Oddbean new post about login | logout Because they can! They do it because they want to and can get away with it. People keep buying it! Did you see my Dollar Tree vs Walmart example? I used spring water as the example. Water from earth. Different price! 😂
Would you consider that to be price gouging? I’m just trying to understand how they can even compete with cheaper options in the same area. Maybe it’s a customer loyalty and class-related thing. These two stores serve very different demographics, but the people who can generally afford to pay more are shopping at the less expensive store.
Price gouging is definitely a possibility. I have been buying this water for years. I started buying it at Walmart. It used to be $0.96. Then the price started to increase especially after 2020. When the price reached $1.28, I stopped buying it from Walmart and started buying the water from Dollar Tree. The price at Dollar Tree has been the same but now the price at Walmart is $1.43. I think Walmart increased the price for many reasons. One, they can. Pushing the price to see how far they can go. Hoping people go along with it. Another reason is to please the shareholders. The profits also help keep the *casino* known as the stock market afloat.
Furthermore, you have a point about customer loyalty and classism. Perhaps, Dollar Tree is seen as low tier for some people. Moreover, for some, it could simply be convenience. Maybe some people don’t want to go to several stores to get items. But that’s also off-putting because in some places Walmart and Dollar Tree are literally in the same area. In one area I frequent, they are in the same shopping plaza. Let me also add a quick story: At a particular Dollar Tree, I asked the manager why they didn’t sell more food items. She said they used to. There’s a Winn Dixie in the same shopping plaza. Winn Dixie complained and said Dollar Tree was taking business away from them. The owners of the shopping plaza told Dollar Tree they couldn’t sell many food items because they’re competing with the grocery store next door. Technically, Dollar Tree isn’t a grocery store. So, now this Dollar Tree has limited food items for sale.
Despite some of the the simplistic answers I’ve seen, it doesn’t make sense to me not to acknowledge the class aspect. I think there’s cultural inertia or societal pressures involved that may be driving the decision to shop in stores that are both higher in cost and lower in quality.