The Friday Checkout is a weekly column providing more insight on the news, rounding up the announcements you may have missed and sharing what’s to come.
Consumer Reports, The Guardian and the Food & Environment Reporting Network released on Wednesday an investigation claiming Kroger has a “price tag problem” that leads to overcharging shoppers on sale items.
“Kroger stores in multiple states, the investigation has revealed, show a pattern of overcharging customers by frequently listing expired sale prices on the shelves and then ringing up the regular prices at checkout,” The Guardian story says. The investigation is based, in part, on the three news outlets tapping “secret shoppers” across more than a dozen states as well as union grocery workers in Colorado to document pricing discrepancies with purchases.
Kroger told the news outlets that the price tag errors represented “a few dozen examples across several years out of billions of customer transactions annually.”
“While any error is unacceptable, the characterization of widespread pricing concerns is patently false,” the grocer said in a statement, noting that it is “committed to affordable and accurate pricing” and conducts price checks regularly that review “millions of items weekly to ensure our shelf prices are accurate.”
The report adds to Kroger’s chaos this year, from the sudden exit of top executive Rodney McMullen after an ethics investigation to the grocer’s legal battles with Albertsons and C&S Wholesale Grocers over their failed merger attempt.
The explosive report also comes at a time when grocers are facing ongoing scrutiny from government officials, watchdog groups and consumers (as well as Grocery Dive) over their pricing practices as shoppers continue to worry about how much they spend on groceries. A lawsuit filed earlier this year accuses Publix of overcharging shoppers for certain on-sale foods sold by weight, such as cheeses and deli items.
The increased scrutiny on grocers’ prices and sales serves as a reminder to supermarkets to button up their strategies and technologies so they avoid pricing errors.
In case you missed it
Wholesale clubs outpace Walmart in store visit growth
Price-sensitive shoppers are buying in bulk these days.
In the first quarter of this year, wholesale clubs outpaced superstore retailers in-store visit growth, according to Placer.ai. Costco saw visits rise 6.1% during Q1, while BJ’s Wholesale Club saw visits increase 4% and Sam’s Club enjoyed a 2.7% bump in traffic. Visits to Walmart, meanwhile, declined 2.4% while store visits to Target declined 4.1%.
Placer noted that year-over-year traffic growth at Walmart turned positive in April while Target’s decline shrank to 3.3%, indicating consumers are stocking up ahead of expected impacts from tariffs.
Grocery Outlet uncorks a $5 wine
Eager to take on Trader Joe’s famous Two Buck Chuck label, Grocery Outlet has come out with its own budget line of wine.
According to SFGate, Grocery Outlet recently debuted Second Cheapest Wine, which includes pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon, sauvignon blanc and two types of chardonnay, for $4.99 per bottle. The wines are currently available at stores in five states — California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Nevada.
SpartanNash is hot for brats
Frankly speaking, there’s no better time than now to fire up a grilling-themed display in grocery stores. SpartanNash has heeded the call, announcing this week that it’s setting up a limited-time bratwurst-themed destination inside Family Fare, D&W Fresh Market and Martin’s Super Market stores.
The Brat Shop, which is open through Labor Day, offers an eye-catching selection of bratwurst, including pineapple teriyaki, smoky honey barbecue, zesty cheddar taco and a local delicacy known as the Michigander that has a cherry finish.
Impulse find
Aldi wants shoppers to light a “Burning Cash” candle
Aldi is coming out with a new line of scented candles. But they’re not the kind that you light to freshen up a room or unwind at the end of the day. The discounter’s new must-have counter companions smell like burning cash.
Sounds refreshing, no?
Ever eager to let shoppers know it has really low prices, Aldi plans to make a limited batch of candles available to shoppers via a dedicated website starting May 21. Those lucky enough to score the home decor dream glow-up that Aldi generously claims carries “soft, smokey undertones” will get not one, but two Burning Cash candles.
The second candle is ostensibly to give to a friend who needs to switch to Aldi, but they also make a great gift for your least favorite coworker or as a handy way to get rid of vermin in your attic.
