New And Improved?

I was notified recently of a “Trend Alert” to watch for this year as it pertains to certain new retail products such as household products and food items. It was published in USA Today. Part of this “alert” is the push by various product makers (i.e. Proctor & Gamble, Kimberly Clark) to get consumers to buy their products, feel good about some smart savings, then share that feeling with you on social media.

“Hey Gus,” Louise calls out.

“I just got a great deal on some bathroom tissue and I feel so good about it that I’ll be on my Facebook page for awhile, so dinner might be a little late tonight.”

The bottom line truth here, of which we are all aware, is that “everything at the store costs more” and that we seem to be getting a little less of everything in our packaging. So think about this: when you were told last fall that the cost of peanut butter was going up significantly – say 25% or more – did you also happen to notice if the size of your peanut butter jar got smaller by an ounce or two? Anyone comparison shop on coffee lately?

Yes, you’re smart about couponing at the grocery store, but did you notice that you had to buy one to get one free? Or have you noticed that while a product price did not increase, its size decreased—which by the way equals a price increase.

How smart do you feel now?   

Among some of the new products are a box of Kleenex where you can include a favorite photo. How about really easy-to-use laundry detergent? There are new simple-to-fix meal kits. There’s also new cleaning products. Fact is you still have to fix the meal, do the laundry and clean up the mess.

As 2012 evolves, expect to pay more for nearly everything you find in a grocery store. Even “Two Buck Chuck” (Charles Shaw brand wine) at Trader Joe’s is now more like “Four Buck Chuck”. Expect to also pay more for mail (beginning Jan 22), clothing (esp. denim products like jeans), coffee, air fares, gasoline, and insurance.

People don’t want fancy; they want value. Kleenex is Kleenex and a photo album is a photo album. I don’t want to sit on the crapper with a picture of the grandbaby or the dog staring at my bum. Instead, I think producers should focus on making the products we buy simply better and more affordable.

Now wouldn’t that be a trend to start?