Do grocery stores really think that we –their customers– are that stupid? I can understand when stores must raise prices in order to mitigate increased fuel costs or even to increase their profit margins. I don’t always believe the excuses, but I can understand it. And when the price goes up I can think twice about buying the product.
What annoys me is when they change the packaging ever so slightly to reduce the value and think I won’t notice. I’ve been watching the size of the “half-gallon” ice cream containers slowly decrease in size while the price stays the same, and then goes up once the smaller sized container has been “sold” to us consumers.
Hello!?! You haven’t fooled me one bit! Moreover, it annoys me that I now have double the packaging just as the cost of curbside rubbish pick-up has tripled.You can’t fool us savvy consumers!
Before the Deception at Market Basket
Now I see that the marketing mavens in the grocery stores think that they can fool long time shoppers with toilet paper trickery. Use the exact same packaging, include the same number of toilet paper rolls, but decrease the total amount of paper.
Here is the plastic wrapping for an 8-pack of toilet tissue that I could buy at Market Basket for the last couple years. Until 6 months ago, I could buy three of these packs for $10. And this is what you get in each pack:
- 352 sq feet
- 8 rolls
- 352 2-ply sheets
- Each sheet = 4.5 x 4 inches
About 6 months ago the price went to three packs for $12.
The cost just went up again, but the masterminds in marketing were hoping I wouldn’t notice. Cleverly, the price is the same. The design of the wrapping is identical. It still claims to be selling me a “double roll.” BUT… every roll is smaller. Look:
In other words, now you get fewer sheets per roll and smaller sized sheets:
- 280 sq feet
- 8 rolls
- 300 2-ply sheets
- Each sheet = 4.2 x 4 inches
I know this is nothing new. It just seems like there is a sudden increase in this type of deceptive packaging going on nowadays. It annoys me that they think I won’t notice such tactics. Just leave the package alone and raise the price you fraidy-cats! That’s right, own up to the increases.
