It Is Confirmed
From the Damn Department, I read an article on the top six most overpriced products out there. The obvious ones like bottled water and designer clothes were on the list. The markup on those fancy jeans can run anywhere from 500% to 1000%. Even more outrageous is the cost of printer ink cartridges. The statistics on those little jewels indicate you will pay in excess of 500% more than the original investment in the printer. In fact, printer ink costs more per unit than blood. According to the American Red Cross, they charge $200 for 500 milliliters of blood. A comparable amount of printer ink comes in at $355. Even printer ink does not top the chart on overpriced items. The number one most overpriced product out there, drum roll please, is Movie Popcorn. That bag of crunchy goodness comes in at a whopping 1,275% markup.
One thing I’ve never been called is cheap or a tightwad, but I do use coupons and watch for sales. Why not? Why leave money on the table when you don’t have to. Businesses are a lot more conscious and focused on competing for your dollar and retaining you as a customer. They are also making it easier. At Krogers, you can download coupons to your customer loyalty card and they automatically deduct when you buy said products. I also have an application on my iPhone where I can scan a barcode to determine if there is a better price on the same product at another store in close proximity.
I’m all for businesses making a profit. That’s one of the things that keep our economy going. Lord knows it is not those morons in Washington DC. Take a little time to check around when shopping. Saving $5 to $10 here and there adds up. Now if you just like blowing money, send me a note, and I will gladly take it off your hands.
I have always price shopped, use coupons, watch for sales, stock up on things I use regularly.
ReplyDeleteTalking of printers and ink; the first laser printer I bought cost over $5000. The last one I bougth cost $229 on sale. I got it because the ink jet printer cartridge cost $40 and printed only 600 pages. The laser toner cartridge for thaat $229 printer cost $71. That will print 2000 pages.
It is a racket.
So is bottled water, so I don't buy it. I have a water bottle I refill from the tap.
Back when I was the only business service business in the area with a laser printer [$5000 one] I charged $.50 for a laser letter. Now days everyone has a laser printer and they do their own.