Costco – the ninth-largest retailer in the world and a store better known for selling bulk foodstuffs than fine diamonds –has been selling not only discount food and household goods but also loose diamonds and jewelry.

According to Jeweller Magazine, Costco's worldwide diamond sales for the 2009-2010 fiscal year approached 80,000 carats. Sales included diamond jewelry set with unusually large stones that commanded six-figure prices: diamond rings set with 8.55-carat oval-shaped diamonds for $213,200; 10.04-carat diamond earrings with a price tag of $201,000 and cushion-cut 7.06-carat diamonds at a cost of $193,800 apiece.

The Costco outlet in Melbourne, Australia, which opened in August 2009, has an entire department set aside for its jewelry section.