The Price of Things And the Value of Things

What’s their game, eh?

Always the right question when dealing with supermarkets. They know what they’re doing when it comes to slapping a distinctive red sticker on a pack of chicken wings.

I thought prices always ended in 99p. Is this just an excuse to fatten their margins?

I think it’s a safe bet that most self-respecting retailers will charge as much as they can get away with, but that with every price increase they will expect to lose some customers. A key skill for those who set prices is to pick the perfect compromise between losing margins and losing customers.

— Tim Harford — “The Undercover Economist” — responds to a report in the Telegraph that ONE POUND is the new 99 PENCE (translated but not converted, for our American readers: one dollar is the new 99 cents). It’s a very fun read, with some very fun theories! (“It’s easy to imagine that the shorthand for a bargain was once a 99p price, but now it’s a nice round number thanks to the pound shops.”)

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