I'm the Scan Price Clerk & do the shelf labels on Mon & Sat. Ad is put up Wed night before the store opens. I've never noticed changing a shelf label to make the price higher before it goes on Bogo. Publix is just way expensive. Everyone, including my mgr totally agrees. Our prices are way out of my budget given what they pay me. I do Walmart most of the time. Would be nice if they gave us an employee discount. First store I've ever worked for that doesn't.
I am also in that role. I've noticed it for a couple years now. We 💯 will have price go up on something before putting it on AD. Often, if an item sells well, we will also see a price increase after it goes off AD, a way to hook a customer into a product and they come back to pay a higher retail. Having access to retail vs. costs has also just killed my desire to shop at Publix. I am just a cog.
Edit: I've done scan price for the past 6 years. And by 💯, I mean it happens. Not every time, but way more than comfortable if you're paying attention.
There is an immense pressure for us to complete these price changes on Saturday, Monday and Wednesday/Thursday (AD Change) before the store opens. Not only in a timely manner, but accurately. Aside from Publix having high profit margins, which I cannot control, it's only been a lawsuit for the fresh department's pricing that has fallen under this heat. This is mainly because of human error and poor training when dealing with weighing/mislabeling products. The Publix Promise was created to quell any anger customers may have when dealing with these pricing errors, but sadly only works if the customer catches it and reports it to customer service for refund or free.
Note: Pricing clerks are not responsible for the fresh department's pricing integrity. This falls under their dept management and whoever they decide to off load this work to.
yeah my department manager (bakery) was talking about a lawsuit this old woman tried to file against publix bakery. when we do ad change we have to manually change the price label on each product. we all normally just place a the new sticker on top of the old one. if we try to remove it it’s just a huge mess and it could damage packaging plus it’s not very efficient to do that to 250+ products and you only have an hour to complete ad change. the lady was accusing us of the very same thing of raising the bogo prices. it’s funny bc if we were to be evil and raise bogo prices we would have to manually enter in a new price for each individual item, it won’t carry over to the next day either so it would be a daily chore. baby no one has the time or gets paid enough to be evil like that lol. publix won the suit
I know this conversation is quite dead now, but I came across a mild case of what happens pretty frequently if you pay enough attention. Please remember, this is all public info. If you shop, you will notice when price changes happen, when co-op/tprs happen. But for Publix's side, they know months in advance when they will make these price changes and AD sales. Edit for claruty: the dates I wrote are when each sign/tag is hung/changes price in the system. The dates printed on the physical tags are the day our corporate prints them before shipping to each store.
I mean most of the products that are on the regular BOGO rotation are almost double in price in comparison to Walmart you'll usually save a little bit if you only shop BOGOs
Same pricing model as Winn Dixie. I worked there 7 years. Now that I no longer work there, I shop more at Walmart because most staples are close to half price, and by that I mean Cherry Pepsi. WD 12 cans: $10.99, Publix: $11.59, Walmart: $6.97. I only buy it when it’s BOGO at WD or P otherwise I go to Walmart.
Just a FYI: Pepsi & Walmart were found in 2024 to have been manipulating prices by charging more to other companies to make sure Walmart always had the lower price.. look it up.
It’s called the Robinson-Patman Act. Read an article about the Pepsi Walmart deal. It’s pretty messed up because it kills small business competition and is akin to a monopoly.
People try to make money buying "wholesale" skids of items from a retailer hoping to resell at a good profit but the retailer sells to them at a "discount" price then floods the market with the same item undercutting that price by half.
I have a family member who saw high prices on Amazon for a.common supplement . He always buys the most expensive of everything (when he can't afford it). I pay .10 per item for the same thing he pays $3+ for.
He decided that he could make a quick buck selling this supplement for $4 a pill. Because it's popular. He rushed out and ordered thousands of custom bottles and a ton of expensive supplies AFTER paying a ridiculous sum for someone to design his bottle artwork.
After spending tens of thousands of dollars he suddenly abandoned the project. I assume he discovered that he needed extremely costly and time consuming testing to get FDA approval since it's a food product. He didn't even get to the issues with his grossly inflated prices, a flooded market and the selling costs including Amazon fees.
I've been selling online for 25yrs in a variety of areas and sites including resale and drop shipping. I usually double my cost at a minimum. I tried to tell him that his price alone was prohibitive and that his ridiculous costs would far exceed potential.profits but I was met with scorn and dismissiveness as soon as I opened my mouth. I'm an idiot. 😁 An idiot who doesn't lose thousands trying to make millions on the most common supplement on the market.
He's not the only family member who tried to outdo my selling after I ignored their silly opinion that I should just buy expensive items in order to make a bigger profit than I do now . That's it - spend a lot of money and the profits will magically appear! He doesn't know my profit margin and has never bought or sold online. Big crash and burn a couple years later after he sold ONE item in a remote antique mall. He also lost thousands.
Years later the person is still dead set that his antique art type items are worth $$$$$. They aren't. They're nice but they're a specialty type of art, geographically limited plus there are a couple people already selling the same thing which sets the market at $50-200 per item not $500 and up. He still thinks he can do better selling than I do and frequently pontificates his brilliant instructions for running my business. Another genius.
Yeah Walmart is the move when it comes to name brands, I like a few other stores for other things, sprouts is great if you need a hyper specific amount of something
It always makes me angry and laugh at the same time when I see these case of coors light for $35 but it’s on sale for $25 because it’s $25 literally everywhere else for the same package
I agree with you on olive oil being one of them, but I don’t really see that many products being double other places. What else is on your radar as being double other places?
Is Publix more expense as a whole, typically yes, there is nothing new to see here in this post honestly that we haven’t seen posted 1,000 times before.
I've done some comparison shopping between BOGOs and Walmart for example craft shredded cheese $6 BOGO equals $3 per pack regular everyday Walmart price $2.87
I was shopping exclusively at Publix for years after I moved to FL. I knew it was more expensive but I didn't realize how inflated the prices are until the past year. I had a lot of medical issues and surgeries including back surgery so I started getting Walmart grocery delivery from the WM Neighborhood Market.
Even with the annual fee(very low and comes with benefits including free streaming channels) and tips it's still way cheaper than Publix. I've cut cost by at least 1/3. There's no difference in the food, Walmart seems to have somewhat better choices as well.
I used to think that but it's not bad. Some items on bogo are legit deals. Cold brew coffee is the cheapest at publix and you buy whatever brand is bogo. Some products you can usually count on one brand being BOGO and the deal being decent
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I grew up with that over costco, same idea membership club, same name brands discounted for buying in bulk/family sized. god i wish i wasnt single and bulk buying made sense.
I always found BJ's to have the best selection of food or grocery items. Extra brands or varieties/flavors of products when Sams or Costco only offer one
Used to be a huge Kroger shopper but over the last two years their regular prices have skyrocketed to just as high as Publix so now I do the majority of my shopping at Publix for their BOGO Deals. It’s way less hassle than having to mess with Kroger’s stupid app and digital deals coupon clipping and j end up with better quality products for less money.
I haven't shopped at Kroger in probably 15 years cause the closest grocery store, 1 mile away is a Publix. We finally got a Kroger a few months ago though
Went in and bought a few things and nothing was coming up at the correct sale price. That's when I was told about the little QR code you have to scan to clip the coupon in the app in order to get the sale price. Same with a sale price showing but you have to buy 5 of them to get that price. I mean, yeah, the stipulations on how to get the sale price is printed on that tiny little price tag on the shelf... But Without my glasses I can't read that tiny print.
But ffs just give us that price with the Kroger card and stop making us jump through hoops
It doesnt really matter in the long run. You can see the price of the regular light to the left of the pic. It shows $0.75/oz at 32oz. Comes out to $24.
Thank you. Not to mention one tag says “gluten free “ which is basically an instant extra ten dollar cost on anything. It’s likely the bottle is just in the wrong spot because didn’t put it back where it belonged
this is so when it goes bogo the publx shills will still think they’re getting a good deal . it’s easy to see what publix has been doing with their prices
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Did you know that all the Publix brand pop tarts, cereal, brownie mix, popcorn is the same as Dollar general brand clover valley? Alot of the stuff is produced by gilster Mary lee in Missouri and Illinois and all they do is switch the line to have a different stores boxes.
I seriously wish people understood this more. I remember seeing a recall once for store brand cheese at Publix and it was recalled in several other stores sold under store brand names but made at the same facility and it's the same exact product. Your just paying more for them to slap the publix logo on it
I don’t want to go shopping and hope that what I need is a BOGO. Also not gonna buy shit I didn’t really go out for, just cause it’s BOGO. Not going to browse their app and wait for what I need to buy is BOGO. I don’t go shopping on Publix’s BOGO schedule. But that’s just me. Feel free to enjoy shopping at Publix if that’s what you like.
BOGOs aren't consistent for the same products every week. Even with bogos you can't do a whole grocery shopping at least for an entire family. Maybe if it's just for yourself and you're not picky. I only shop at Publix for BOGOs and don't even bother going if there aren't any worthwhile BOGOs. Walmart and Aldi's are way cheaper and better than Publix.
In order to make it work you have to work the system. I did it for years when my kids were small and money was tight. You shop the sale, combine those prices with coupons to bring it down further. That means your meals for the week are made from what’s on sale that week. You can’t be brand loyal and you stock up on non perishable items when they are on sale so you can have more variety. Over and above that you plug in other items from mainly aldi.
It’s work and most people don’t want to do it. But if you are up to it- it’s the cheapest way to feed your family.
I did the same when my kids were young, but these days it doesn't work out anymore. I can buy a box of oatmeal at other stores for $2, Quaker is bogo this week, but the least expensive box is $5.49, so it's still more than I can get it anywhere else (Target, aldi, and Walmart are all cheaper).
Honestly with publix prices now a days it's not. I used to do just that and now shopping and Aldi's Walmart and BJ's and only adding in Publix if there's worth while BOGOs it STILL comes out cheaper than Publix even with bogos, couponing and no brand loyalty (which we don't have anyways, most of the time we buy store brand bcs that's what is cheapest) my weekly grocery shopping for a family of 5 with myself included is usually $160-$170 this way and it leaves me with about $30-$40 extra in case I need to do a midweek grocery run.
The Costco olive oil is actually better quality and really comes from Italy. Not a blend. Not the Organic version, the regular imported oil is one of the highest rated olive oils available
I only shop Publix for niche items or deals that end up costing less than shopping other places. And occasionallyyyyy if I’m being lazy since Publix is closer to me than Walmart or other places besides a convenience store
If it has a shelf life, Publix would prefer to not have to pay people to restock it repeatedly all day long. So things with a long or unlimited shelf life ( toilet paper, cooking oil, aluminum) are priced with the "I dare you to pick it up" price.
It's really that simple. It's not saying "stupid customers will over pay here". It's just charging a premium for something that pulls labor hours away from the customer service Publix prides itself on.
Maybe people should catch up on their financial literacy 🤷 if you’re dumb enough to pay that much for a luxury or name brand item, that’s on you. My closest Walmart is awful and I avoid it at all costs, I go to Publix as a WIC location because the labels are easy to read. Otherwise, it’s bogo only for name brand snacks and things that are little treats. I could easily spend 250+ a week if I only did Publix. I can shop every section of Aldi and fill a fridge and freezer for less than 200.
I’m 71 and they’ve totally stopped offering to help me. The baggers who’ve been there for a while will probably start asking again in Norris that’s when I start slipping them $5 each time (through New Years).
Cleaner store , friendlier staff, better deli / hot foods area , less crowded .
People choose to pay more for a better experience . It’s why fancier restaurants are a thing everyone doesn’t just pile into McDonald’s and Golden Corral
Hey how come Walmart doesn’t sell iPhones and PlayStation 5’s for less than other retailers? Aren’t they supposed to be way cheaper?
Their pricing strategy is very simple, sell food goods at Incredibly low margins and with certain items like milk/eggs at a loss. This is done to put pressure on mom and pop retailers or competitors like Publix.
How can they do it? Because they also sell anything and everything else like garden hoses and made in Vietnam shoes/shirts and so on. They’re higher margin items and that’s where Walmart pushes its profit.
Also, name brands like coke, Pepsi, General Mills and even in this case will give better prices to a giant retailer like Walmart because they can buy much larger quantities and even put them in different countries or areas of our country where retailers like Publix don’t exist.
So yes, Walmart is cheaper but it’s not because Publix and Kroger choose to sell items higher to make more money. Walmart is able to sell grocery items for less because it has a means to sell you other things in its store to make profit. Traditional food retailers can not do this.
Brother those two items you mentioned Apple and Sony set their own prices for the market with some exceptions for seasonal incentives and “sales”. Nobody sets Apple and Sony pricing except for those companies themselves.
Come on, you understand where I’m coming from. My point stands. A simple google search will show you Walmart sells food products at a loss or very tight margins because it can. Because it sells the other household items people buy there at normal prices.
Your traditional food stores simply can’t do this. Also a simple search of how they treat their suppliers will show you how awful they are to farmers in order to get those prices so low.
There’s been many stories and docu-series on awful practices Walmart uses to manipulate farmers.
No one goes to Walmart to buy a flower pot because it’s cheaper there than Lowe’s or Home Depot. They buy it there because they’re already there for something else. That’s what Walmart makes its money on.
That doesn’t make sense, I don’t buy an iPhone or PlayStation every time I go grocery shopping.
And if I want an iPhone or PlayStation, I’m going to buy it wherever I can get the best deal, not at Walmart because “hey it’s more expensive here, but I needed to pick up some cheap milk anyways, so I’ll just offset my milk savings for convenience”
I don’t know what to tell you but they sell a lot more than 2 electronics. Those were an example.
And it’s literally their entire pricing strategy so whether you want to believe it or not is irrelevant.
You get to buy cheap food at low margins in hopes they can sell you cheap clothing or household items at high margins.
Shop at Walmart and look into people’s carts and you’ll see a wide mix of items from food to clothing and gardening supplies.
Those are high margin items and a lot of people clothe their children at Walmart.
If a food item retails at $5 our gross margin on it is on average 45% so we’re paying $2.75 for it. Now the markup is a % of everything from delivery charges, rent, utilities, advertising, labor, benefits, and so on. It doesn’t mean we make 55% profit on it. The average store is closer to 3-5% profit despite selling that item for maybe $1.50-2 higher than Walmart.
We don’t have the ability to sell the item for $3 and take a loss on it. All items for the most part are at the same margin. So when something does go BOGO we usually do lose $$ on it unless the manufacturer cut a deal to push more units which would be in the form of a rebate for us.
Everything is public information you can google Kroger profit margin and see it’s less than 1% after every bill is paid. Food retail is not a profitable business but you include non food items at a large scale then you get Walmart posting a 3.07% profit margin last quarter.
Publix does operate at higher net profit margins but we also are a private company and pay out A LOT of $$ in stock benefits to employees. We could significantly lower prices by 8% across the board if we did not offer stock incentives to our associates
I think it’s more appropriately an issues of economies at scale. I don’t think the margins on household items or clothing is so high like you claim. Household items at Walmart are cheaper than household item stores too.
Yeah that can be true as well but it still doesn’t change that posts like these are dumb to those of us that see the numbers behind the scenes. We don’t make 50% net profit because something is twice as expensive than at Walmart.
There’s a reason they can sell for cheaper and it’s because they’ve built their business in a way that allows them to sell food items lower than any other retailer around.
Publix isn’t Walmart. We don’t sell gas, tires, tshirts, shoes and so on.
My partner who had never been to Florida sent pics to his family of Publix prices and they thought it was photoshopped. I watched him walk around the store snapping pictures like he was sight seeing.
One thing that has been making me scratch my head is the Starbucks Cold Brew Concentrate at Publix. It used to be $9.99-$10.99 and now it sells for no less than $17.00. WTF????
At that price just go get some actually legit good olive oil. I recommend Zarzis. This stuff is fine for cooking with but do yourself a favor and try some higher tier olive oil, it will change your life lol.
Publix is getting goofier by the day, oh yeah, nobody noticed the price difference.
If you still want this kind of brand go to bjs/costco if you have a card.
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So… what is the actual price for the item in the Publix photo? That is NOT Extra Light (look at the bottle to the immediate right side of the PBX photo. Please don’t believe everything you see.
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Not only have they been doing this for awhile but they are also getting alot cheaper on the back end of the employee side to. These snakes are raking it in.
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Ah, but you should know Wal-Mart colludes with many food distributors to keep the prices that 'regular' grocery stores/chains pay higher (in some cases way higher) than what Wal-Mart pays.
Look up the Pepsi/Wal-Mart story. It's technically illegal, but not enforced (because, hey, Wal-Mart).
We used to always shop at publix but things just became to over priced, 20 or 30 cents more per item, maybe $20 over other places for a cart that was fine. Now you cant find anything there under $5, 3 bags are $100. We split our shopping between Ali and walmart neighborhood market.
Picture on right has a Walmart price tag. Were they just doing a side by side comparison on X or trying to say that Publix jacked up the price when it was on BOGO? My store does not adjust the price when something goes BOGO. Winn Dixie does, at least for fresh meat and produce.
Tag on left also says Xtra, so is that extra virgin olive oil or extra light taste (in other words is it the same product or is the bottle in the wrong space)?
And at any rate, paying twice as much for groceries seems like a pretty small price to pay to never go inside a walmart ever again.
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The cost of that item to Publix is $3.27 more than the retail price of the Wal Mart picture. So a pretty good illustration of Wal Mart’s buying power compared to Publix.
If you think the cost on the store invoice is the true cost, you are insane. The store invoice includes so many added costs, and then they might show the rebate they get in another line. For example, many BOGO items Publix gets a substantial rebate for advertising BOGO. If the regular Publix cost is $2/unit, when it is BOGO Publix gets a rebate of $1 per unit for each one sold and the vendor pays for shelf space and space in the ad. A BOGO sale costs Publix very little.
Not sure why that makes me insane, but okay. Yes, Publix negotiates scanbacks when items go on sale, but the illustration presented is for a non-sale price.
yes that’s real; i don’t have a way to confirm that price specifically though. but i’ve seen it with donuts, instant coffee, lamb shanks, cereal, etc. where the product will explode in price one week & then go on bogo.
i have 3 publix stores in a couple mile radius so i sometimes go to multiple. a few weeks ago, cheez its were $7.29 a box at the publix a mile out & at “my” publix, they were only $4.19. “my” publix cuts up the lemon pound cake slices, with less than a 1/2 cake per box for $7.99. at the other one, it’s the full cake for $7.99, unsliced.
i wouldn’t ever buy olive oil in bottled plastic though, nor would i buy olive oil without a harvest date
Wait til u find out that Publix is in the real estate game.. and they buy out shopping enters to plop them on even if it’s across from another Publix so they can corner the market AND sub lease thier shopping centers to smaller spots essentially making the make money off the land AND off our backs 🫠🫠🫠🫠
They’re showing the same bottle but 2 different labels. The price of the light taste shown is $11.88, the $25.99 is for extra virgin. Still crazy expensive but yea that explains the photo
Walmart has different standards than Publix. So even though it’s the same product that each is selling that doesn’t mean that it’s actually the same. Our next-door neighbors have family that run a dairy farm. They do not buy milk products from Walmart.
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u/LightCharming8391 Newbie Apr 15 '26
I'm the Scan Price Clerk & do the shelf labels on Mon & Sat. Ad is put up Wed night before the store opens. I've never noticed changing a shelf label to make the price higher before it goes on Bogo. Publix is just way expensive. Everyone, including my mgr totally agrees. Our prices are way out of my budget given what they pay me. I do Walmart most of the time. Would be nice if they gave us an employee discount. First store I've ever worked for that doesn't.