Pay More - get less

[TickTockMan]

This just showed up on my FB.

 

[smokeshadow]

^^all of your soda manufacturers did that decades ago when they switched from 10 ounce glass bottles to 12 ounce aluminum cans

 

[rareboy]

I love that even Cookie Monster has had enough.

 

[Peloso]

It's not only the prices of things -- the weekly sales in the supermarkets by me have been getting rather paltry, and many times you have to buy multiple items to qualify for the sale price, which sucks for someone who lives alone.

Coupons too. Paper coupons used to be good for months, now, whether they're paper or digital, they might as well say "expires at 3 PM today".

 

[me203]

It's not only the prices of things -- the weekly sales in the supermarkets by me have been getting rather paltry, and many times you have to buy multiple items to qualify for the sale price, which sucks for someone who lives alone.

I absolutely HATE those sales.

I also hate the related deals where you can mix and match (say, buy 5 mix and match, get 50 cents off each item). That might be easier to deal with, except usually there is only one item in the list of qualifying items that I'm even interested in. In fact, I can't even remember a time I took advantage of one of those mix and match deals.

 

[me203]

Another "fun" thing I've sometimes seen with grocery store sale ads: stuff pictured as if it's on sale. It must be the greatest deal ever, because it's in the ad!!!!

Except the price is the same as usual.

Part of me pays attention to attention to sales in order to help stretch my limited budget as far as possible. But part of me is getting tired of the games they play, I even think crazy thoughts like: What if a store skipped these "sales" and just had a policy of decent prices across the store? They might get a lot of dedicated customers who are sick of the games that get played with most stores!

Although I suppose the current system is working--at least for the stores, or else they would presumably do something else.

I remember one of the more helpful things my 5th grade teacher taught me (and my classmates): sales are a way to get people in the store, where--after availing themselves of that amazing special, they'll buy more stuff, but at the regular every day (now high and going higher) prices.

I will thwart such efforts. I do go into a store just to buy stuff on sale, but bypass the stuff that I can get cheaper elsewhere.

 

[rareboy]

We are so fortunate for not shopping the sales, but my grandmother was almost religious in coupon clipping and getting the deal...although sometimes I wasn't sure it was good value.

Having gone through the Depression and WWII in Europe, she was obsessed with never being without again.

And it was only in the last few years that we exhausted her supply of various staples like light bulbs....almost 50 years after her death.

We only shop for the things we need. Never stock up. Never impulse buy because of sales.

But we also have no issue with buying close to expiry date products that we need that will otherwise get thrown out. We loathe waste on both a household and larger scale.

 

[me203]

Never stock up.

I've gotten into the habit of stocking up a bit. I never did in the past, except with one store that had really good sales on certain items every so often. So I'd stock up on those items--but only enough to make it to the next time the item was on sale.

But the last few years, I've gotten into the habit of buying a little ahead of need on some staple items. I got into the habit in 2020 when things I needed might or might not be on the shelf the day I wandered into the store. (Of course, I bought only a little ahead of need--I never hoarded.) Things are much better now, but not like they were in 2019... Indeed, there are things I do buy only as needed--and there are times that I find the day I want to buy that item that I can't. It's not critical, but can be annoying.

 

[gsdx]

Another "fun" thing I've sometimes seen with grocery store sale ads: stuff pictured as if it's on sale. It must be the greatest deal ever, because it's in the ad!!!!

Except the price is the same as usual.

Back in the early 70s, I worked part-time in a grocery store, stocking shelves, packing groceries, changing sale prices, and so on. I clearly remember one of the sales for which I had to check the prices with my boss, the owner.

The sale was for a cereal we have here in Canada: Shreddies (different from Shredded Wheat). The regular price for a box of Shreddies was 49 cents. The sale price: 2 for $1.

I kid you not.

 

[me203]

The regular price for a box of Shreddies was 49 cents. The sale price: 2 for $1.

Somehow, I'm not surprised!

 

[NotHardUp1]

Back in the early 70s, I worked part-time in a grocery store, stocking shelves, packing groceries, changing sale prices, and so on. I clearly remember one of the sales for which I had to check the prices with my boss, the owner.

The sale was for a cereal we have here in Canada: Shreddies (different from Shredded Wheat). The regular price for a box of Shreddies was 49 cents. The sale price: 2 for $1.

I kid you not.

Long, long ago, I learned to watch for the words "Special Price", almost invariably as you describe.

More recently, the grocer and pharmacy both have tags that read like Buy 1 Get 1 Free, but are higher numbers for buy and way too high on a per unit cost, so transitional promotions to "normalize" pricing as it rises.

 

[NotHardUp1]

It's not only the prices of things -- the weekly sales in the supermarkets by me have been getting rather paltry, and many times you have to buy multiple items to qualify for the sale price, which sucks for someone who lives alone.

Coupons too. Paper coupons used to be good for months, now, whether they're paper or digital, they might as well say "expires at 3 PM today".

There's a big push to get you to sign up for their apps to get discounts.

Not gonna happen. Stay the fuck off my phone.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Once upon a time ice cream was in half gallon (2 quart) containers...

Then they went to 1.75 quarts.

Now...

Noteworthy to this comment is the high rating of Edy's for quality. For those who may not know, Edy's is a sister brand of Dreyer's, both known for high quality but not marketed in the same regions. Dreyer's is ultimately owned by Nestle, the world largest food company, and is Swiss-owned.

America's Test Kitchen did a study of ice cream quality, and if you're not going to pay for the truly premium brands, then Edy's ranked very high.

Aldi's store brand also rates very well in consumer feedback, and it is definitely affordable, although they offer the full half gallons of Bluebell at our Aldi's too, and it must sell quite well from the fact they stock more of it than their cheaper house brand. I think it's currently almost $9, so about the cost of two cones at a shop.

 

[me203]

There's a big push to get you to sign up for their apps to get discounts.

Not gonna happen. Stay the fuck off my phone.

Being fair, they aren't the only ones pushing some stupid app. It's amazing how often one hears a pitch for "our app." And how the sheep will then obediently download said app. I imagine many of those apps are valued by the pushers for the information they provide.

I don't have a smart phone, but if I did, I'd avoid such apps.

 

[NotHardUp1]

Being fair, they aren't the only ones pushing some stupid app. It's amazing how often one hears a pitch for "our app." And how the sheep will then obediently download said app. I imagine many of those apps are valued by the pushers for the information they provide.

I don't have a smart phone, but if I did, I'd avoid such apps.

Yes, the fast food joints are doing it.

 

[me203]

Noteworthy to this comment is the high rating of Edy's for quality. For those who may not know, Edy's is a sister brand of Dreyer's, both known for high quality but not marketed in the same regions. Dreyer's is ultimately owned by Nestle, the world largest food company, and is Swiss-owned.

America's Test Kitchen did a study of ice cream quality, and if you're not going to pay for the truly premium brands, then Edy's ranked very high.

Aldi's store brand also rates very well in consumer feedback, and it is definitely affordable, although they offer the full half gallons of Bluebell at our Aldi's too, and it must sell quite well from the fact they stock more of it than their cheaper house brand. I think it's currently almost $9, so about the cost of two cones at a shop.

I think I'd known this...

Hellmann's/Best Foods mayonaisse does the same thing. It's interesting when something happens and the "foreign" product turns up somehow, even though it's the same product one can buy, just a different name.

 

[me203]

Yes, the fast food joints are doing it.

I'm not surprised. What a wonderful idea. Eat there, get the app. Compromise your heath and your phone privacy at the same time!

It's astounding how many places have apps. Retailers. A local library has some app that I think gives access to the catalog. At least one bus agency has an app in my area.

It's also astounding how many people have gotten so dependent on those apps. A couple of years ago, someone was saying to me that she'd need to "download the app." To access a service that could be accessed by a web browser AND that she would realistically access only one time.

 

[Araucaria]

The canned tuna companies are especially guilty of shrinking quantities. One can used to have 8 oz of tuna. Then it was 6 1/2 oz, then 5 1/2 oz, and now it's down to 5 ounces a can.

 

[Araucaria]

The regular price for a box of Shreddies was 49 cents. The sale price: 2 for $1.

I've noticed that when you see a "sale" price for an item that is the same as the previous price, it's usually a clue that the price is about to go up for that item. Once the "sale" is over, you will see the item on the shelf with the new, higher price.

 

[me203]

The canned tuna companies are especially guilty of shrinking quantities.

Sounds fishy.