Supermarket tricks - watch out for these...

Mrs_Arcanum

Breakfast cereals seem to be the worst for this. Saw what looked like a big box on offer for £2 when it was only 375g and a unknown brand was £1.70 for £500g & a smaller box.

Stephen_Leak

Explore the world foods aisle.

For example, lemon juice in ASDA. Their own stuff is 41p for 250ml. The imported KTC stuff in the world foods aisle is 39p for 250ml. OK, the price differential has been bigger. The KTC stuff is going up, the ASDA stuff coming down. So, if and when the ASDA stuff is cheaper, I'll switch to it.

Also, whole black peppercorns. 100g packs of Rajah ones are 89p. ASDA's own brand 106g tubs are £2.00.

PS. KTC lemon juice = 39p. ASDA = 20p. Switch time.

RedLass

LondonDreamer wrote: »

This isn't so much about labelling, but also don't forget that bigger doesn't always mean cheaper. They are hoping you always pick up the biggest pack just assuming that it will be better value, but it's not always the case.

Absolutely right here, and sometimes by shocking margins.

I was in Mr T last week and picked up a two pack of their garlic baguettes in the chilled section. It was only that I thought of my freezer space and decided that maybe buying singles would be better for cramming, that I noticed the 2 pack priced at £1.40, and the 1 pack priced at 40p.

How do they get away with this?! :mad:

ItchyFeet

I wanted some ground coffee so tonight i bought a packet of Sainsbury's own Fairtrade stuff. There was a big red promotion sign saying 2 for £4.50 - i compared this with the other brand offers on and decided to buy the Sainsburys own.

However when i looked at my receipt i had made a grand saving of 8p!!! :mad:

I'm really annoyed with myself because i'm usually quite careful about checking these kind of things. I feel tricked and wouldn't normally buy two packets of coffee unless it was on offer so one packet is going back tomorrow!

Lexxi

Things being by the wrong label e.g you scan the shelf taking in the prices, find the cheapest and grab them, except there are no cheapest and the space left by them have been half filled by the brand next to them which is 20-50p dearer. I always make sure I check the shelf label with my 'bargain'
Another is upping the price by pence each week, changing the packaging upping the price a bit more then introducing a new budget price product. Asda did this with their sp plain choc, it was much cheaper than cooking choc, but the price kept going up then the pack was red foil then a few weeks after there was a new sp. Except the two packs were different sizes so your mental 'rithmetic got a work out too!
I suppose we should thank these grabby supermarkets for keeping the brain going!

Sheahaven

I agree with Stephen Leak. I normally hold off buying baking goods/pulses, seeds until I've seen the same type in the World Foods section - a lot more competitive!

For instance:
For dates/seeds/nuts - check veg/nuts section vs healthy/'organic foods' section vs World Foods section
For Basmati Rice - check rice/pasta section vs vs World Foods section
For semolina - check baking section vs healthy/'organic foods' section vs World Foods section
For tinned tomatoes - check normal sundries/tinned section vs World Foods.
For stock cubes/spices - check veg/nuts section vs World Foods section (Polish 'Winary' is very close to 'Knorr')...
... Well you get the drift.

Oh, and surprisingly liquid/solid Coconut Milk is a lot cheaper in the World Foods too.


It's quite interesting what you'd discover, just be taking a stroll along the World Foods section and thinking, "Well I never thought of that". Particularly since each store tries to win custom of people of different cultures in their area.

Sheahaven

To add to my last post:

I'd STILL compare what's the cheapest at the SM with local/independent shops in my area AND other stores as H0me B'gains/L1dlA1di!

squeaky

Sheahaven wrote: »

I agree with Stephen Leak. I normally hold off buying baking goods/pulses, seeds until I've seen the same type in the World Foods section - a lot more competitive!

For instance:
For dates/seeds/nuts - check veg/nuts section vs healthy/'organic foods' section vs World Foods section
For Basmati Rice - check rice/pasta section vs vs World Foods section
For semolina - check baking section vs healthy/'organic foods' section vs World Foods section
For tinned tomatoes - check normal sundries/tinned section vs World Foods.
For stock cubes/spices - check veg/nuts section vs World Foods section (Polish 'Winary' is very close to 'Knorr')...
... Well you get the drift.

Oh, and surprisingly liquid/solid Coconut Milk is a lot cheaper in the World Foods too.


It's quite interesting what you'd discover, just be taking a stroll along the World Foods section and thinking, "Well I never thought of that". Particularly since each store tries to win custom of people of different cultures in their area.

To save me trekking round and round the store checking things like this I'll often go to the web site and look the product there. That shows ALL the shelves that, say, tinned tomatoes, are on - so I can my price comparison there. Then on my shopping list I'll add a note next to tinned tomatoes to say which shelf / aisle I should shop from.

Oh - and where a given product is not on the shelf I always collar a member of staff and ask them if they have any more in the stock room. Doesn't always work, but you have to try.

But over all this thread is showing that you really REALLY REALLY have to be on the alert at all times in every shop.

outtawork

Cake covering chocolate 300g at Morrisons & Tesco, tastes the same as normal chocolate,dark & milk as well

Eliza_2

Lexxi wrote: »

Things being by the wrong label e.g you scan the shelf taking in the prices, find the cheapest and grab them, except there are no cheapest and the space left by them have been half filled by the brand next to them which is 20-50p dearer. I always make sure I check the shelf label with my 'bargain'

This drives me mad too, I tell an assistant who looks suitably embarrassed and says someone new must have done it wrong and she will sort - except when you go back in a few days later it's the same! If I was an assistant and asked to do that I don't know how I would live with my conscience! I can also be found rearranging the shelves and moving stuff back to where it should be, leaving a big gap, or alternatively I remove the wrong shelf label and pop it onto the top of the shelves or stuff it down the back of somewhere - if it only stops one person being conned it's a good day's work. I anticipate being barred from Morrisons any day now! (That's Morrisons Leek and Morrisons Buxton - I hope you find this on google and know that you are being named and shamed and why, I'm not going to say Mr M!!)

But now I am trying really hard to avoid the supermarkets because of their trickster ways - like others, even though I know about these games I still get caught out sometimes. I've found that places like B and M or even the local village shops can be better value, for example large tins of dog food are £1.19 in our tiny village shop and packed full of meat whereas large tins from Morrisons are a similar price for weight but packed full of gravy.

GRRRR!!!