Good news. Albertsons is cutting prices. The news has shown up in newspapers, on television, radio, websites, blogs... you name it. That's good for a retailer trying to get the word out that consumers don't need to go to the competition to save.
Now for the bad news... Albertsons has made such a splash with its "big relief price cut" that consumers in markets such as Boise, Idaho have noticed that those same savings are not happening in their area.
"That makes me feel cheated. They're doing it there, they should do it here," shopper Mabel Omas told KTVB 7 news.
When the station contacted Albertsons' parent company Supervalu to ask why Idaho wasn't included in the price-cutting, it said it was told that competitive pressures and consumer behavioral data determined which markets would see prices cuts.
According to the KTVB report, "Supervalu says its new program is not meant to be exclusive. It says it was built specifically for the markets, which it is targeting. But didn't really answer the question why we and many others were not included in the price cuts."
Discussion Questions: Do local market price changes such as those promoted by Albertsons work in today's world where information is so readily available through a variety of sources? What should Albertsons (Supervalu) do now that word is out that consumers in some markets are not getting price cuts while others are?