Expensive confectionary in convenience shops

Does anyone else think the prices charged in the likes of Londis, Spar etc. for individual bars, bags of crisps, bottles of fizzy drinks etc. are way too expensive? Bars nowadays tend to be priced about 1.00 to 1.20, crisps about 1.10, fizzy drinks about 1.80 for a 500 ml bottle, so you're looking at about 4 euro just to pick up 3 smallish items. I know inflation is a thing but these prices still just seem far too high. Maybe the availability of multipack prices throughout the years have devalued the worth in my mind of individual items, or something! I remember in the mid 2000s, when people had more money, that prices wouldn't have been far of half of what they are now.

corner of hells

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Does anyone else think the prices charged in the likes of Londis, Spar etc. for individual bars, bags of crisps, bottles of fizzy drinks etc. are way too expensive? Bars nowadays tend to be priced about 1.00 to 1.20, crisps about 1.10, fizzy drinks about 1.80 for a 500 ml bottle, so you're looking at about 4 euro just to pick up 3 smallish items. I know inflation is a thing but these prices still just seem far too high. Maybe the availability of multipack prices throughout the years have devalued the worth in my mind of individual items, or something! I remember in the mid 2000s, when people had more money, that prices wouldn't have been far of half of what they are now.

Recessions over. Bring it on.

893bet

The answer is in your thread title.

893bet

893bet wrote: »

The answer is in your thread title.

Yeah I suppose. Close thread! :P

Reputable Rog

The underhand pricing designed to benefit from rounding is something that really annoys me about the convenience stores, €1.03 for a packet of Tayto, why not €1 or €1.02 ?

Avatar MIA

It does feel a bit strange paying over a euro for a bar of chocolate.

But, it's an amazing product (I've a sweet tooth okay! :pac:) that goes through a significant manufacturing process and logistics to get to your local spar, which has a proportionately higher cost compared to a Tesco.

And a minimum wage worker needs only to work about 7 minutes to get one.

Imagine, back in medieval times. What would a king give to have the luxury of a cadbury's dairymilk bar of chocolate. Probably sell a few servants and think it a bargain.

bodhrandude

OP buy your chocolate from Lidl or Aldi or the Euro stores, sometimes Centra offers 3 chocolate bars for 2 euro, shop around like.

Avatar MIA

Avatar MIA wrote: »

It does feel a bit strange paying over a euro for a bar of chocolate.

But, it's an amazing product (I've a sweet tooth okay! :pac:) that goes through a significant manufacturing process and logistics to get to your local spar, which has a proportionately higher cost compared to a Tesco.

And a minimum wage worker needs only to work about 7 minutes to get one.

Imagine, back in medieval times. What would a king give to have the luxury of a cadbury's dairymilk bar of chocolate. Probably sell a few servants and think it a bargain.

Good point actually - if you graphed how spoilt we all are against time, 1300 AD would be at level 1, 2005 at level 100 and because of this mildly expensive confectionary, 2016 at level 99

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Reputable Rog wrote: »

The underhand pricing designed to benefit from rounding is something that really annoys me about the convenience stores, €1.03 for a packet of Tayto, why not €1 or €1.02 ?

Buy 2 packs and save in the deal.

Avatar MIA

Olive Disgusting Kiln wrote: »

Buy 2 packs and save in the deal.

False economy when it comes to chocolate. It just means two bars of chocolate get eaten.

Hopeful2016

Reputable Rog wrote: »

The underhand pricing designed to benefit from rounding is something that really annoys me about the convenience stores, €1.03 for a packet of Tayto, why not €1 or €1.02 ?

So don't round, it's optional.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Avatar MIA wrote: »

False economy when it comes to chocolate. It just means two bars of chocolate get eaten.

Nothing wrong with that. What's a couple of bars of chocolate when you deserve them?

Avatar MIA

Olive Disgusting Kiln wrote: »

Nothing wrong with that. What's a couple of bars of chocolate when you deserve them?

Every time you feel like chocolate? What's a couple of lbs more like?

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

I don't care what price chocolate is, as long as it doesn't become scarce.

Avatar MIA

Olive Disgusting Kiln wrote: »

I don't care what price chocolate is, as long as it doesn't become scarce.

I'm the same price wise, and wouldn't get a different brand to save a few Cents. Just try to limit the volume

Ronin247

When I was younger I used to go to the corner shop with €2 in my pocket and get 3 cans of coke and 3 big bars of chocolate and still have money left in my pockets....... then they got cctv in.

eqwjewoiujqorj

Dunnes have multi packs 5 for 5 euro.

So a pack of 4 boost bars work out at 1 euro or 25 cent each.


Lidl also sell 25 Cent single bars of chocolate (Mister Choc) at the till.

Plenty of value out there.

brianregan09

And there only going to get dearer with this bs sugar tax coming in

lawlolawl

How much garbage do people eat that this kind of thing is any kind of an issue?

eqwjewoiujqorj

eqwjewoiujqorj wrote: »

Dunnes have multi packs 5 for 5 euro.

So a pack of 4 boost bars work out at 1 euro or 25 cent each.


Lidl also sell 25 Cent single bars of chocolate (Mister Choc) at the till.

Plenty of value out there.

Oh yeah, wouldn't argue with that. But when you just want a starbar or something when youre in one of those convenience shops the price always seems way too dear, except maybe for 30 cent bars like freddos. Well, starbar might be a poor example since i don't think you can get them in multipacks ..
When a mars bar was like 60 cent in the mid 2000s it seemed reasonable and a bag of crisps 45 cent and a bottle of coke 1 euro. Also, chocolate is of lower quality than it was in the past too so it's paying more for an inferior product.

lawlolawl

lawlolawl wrote: »

How much garbage do people eat that this kind of thing is any kind of an issue?

Not that much suprisingly!

Rubberlegs

The multipacks are all well and good , but the bars are definitely smaller than the ones off the shelf. The local discount shop sells 4 bars for €2 and again these are smaller (probably out of multipacks). You'd eat the Double Decker in 3 mouthfuls

Electric Sheep

Shop elsewhere, it's not rocket science.

gramar

73Cat wrote: »

The multipacks are all well and good , but the bars are definitely smaller than the ones off the shelf. The local discount shop sells 4 bars for €2 and again these are smaller (probably out of multipacks). You'd eat the Double Decker in 3 mouthfuls

They must be tiny so because the ones off the shelf have been shrinking for years!

Rubberlegs

gramar wrote: »

They must be tiny so because the ones off the shelf have been shrinking for years!

They are really small, along the lines of the ones like Mars bars that are called snack size in the multipacks

Elliott S

lawlolawl wrote: »

How much garbage do people eat that this kind of thing is any kind of an issue?

I know. It's like when people complain about the notion of adding a sugar tax onto confectionary - "Why should I have to pay more because others can't control themselves?" Er, well, if you're not eating that much, it's not going to cost you very much more in total. A negligable amount really.

Barry Badrinath

I remember 10p bags were 10p.

Now they are €3.

State of it.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Senor Fancy Pants wrote: »

I remember 10p bags were 10p.

Now they are €3.

State of it.

Penny bags were 1d. You can't even get the 1d now for 1d.

And a penny stamp now costs eleven shillings and five pence.

readytosnap

http://www.migros-shop.de/schokolade/tafel-schokolade/tourist-4474.html

I buy the above 2 or 3 times a year, usually get 5 bars at a time, last time (Oct 6th ) it cost me €41.39 including postage. Cannot find it anywhere else, it is the nicest chocolate I ever ate.
Having said and spent that much on Chocolate, I could not bring myself to hand over €1.20 for a starbar, I love them but the last time I bought one it was less than 50p ( I think it was 30 something) You never see starbars in a multipack, never in my life have I seen them.

FizzleSticks

This post has been deleted.

Commotion Ocean

Things are expensive in convenience shops because chumps pay it.

In one of my local supermarkets after Christmas, they dismantle the selection boxes and put a printed-off price label on the individual bars and sell them off (even though it says on the bars "not for individual resale").

They do the same after Easter. They open the box and they sell off the bars individually, they put the cups (or whatever knick-knacks) are inside and sell them too, worse part is that they actually sell the EGGS individually, the leave them in the tin-foil in a trolley by the customer service desk with a price label stuck to it.

I understand the thing about "they charge that because people pay it", but I would wager that far fewer individual bars are sold now than in the past. Like when they cost 30p or whatever in 1998 - 2000 say, I wouldn't say that seemed overly expensive (unless you still thought of it as 6 shillings!). Actually, I just realised, maybe the cost nowadays only seems expensive to someone who remembers them cheaper - maybe 10 year old kids now think 1.20 is a reasonable price for a mars bar etc. A bit like lotto tickets seeming a lot more expensive when they require a full fiver to buy, maybe going from 90-something-cent to 1-euro-something makes it feel expensive. Anyway, what a fun Saturday I'm having talking about this subject :P

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

Local apple green sell the bars two for 2 euro. Grand.
If I'm looking for a sugar coma tho I prefer donuts or apple pie

Son Of A Vidic

Deleted User wrote: »

Does anyone else think the prices charged in the likes of Londis, Spar etc. for individual bars, bags of crisps, bottles of fizzy drinks etc. are way too expensive?

I remember when the price of a bag of Tayto rose from twopence to fourpence and there was nearly a riot on the school bus over it.

Capt'n Midnight

Avatar MIA wrote: »

Imagine, back in medieval times. What would a king give to have the luxury of a cadbury's dairymilk bar of chocolate. Probably sell a few servants and think it a bargain.

Kings ?

Emperor Napoleon III had some aluminium cutlery made in the late 1850's. It was very expensive. Some guests were were snubbed by having to make do with the cheapo solid gold stuff instead.


By the time the Washington Monument was made in the 1880's aluminium was only as expensive as silver.


The Wright Brothers were able to fly because they used aluminium in their engine.

Nowadays it is literally a throwaway metal. Thin foil , wrappers, balloons.

lawlolawl

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

Kings ?

Emperor Napoleon III had some aluminium cutlery made in the late 1850's. It was very expensive. Some guests were were snubbed by having to make do with the cheapo solid gold stuff instead.


By the time the Washington Monument was made in the 1880's aluminium was only as expensive as silver.


The Wright Brothers were able to fly because they used aluminium in their engine.

Nowadays it is literally a throwaway metal. Thin foil , wrappers, balloons.

Ugh, seriously.

It's pronounced "aluminum" FFS.

the purple tin

Stay well clear of tesco express for sweeties. express is code for daylight robbery.

Hopeful2016

the purple tin wrote: »

Stay well clear of tesco express for sweeties. express is code for daylight robbery.

So is Centra.

seamusk84

Dealz is your only man. Brand name confectionary at rock bottom prices.

ofcork

Hopeful2016 wrote: »

So is Centra.

The thing is that centra supervalu and spar are part of big operations but always seem to be dearer although petrol stations are the worst.

Hopeful2016

ofcork wrote: »

The thing is that centra supervalu and spar are part of big operations but always seem to be dearer although petrol stations are the worst.

Our local Centra is also a petrol station and you wouldn't get a bar of chocolate in it for €1.20. It's closer to €1.50. I just don't buy them there anymore as it's ridiculous when combined with the constantly reducing size of the bars too.

Fluffy Cat 88

As Eddie Hobbs said, beware of the 'con'venience store.

I only buy petrol in these establishments nowadays, those shops are only marginally better than armed robbers.

Calibos

In a few more years...

its a disgrace Joe, where have all the local convenience stores gone, why do I have to walk/drive all the way to Tesco for a bar of chocolate. I wouldnt mind but id be prepared to pay a few cents extra for the concenience, but those stupid convenience store owners obviously dont want my business....

Hopeful2016

Calibos wrote: »

In a few more years...

At that stage there'll be a Dealz on every corner so it'll be grand...

Robsweezie

Was gonna post the obligatory "shouldn't be eating that rubbish anyway " sentiment but was beaten to it.

I just go to the pound shop.

JupiterKid

Convenience stores, particularly Spar, are much, much more expensive for goods than the big supermarkets. Not just for confectionery, but for nearly all other products. The price of cleaning products in convenience stores is utterly scandalous.

But there must be plenty of willing customers out there, prepared to pay over the odds because they are thriving.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

JupiterKid wrote: »

Convenience stores, particularly Spar, are much, much more expensive for goods than the big supermarkets. Not just for confectionery, but for nearly all other products. The price of cleaning products in convenience stores is utterly scandalous.

But there must be plenty of willing customers out there, prepared to pay over the odds because they are thriving.

I'm picking up my morning paper and fancy a Kit Kat I'm not heading to Tesco to save a few cents. It's a pittance.

The Spars of this world may be thriving but it's not on sales of things like cleaning products. You don't see many doing anything like a weekly shop there. But if you're stuck for something it's convenient. It's why they are called convenience stores. They can't compete with the big supermarkets and we'll pay the premium for that convenience.

harr

Simple answer is smaller shops pay more for the product wholesale than the the supermarkets who can do deals and buy in huge bulk orders ,where as the smaller garages and shops would not have the same purchase power and most independently owed shops normally buy from a cash and carry who would have an influence on what what shop charges.
Not only chocolate and stuff but all products they sell ...it's also true in some way on what people are willing to pay...my local shop/garage has a tesco express across the road and people will still pay 30 or 40 cent more for chocolate in the garage

Hopeful2016

In terms of service stations, the margin on fuel is very small so they make it inside the store in the deli and the shop floor.

Capt'n Midnight

In a lot of cases they aren't that much more expensive. They just don't stock any of the cheaper brands. So a full shop is going to hurt.


Also the centra near me always has a queue. Always. So I just go on to the Lidl or Aldi because if I have to queue I don't want to pay for the privilege. Also if it's late early in the week then the discounters have no queue. And I might score an inflatable lilo or something.

byhookorbycrook

They tend to be in areas where rents would be high and also have long opening hours- hence the name. Costs would be recouped through high margin goods like confectionery and deli. stuff.