American Express lost Costco, but it gained its rival

Bentonville, Ark. -- In the latest move in its battle against Costco, Sam's Club is going to start accepting the very form of payment that Costco rebuffed earlier this year.



Starting Oct. 1, all Sam’s Club locations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico will take American Express cards at checkout. Earlier this year Costco ended its 16-year relationship with American Express in favor of Visa after the two companies could not come to an agreement on new terms.



Sam's Club, which operates more than 650 stores, has been making some changes to be less like its parent Walmart and more like Costco, including upgrading its auto buying program and stocking more organics.