BOGOF offers

Pontyprop

As a first time poster, I don't know if this topic has been raised previously, if so please excuse me.
Why do all supermarkets insist on these BOGOF offers, particularly on perishable items?
As a pensioner who now sadly has to shop for one, it annoys me that I often see items which I would like, but double the quantity means double the waste.
Where is the financial problem in simply reducing the items in question to half-price? Sales would increase, as would profits and we all benefit

quintwins

because if they have it bogof people buy 2 instead of 1

alot of things are freezable if you have acess to a freezer, or you could go shopping with a friend and split bogofs between yourselves

Pontyprop

That's making a simple situation unnecessarily difficult.
I do take up BOGOF offers, where I can store/freeze items, but on perishables that's not possible.
If non-perishable goods are on offer at half price on a time limited basis, I would still buy double the amount and use the freezer, so that's the same result as a BOGOF
Are you suggesting I go with a friend just in case we see a perishable item, we both like and want which happens to be on offer?
If I go alone and buy something at half price, the store makes 50 percent of their expected profit, but the chances of other people also buying at half price must increase tremendously hence their overall profits would be higher, the store would probably get more customers, buying other goods at full price.
On a parallel subject I've come to realise, that with an ageing and usually single person househould, supermarkets are woefully inadequate in recognising the market potential for smaller portion foodstuffs. Apart from fresh veg/meat most packaged items are too big for me, and I don't want to live out of the freezer continually.

quintwins

theres usually alot of items on offer i'm not saying you should share offers everytime but going witha friend could even making shopping a nicer more social experience and you can check offers online before you go (i do this as i don't always go down all the isles)

alot of people do get sucked in buy bogofs and buy 2 even if there is acually a cheaper option to buying the 2 these offers are more directed at the people who float about the shop just grabbing anything, rather than us more savvy mse'rs with our lists ect, you can freeze alot of perishables, i freeze all fresh veg if there on offer and all dairy and bread can be frozen, i've even frozen yogurts before the only thing that doesn't go in my freezer is fruit as it never lasts in this house anyway i buy this from the market or farm shop anyway so can buy less as needed

i don't mind living out of my freezer at all because i know the stuff going in is good and it's not constantly nuggets and chip or pizza ect

rising_from_the_ashes

I totally agree with you and I'm sure this contributes to the huge volume of food waste that is thrown out each week/month/year.

If they can do BOGOF, they can just as easily do them 1/2 price - if people want 1 they still get the benefit and if people want 2, they benefit too.

I don't know why this is never raised as an issue when MPs get on the reducing food waste topic.

RhiBi

This is where I wish the supermarkets here could take a leaf out of the USA supermarkets books. There they sell things on a pro rata basis. So if an offer says 2 for $4, but you only wanted 1, you'd pay $2 for it!

dlusman

BOGOF appeal to the psyche of the "average" shopper.
Its somehow "feels" better to get something for free , rather than pay half price - so a BOGOF results in more sales than a hlaf price offer

VfM4meplse

Pontyprop wrote: »

I do take up BOGOF offers, where I can store/freeze items, but on perishables that's not possible.

What kind of perishables are you referring to? I can't think of anything I haven't been able to stick in the freezer / incorporate into a recipe and then freeze. For bread products and other carbohydrate goodies I just don't buy them on BOGOF because for me all that BOGOF means is that I east twice the amount in half the time . I can't resist bread but buy it one loaf at a time on offer, take 8 slices out to last 3 or 4 days and give the rest to my neighbour who freezes it and then uses it for toast.

Pontyprop wrote: »

Apart from fresh veg/meat most packaged items are too big for me, and I don't want to live out of the freezer continually.

Living out of the freezer is something you have to accept if you are single and wish to be MSE I'm afraid, that's the reality.

dlusman wrote: »

BOGOF appeal to the psyche of the "average" shopper.
Its somehow "feels" better to get something for free , rather than pay half price - so a BOGOF results in more sales than a hlaf price offer

This is so true, and also goes some way to explaining why we're turning into a nation of the obese because some people are never happier than when they are stuffing their faces.

dlusman

additionally - a BOGOF offer is easier to run from the supermarkets perspective. It can be run at any time ( and you can actually increase the price of the "one" being bought compared to a previous price ) , but a half price offer requires proof that the product was on sale at the full price for a period of time prior to the offer.

rising_from_the_ashes

VfM4meplse wrote: »

What kind of perishables are you referring to? I can't think of anything I haven't been able to stick in the freezer / incorporate into a recipe and then freeze.

Some fruits & veg work pretty well frozen but some others don't (eg Bananas - they go soggy once frozen and are really only "usable" in ice cream / banana loaf etc).

I struggle to get through one bag of apples, oranges etc before they go off, let alone trying to get through 2 - and these don't freeze well as "fruits" to take out and eat as say an apple with your lunch.

I do have a freezer but it is limited in size to what it can hold and by the time it's got things like chickens / mince etc on offer, there really isn't room for veg etc as well.:(

JulieM

Quote 'I struggle to get through one bag of apples, oranges etc before they go off, let alone trying to get through 2 - and these don't freeze well as "fruits" to take out and eat as say an apple with your lunch'.

I keep just one or two apples and oranges in the fruit bowl and store the rest in the fridge, they keep much longer that way. In fact I'm currently eating apples which are at least a month old.