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Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand is beloved for its affordable pricing and high quality — buying these products can help you maximize your Costco savings. Here are three facts about the Kirkland Signature brand and products that might surprise you.

1. Kirkland products are often made by top-tier brands

We’ve all seen those generic brands in grocery stores, but Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand is not that. While Kirkland might seem to offer more store-brand knockoffs, the fact is that many of its products are actually made by well-known, top-tier manufacturers. Check it out:

• Some Kirkland coffee is roasted by Starbucks
• Bumblebee Tuna makes Kirkland Signature Tuna
• Ocean Spray makes the Kirkland-brand cranberry juice
• Reynolds makes Kirkland Signature aluminum foil

What this means for Costco shoppers is that not only are you getting a bargain when you buy Costco’s Kirkland-branded items, but you’re also getting high-quality food and other products for that bargain-basement price.

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2. Kirkland Signature has strict quality standards

One of the reasons Kirkland Signature products consistently impress is that Costco has a commitment to quality. The company works hard to ensure that Kirkland items are not just cheap knock-offs.

According to CNN, in its annual company filings, Costco says, “Maintaining consistent product quality, competitive pricing, and availability” of Kirkland products is part of the company’s strategy to keep members’ loyalty.

Take Kirkland toilet paper, for example. According to Mashed, “Costco employs scientists to painstakingly test their treasured TP, checking for softness, durability, and even whiteness.”

No wonder that when my wife and I were at Costco recently and she told me to pick up some toilet paper, the Costco employee told me I was lucky to find some as the store had been out of it for a day. Apparently the threat of a port workers’ strike and several huge hurricanes had created a recent mini-run on the popular product.

3. The Kirkland Signature brand has a quirky backstory

Back in the 1990s, Costco (then called PriceCostco) had about 30 different white-label Costco brands. There was Chelsea toilet paper and Clout detergent, for example. That all changed in 1991, when Costco’s co-founder read an article in which he learned that major companies like Nabisco and General Foods were having great success with their private label brands. So Costco decided to go all-in on white-label branding.

But what to call the new in-store brand? Someone in the company had suggested Seattle Signature, given the Northwest roots of the company, but getting the rights to use the word “Seattle” proved too complicated.

Another employee then suggested Kirkland Signature, as the company was headquartered in Kirkland, Washington. So in 1995, all of the other Costco brands were folded into one singular private-label brand, Kirkland Signature. All because of a magazine article.

And, as the old newscaster Paul Harvey used to say, now you know the rest of the story!

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The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale and Starbucks. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.