Tesco pushed prices up on hundreds of products few weeks prior to £500 million price cutting campaign “Big Price Drop”, it was revealed today in British media.
Tesco raised prices for a few days and was able to say customers were making big savings.
According to The Times, there are many examples of raised prices and then cut by Tesco in the new Big Price Drop campaign:
Tesco 750g Fruit and Nut Museli went from £1.28 on August 16 to £1.89 on August 23 – before “dropping” to £1.75 on September 26;
Sliced Mushrooms – 250g – August 30: 85p; September 6: 97p; September 26: 87p;
Tesco Value Unsalted Butter – August 23: £1.10; August 30: £1.19; September 26: £1.10
Tesco Value Unsmoked Back Bacon – August 16: £1.44; August 23: £1.57; September 26: £1.44;
Oxo Beef Stock Cubes – 12 pack – August 16: 99p; August 27: £1.07; September 26: 99p;
Loose Carrots – August/September: 70p per kg; One week at 80p; September 26: 56p;
Surprisingly, after the “price cut”, the Tesco customers were even paying more than they had been six weeks before.
Hundreds of Tesco products that have been reduced are either selling for the same amount they were six weeks before the Big Price Drop campaign or have been cut only by a small amount.
Tesco said they had slashed prices on 3,000 items by up to 35%.
It was reported that in one four-page advert which featured 12 items which had their prices slashed, 4 of them had been on sale at the same lower price in the weeks beforehand.
A spokesman for Tesco admitted some products would have been on offer in the weeks before the campaign was launched.
“Given the current economic situation and inflation levels it is not surprising, and a factor for every supermarket that some prices on some products will have gone up in the weeks before Big Price Drop.
“In addition, with more than 3,000 products included, inevitably some will have been on promotion in the previous weeks.
‘With the Big Price Drop we are reducing prices on thousands of products our customers need to buy every week aiming to reduce the inflation that they have been experiencing on their weekly shop.
“It is real and sustained investment of £500 million.”
Tesco launched their Big Price Drop promotion campaign on September 27 just days before announcing their worst sales figures in 20 years.
Shoppers bought less food, switched to rivals and turned away from luxury purchases because of the living standards squeeze as sales fell by 1%.
After the supermarket launched Big Price Drop campaign, it was revealed that a basket of 33 staple items from Tesco now costs £58.37, which is up by £1.34 since the promotion began.
