean Wise and/or rated Best Choice by Seafood Watch."
"Does Costco fund or co-fund supplier development through the ASC Improver Programme for new domestic farms working toward certification?" (Public answer: yes — leverage this.)
"Do you accept Global Markets Programme intermediate-level certification for new suppliers in Year 1?"
"Beyond GFSI / BRCGS, is there a Costco-specific addendum or facility audit we should plan for from day one?"
Step 6 — Sit-down: volume, pricing, channels
6The Roadshow / BC-regional framing
10–12 minutes — most important commercial conversation
Critical strategic note: Phase 1 (20 boxes / 1,375 lbs/wk) is too small for a national Kirkland co-pack. It is right-sized for Costco's Special Event Roadshow consignment program or a BC-regional SKU. That's the framing.
"Phase 1 produces about 5,500 lbs per month — we know that's pilot-scale for your network. We're proposing this as a Roadshow consignment trial or a BC-regional SKU pilot, not a Kirkland co-pack. Phase 2 at 100 boxes / 27,500 lbs per month is when the strategic-supplier conversation makes more sense."
"Our value proposition at this scale isn't competing on frozen-commodity price. We compete on freshness, traceability, no-antibiotics-ever, and same-day harvest-to-DC. We're 8 kilometres from your Langley Depot — twelve minutes by reefer truck."
Don't commit to a price-per-pound. Don't commit to a weekly volume. Don't commit to a launch date. Say: "Subject to your guidance and our certification timeline, we're contemplating delivery by Q4 2027."
"What's the minimum weekly volume threshold for a supplier to be economically integrated into your DC network?"
"What's your current landed cost for the SKUs you'd most want to source locally — 31/40 P&D, 16/20 tail-on, or live in tank?"
"Could we explore the Roadshow consignment pathway as our Year 1 entry, before applying for permanent SKU status?"
Costco Canada (Ottawa) is the right buying authority for a Canadian-domestic regional supplier. If today's buyers are BC Region, ask gently who in Costco Canada we should also be engaging.
Step 7 — The 10 questions to ask
7Listen more than you pitch
Throughout the visit — especially the last 20 minutes of the sit-down
The single highest-value output of today is the buyers' answers to these 10 questions. Capture verbatim in the notepad.
| # | Question | Why it matters |
|---|
| 1 | What is Costco's current annual shrimp volume for the BC/PNW region, and what % is currently sourced domestic vs. imported? | Sizes the SOM |
| 2 | Does Costco have a supplier-development or "Improver Programme" pathway for domestic farms working toward ASC/BAP certification? | Defines the bridge between Y1 (pre-cert) and Y2 (BRCGS) supply |
| 3 | What's the minimum viable weekly volume for a shrimp supplier to be economically integrated into the DC network? | Confirms (or moves) the Phase 1 vs Phase 2 line |
| 4 | For a new supplier, do you require exclusive supply, or can we maintain restaurant/retail diversification? | Defends the Vancouver-restaurant anchor channel |
| 5 | What are typical payment terms for seafood suppliers — Net 30, Net 60, deduction-based? | Working-capital model input |
| 6 | Does Costco ever provide volume commitments, forward contracts, or co-investment in supplier processing infrastructure? | Potential capex offset for IQF line |
| 7 | What SKUs are you most eager to add or replace in the BC warehouse seafood case? | Tells us what to optimize the production plan for |
| 8 | Does Costco require EDI capability from day one, or is there a grace period for new suppliers? | Systems investment timing decision |
| 9 | What's the typical timeline from vendor approval to first warehouse delivery? | Calibrates the funding-runway burn |
| 10 | What traceability and country-of-origin documentation do you require at the case level for a new farmed seafood supplier? | Defines Day 1 labeling and systems requirements |
Every answer above shifts a real number in the operational plan. Capture verbatim — no paraphrasing during the meeting.
Step 8 — Closing & next-step capture
8End on a specific, written next step
Last 5 minutes
- Thank everyone by name. Specifically thank the buyers for opening the DC and giving you the tour.
- Confirm how the follow-up will reach them — through whichever channel set up today's meeting.
- Signal a specific written follow-up: "I'll put together a short overview and a Roadshow / BC-regional summary and send it through by Friday."
- Ask gently: "Is there anyone in Costco Canada (Ottawa) we should also be engaging on a domestic-fresh program?"
- No photos on the way out. Walk to the car before any debrief conversation.
"Thanks again for the tour and for the honest conversation on the cert pathway and volume thresholds. I'll put a short written overview and Roadshow / BC-regional summary together and send it through by Friday. And if there's anyone in Costco Canada we should also be engaging on a domestic-fresh program, I'd be grateful for the pointer."
Don't end with "we'll be in touch soon." Always end with a specific date, a specific deliverable, and a specific routing channel.
Step 9 — Within 48 hours of the meeting
9Convert the meeting into infrastructure
By end of day Thursday
- Send the thank-you email to all attendees — meeting recap + the one specific next step
- Capture verbatim every buyer answer to the 10 questions (§7) — paste into the working document
- Document every observation from §1, §2, §3 (dock workflow, freezer temps, pallet specs, SKUs on the floor) — these become design inputs
- Update the financial model with any pricing or volume signals from the meeting
- Schedule the BC corporate lawyer engagement (incorporate North 49 Shrimp Co. Ltd.)
- Schedule the AAFC pre-consultation for AgriInnovate
- Schedule the CFIA pre-clearance request for live PL import
- Draft and send the Roadshow / BC-regional one-pager promised in the closing
Quick-reference cards
Card 1 — The 3-minute venture pitch
- Indoor Pacific White Shrimp; 20 Atarraya boxes Phase 1, 100 boxes Phase 2
- ~5,500 lbs/mo Y1 → 27,500 lbs/mo Y4
- Same-day harvest-to-DC; 8 km from the Langley DC
- Not competing on frozen-commodity price; competing on freshness, traceability, no-antibiotics, carbon
- Asking for guidance on Roadshow / BC-regional fit before next capital round
Card 2 — The cert-path answer
- Today: pre-operational, no certifications
- 10–11 months from first harvest: SFC + BRCGS Issue 9 (minimum to ship Costco trial)
- Year 1 Q4: BAP 2-star
- 16 months: ASC farm + Costco Addendum + full audit stack
Card 3 — Five things never to say or do today
- DON'T Quote a price-per-pound or commit to a volume or launch date
- DON'T Share financial projections or ROI figures
- DON'T Photograph anything inside the DC. Cameras off, phones away.
- DON'T Discuss substance in the parking lot, lobby, or hallway. Save it for the conference room.
- DON'T End the meeting without a specific date, deliverable, and channel for the follow-up.
Card 4 — Closing line
"Thank you for the tour and for your time. I'll send you the Roadshow / BC-regional one-pager by Friday and follow up next Tuesday with answers on SKU prioritization. Is there anyone in Costco Canada we should also be engaging on a domestic-fresh program?"
Card 5 — Guest-mode reminders
- You are a guest at someone else's workplace. Walk slowly, listen, thank them for showing you each area.
- Don't critique anything you see. Even compliments-with-a-suggestion can land badly.
- If you don't know an answer, say so: "That's a great question — let me come back to you in writing within 48 hours." That's a stronger answer than a guess.
- Phone in pocket on silent. Notepad in hand.
- If they offer coffee or water, accept it. Refusing reads as cold.