M&S rip off

Valli

McKneff wrote: »

People are too ready to say 'Rip Off'

So true!

OP feels aggrieved; fair enough but, like I said - research first; buy second.

lucy03 wrote: »

That depends on the definition of rip-off that an individual has, but when consumers feel they have received poor value, that risks in my view being of negative value to the company, rather than clever marketing.

Then he/she could have shopped around. Happy to pay for the item then moan - entirely the OPs fault. Price was known before it was paid for!

Had OP done the research then sourced a Vintage Cava and and ice bucket, stuck the cava in the ice bucket, wrapped with cellophane; added a pretty tag printed on PC OP would be posting in the celebrations thread saying 'look what I made for (say) £18; something similar retails in M&S for £30!

Prices don't reflect value of item sold; prices reflect the wholesale cost+what the retailer thinks they can get away with.

antrobus

McKneff wrote: »

People are too ready to say 'Rip Off'
....

The OED defines 'rip-off' as;

An act of stealing, a theft; (hence) a fraud, a swindle; (more generally) any instance of esp. financial exploitation.

Whilst selling a bottle of wine and a plastic bucket for £30 might not be an "act of stealing" etc, it would fall within the defintion of "any instance of ... exploitation". As in the phrase 'rip-off Britain' which the OED explains as "Britain, perceived as a place where goods and services are significantly more expensive than in other countries, esp. within the European Union".

Ergo, the OP is quite entitled to describe any overpriced item as a 'rip-off' without fearing arrest from the grammar police.

Valli

antrobus wrote: »

The OED defines 'rip-off' as;

An act of stealing, a theft; (hence) a fraud, a swindle; (more generally) any instance of esp. financial exploitation.

Whilst selling a bottle of wine and a plastic bucket for £30 might not be an "act of stealing" etc, it would fall within the defintion of "any instance of ... exploitation". As in the phrase 'rip-off Britain' which the OED explains as "Britain, perceived as a place where goods and services are significantly more expensive than in other countries, esp. within the European Union".

Ergo, the OP is quite entitled to describe any overpriced item as a 'rip-off' without fearing arrest from the grammar police.

Then the OP shouldn't have paid the price being asked. If I think an item is over priced I don't buy it. If every interested potential customer thought £30 was too much for this item and walked away them M&S would rethink their pricing policy.

lucy03

Valli wrote: »

Then the OP shouldn't have paid the price being asked. If I think an item is over priced I don't buy it. If every interested potential customer thought £30 was too much for this item and walked away them M&S would rethink their pricing policy.

The actions of M&S have made the consumer feel ripped-off, so whether or not another individual feels they are right to do this, this was the risk that M&S took. If it is the case, and I don't whether it is or not, that someone at M&S said "we can package this all up nicely so customers think they're getting a good deal, even though it's costing them 17 pounds for a bucket" then in my view they are taking a quite brave decision with their reputation.

The end result is that some consumers will berate themselves for not being more savvy, others will post on forums to warn others.

However, consumers very often don't make a judgement on the value of an item by what they paid for it. If a consumer pays 50 pounds for an item in one Tesco, and then finds it's 30 pounds in another Tesco, then I'd consider it quite likely they'd want to warn people, even though that's entirely Tesco's own choice.

Valli

@ Lucy03

How on earth have 'the actions' of M&S made the OP feel 'ripped off'? OP saw item (don't know if it was in store or on line), decided to buy it and then realised he/she could have purchased very similar equivalent items for a lot less.

What 'actions'?

M&S offer item for sale; OP decides to pay price.

M&S didn't FORCE the OP to buy this. OP made a choice. OP now regrets that choice. M&S (like other companies) know their customers, for the most part. And charge quite a lot for some of their gift items. But they don't drag people off the streets and detain them in store until they have made a purchase.

I think your defence of the OP is admirable, but misguided.

Nirvana9

Assuming you haven't opened the cava... Can you not just return it?

McKneff

As far as I'm aware, M&S dont take returns of consumables.

Health & Safety, don't you know.

POPPYOSCAR

Sorry OP I fail to see how this is a rip off as well.

You saw an item you knew what you were buying, you knew the price and were prepared to pay that price.

A rip off to me is when you do not get what you have been shown eg a cake that looks huge in the picture on the box but when you open the box it is half the size of said box.

DCFC79

antrobus wrote: »

Is cava not wine?

Yes but when I read wine I think wine eg red/white/rose and when I read sparkling I think Cava or other sparkling wines.

Ok I hold my hands up Im being too picky.

Goldiegirl

In order not to feel ripped off, I suppose the OP could have bought the wine seperately and then trudged round all the shops looking for a suitable ice bucket, or spent hours trawling the internet for one, placing an order that didin't arrive in time. Or found that the only ice buckets available cost more than £17, so their outlay woulld be even greater.

Or, they could look on it that they paid £30 for the time saving and convenience of buying the two items together