Kroger "new low prices"

[storewanderer]

Noticed this week Smiths posted quite a few "NEW LOW PRICE" tags around the store. These "NEW LOW PRICES" still look well above Wal Mart everyday pricing to me, so this seems pretty weak. Stuff like Bigelow Tea was 3.99 now 3.49 (this was 2.29 everyday there a few years ago), just really weak small decreases.

One of the "new low prices" I saw that did look pretty good was cans of Kroger Peanuts, now just 1.99. That seems to be a better price than 20 years ago. So I guess for folks who like peanuts there is no inflation. But they also discontinued the "butter" toffee flavor, so, that is of no interest to me.

It isn't clear if these are new "everyday low prices" or what, but there is no card requirement and the items scan at these prices.

Of course found more of those .10 price hikes they keep shoving down my throat every week on stuff I bought there, well I should say stuff I USED TO buy there. This time it was on the Gallon Kroger Distilled Water - was 1.39 and now is 1.49. Another item I'll get from Wal Mart going forward where it is 1.26 at the baby department (it is 1.37 at grocery aisle). What is interesting is Kroger used to be .99 and Wal Mart used to be .98 on this for many years. But the Kroger price spread keeps widening from Wal Mart.

I suspect advertising they just lowered thousands of everyday prices "as inflation eases" (ha ha ha what a load) is optics purposes for the merger.

[ClownLoach]

Those tags were littered around Ralphs yesterday too. Not a single one that appeared to be anything to be proud of. Meanwhile many other items I recognized going up with the "locked in low price" tag where the regular retail would increase 50¢ to as much as $1.50 but then they would be at a club card discount "locked in" to the previous regular price, like an extended sale? Those extended sales are gone and now the new higher full price is in effect. Items like that include salads, fresh salsa, fresh hash browns, several cheeses, Western Hearth bread, and so on. But sure, there's plenty of "new low prices" that are still the highest in town. What a crock.

[storewanderer]

Those tags were littered around Ralphs yesterday too. Not a single one that appeared to be anything to be proud of. Meanwhile many other items I recognized going up with the "locked in low price" tag where the regular retail would increase 50¢ to as much as $1.50 but then they would be at a club card discount "locked in" to the previous regular price, like an extended sale? Those extended sales are gone and now the new higher full price is in effect. Items like that include salads, fresh salsa, fresh hash browns, several cheeses, Western Hearth bread, and so on. But sure, there's plenty of "new low prices" that are still the highest in town. What a crock.

I'll do a sample but I don't think they are even close to "highest price in town." They are still just, higher than Wal Mart. Or so that is my perception. WAY lower than Safeway.

I'll try to do a random sample of 15 name branded items that have these "new low price" tags and compare them to Wal Mart and Safeway and see how it lands. Maybe I'll throw in Raleys. Some of the items are sort of vague and may not be sold by all of these chains.

And I think that is the whole point of what they are doing. They are trying to build evidence of their price cut program (a program they haven't done much of since 2020) to justify their claim that they will lower prices in the Albertsons/Safeway operations when they take over, they have a history of doing "thousands of price cuts" in, say, 12 of the last 15 years, and their everyday pricing is on average x% lower than Albertsons/Safeway thanks to these price cuts.

[ClownLoach]

Those tags were littered around Ralphs yesterday too. Not a single one that appeared to be anything to be proud of. Meanwhile many other items I recognized going up with the "locked in low price" tag where the regular retail would increase 50¢ to as much as $1.50 but then they would be at a club card discount "locked in" to the previous regular price, like an extended sale? Those extended sales are gone and now the new higher full price is in effect. Items like that include salads, fresh salsa, fresh hash browns, several cheeses, Western Hearth bread, and so on. But sure, there's plenty of "new low prices" that are still the highest in town. What a crock.

I'll do a sample but I don't think they are even close to "highest price in town." They are still just, higher than Wal Mart. Or so that is my perception. WAY lower than Safeway.

I'll try to do a random sample of 15 name branded items that have these "new low price" tags and compare them to Wal Mart and Safeway and see how it lands. Maybe I'll throw in Raleys. Some of the items are sort of vague and may not be sold by all of these chains.

And I think that is the whole point of what they are doing. They are trying to build evidence of their price cut program (a program they haven't done much of since 2020) to justify their claim that they will lower prices in the Albertsons/Safeway operations when they take over, they have a history of doing "thousands of price cuts" in, say, 12 of the last 15 years, and their everyday pricing is on average x% lower than Albertsons/Safeway thanks to these price cuts.

I got a taste of that Safeway pricing last week. I think the Central Coast is on NorCal pricing now. I was in the Nipomo Vons grabbing a few quick items and saw prices that were eye popping here and there. $6 bagged salads, some tortillas pushing $6 that are below $4 here, just went into a few aisles as I only needed a couple of things but the overall impression was way higher than what I'm used to seeing at SoCal Alb/Vons sites. That Vons seems like a Safeway build anyway, their standard layout, some oddities like the front doors being those double swinging ones that I only see at Safeway and not SoCal Vons. Even stickers on registers for something policy related to call 1-800-SAF-EWAY which I've never seen at a Vons here. But my previous visit all those SLO County stores seemed to be on the same SoCal pricing. Although I liked much of what I saw at that California Fresh, their pricing was really high on anything conventional, much more than I ever remember and their usual loss leader ad is no longer.

[storewanderer]

Those tags were littered around Ralphs yesterday too. Not a single one that appeared to be anything to be proud of. Meanwhile many other items I recognized going up with the "locked in low price" tag where the regular retail would increase 50¢ to as much as $1.50 but then they would be at a club card discount "locked in" to the previous regular price, like an extended sale? Those extended sales are gone and now the new higher full price is in effect. Items like that include salads, fresh salsa, fresh hash browns, several cheeses, Western Hearth bread, and so on. But sure, there's plenty of "new low prices" that are still the highest in town. What a crock.

I'll do a sample but I don't think they are even close to "highest price in town." They are still just, higher than Wal Mart. Or so that is my perception. WAY lower than Safeway.

I'll try to do a random sample of 15 name branded items that have these "new low price" tags and compare them to Wal Mart and Safeway and see how it lands. Maybe I'll throw in Raleys. Some of the items are sort of vague and may not be sold by all of these chains.

And I think that is the whole point of what they are doing. They are trying to build evidence of their price cut program (a program they haven't done much of since 2020) to justify their claim that they will lower prices in the Albertsons/Safeway operations when they take over, they have a history of doing "thousands of price cuts" in, say, 12 of the last 15 years, and their everyday pricing is on average x% lower than Albertsons/Safeway thanks to these price cuts.

I got a taste of that Safeway pricing last week. I think the Central Coast is on NorCal pricing now. I was in the Nipomo Vons grabbing a few quick items and saw prices that were eye popping here and there. $6 bagged salads, some tortillas pushing $6 that are below $4 here, just went into a few aisles as I only needed a couple of things but the overall impression was way higher than what I'm used to seeing at SoCal Alb/Vons sites. That Vons seems like a Safeway build anyway, their standard layout, some oddities like the front doors being those double swinging ones that I only see at Safeway and not SoCal Vons. Even stickers on registers for something policy related to call 1-800-SAF-EWAY which I've never seen at a Vons here. But my previous visit all those SLO County stores seemed to be on the same SoCal pricing.

Still running SoCal ad there. Maybe they put it on the Bishop/Mammoth/Catalina price scale (that is a very special one...).

[storewanderer]

Really not that many items on this and they're pretty vague. Avoided private label items. Didn't find many items.

Kraft BBQ Sauce 18oz
Smiths "new low price" 1.99 WAS 2.19
Safeway price: 4.49 (on sale now 2.99)
Wal Mart: 1.98
Raleys: 3.99 (on sale now 2.50)
Save Mart 3.49 (sale 2.50)

Swanson Chunk White Chicken 12.5oz
Smiths "new low price" 4.99 WAS 5.29
Safeway: 6.99 (on sale now 6.79)
Wal Mart: 3.98
Raleys: 6.99
Save Mart 7.29

Mission Carb Balance Flour Tortilla 8ct 12oz
Smiths "new low price" 4.99 WAS 5.99
Safeway price: 6.49
Wal Mart: 4.88
Raleys: 6.99 (on sale now 4.99)
Save Mart 6.99

Nakano Rice Vinegar 12oz
Smiths "new low price" 3.49 WAS 3.79
Safeway price: 3.99
Wal Mart: 2.73
Raleys: 3.99
Save Mart 3.49

Mrs. Dash Seasoning, Various, 2.7oz
Smiths "new low price" 3.79 WAS 3.99
Safeway price: 4.99 (on sale now 4.49)
Wal Mart: 2.97
Raleys: 4.99 (on sale now 3.99)
Save Mart 4.99

Cascade Platinum Plus Dish Action Pacs 11ct
Smiths "new low price" 5.99 WAS 6.49
Safeway price: 7.99 (on sale now 5.99)
Wal Mart: 5.44
Raleys: 7.99 (on sale now 5.99)
Save Mart 7.49

Keebler Sandies Large 17.2oz package
Smiths "new low price" 4.79 WAS 5.49
Safeway: does not carry (however, carries 11.3oz package at 5.79, on sale now 3.00)
Wal Mart: 4.38
Raleys: 6.99 (on sale now 5.99)
Save Mart 8.99

Keebler Chips Deluxe standard 9.6oz package
Smiths "new low price" 3.79 WAS 3.99
Safeway: 5.79 (on sale now 3.00)
Wal Mart "rollback" 2.98 WAS 3.38
Raleys: 5.79
Save Mart 5.49

Nabisco Premium Saltine 16oz
Smiths "new low price" 3.99 WAS 4.29
Safeway: 4.99 (on sale now 4.49)
Wal Mart: 3.88
Raleys: 4.99 (on sale now 4.49)
Save Mart 4.99 ("price cut" 4.49)

[surfingdude]

\
Still running SoCal ad there. Maybe they put it on the Bishop/Mammoth/Catalina price scale (that is a very special one...).

They are - but every other week or so, in the Central Coast ads, they will jack up retails on a couple of front page items, such as Haggen Daz $2.97 in SoCal, $3.77 Central Coast.

[ClownLoach]

\
Still running SoCal ad there. Maybe they put it on the Bishop/Mammoth/Catalina price scale (that is a very special one...).

They are - but every other week or so, in the Central Coast ads, they will jack up retails on a couple of front page items, such as Haggen Daz $2.97 in SoCal, $3.77 Central Coast.

I thought so. There were eye watering prices I have not seen in SoCal. Again I was in a hurry but there were some crazy things, fancy brand organic eggs over the $10/dozen mark which I don't think even Whole Foods has done.

[SamSpade]

OK. I have to list the QFC prices which largely line up with Raleys (online/not verified in store):

If one lived in the Puget Sound, even paying the "delivery fee" or joining Boost annually you'd quickly get your money back to have orders completed from Fred Meyer over QFC.

Looking online, Fredmeyer.com was basically the same as either the Smith's "new low price" or a few cases of the was price. Safeway here was very comparable except $1 higher on the Nakano vinegar. Walmart was the same as the prices StoreWanderer provided. Cascade packs here come in a 14, not 11 pack (for now).

Kraft BBQ Sauce 18oz
QFC $3.49

Swanson Chunk White Chicken 12.5oz
$5.49, 9.75 ounces

Mission Carb Balance Flour Tortilla 8ct 12oz
$6.99

Nakano Rice Vinegar 12oz
$4.99

Mrs. Dash Seasoning, Various, 2.7oz
$4.79

Cascade Platinum Plus Dish Action Pacs 11ct
$7.89

Keebler Sandies Large 17.2oz package
$6.99

Keebler Chips Deluxe standard 9.6oz package
$5.49

Nabisco Premium Saltine 16oz
$4.99

[storewanderer]

Updated original post to include Save Mart.

These 3 NorCal chains are lock step with each other on terrible pricing.

Where is the competition?