Costco anticipates change in private-label sales

NEW YORK The CEO of mass merchandiser Costco expects the company's private-label sales to constitute 25% of its business amid the recession, according to published reports.

Jim Sinegal told The Seattle Times that the Issaquah, Wash.-based retailer would be able to sell meat it normally distributes to restaurants directly to consumers as fewer Americans eat out.

The chain is also selling more television sets, and Sinegal speculated that more Americans were choosing entertainment at home rather than going out.