You’d think I would learn. The Wal*marts around here is notoriously lowdown, sneaky and underhanded. They lure me in with a false sense of everyday low prices and then pull this kind of crap…
Everywhere else on the planet, Queen Anne Cordials come in boxes of 12 (that could hold 24 if their packaging wasn’t so terrible). But at the Wal*marts they come in boxes – boxes of exactly the same size, mind you – with only 10 in them. They are only $1.25 for a box of 10, but come on. Would it kill them to use the industry standard box of 12 for $1.50?
But wait, it gets worse. You can also buy, as I did, a double size box for $2.96. The double size box wouldn’t be a bad deal, except that it has 20 chocolate covered cherries in it instead of 24 (again, like everywhere else in the world).
Yeah, I bought the big box for $2.96 when I should have bought two of the smaller boxes for $2.50. Wal*mart, you’re not making any friends here.
Brad says
Was the second picture PhotoShopped to protect the lives of innocent chocolate covered cherries?
Lauren says
I can’t stand chocolate covered cherries for many reasons. Bleh. I think those channels that connect the divots are to collect the grossness should one or more of them burst.
Deborah says
I agree. Disgusting.
Peggy says
Mmmm…I love them…with the cherry removed of course. And the juice has to be clear…none of that white stuff. I’ve almost bought a box of these several times now, but it seems too wasteful to buy a whole box when I throw away so much of it. I’ll just wait until I visit someone who has them & have a few. Or not.
Peggy says
What’s the world coming to when you can’t trust Walmart? Honestly! Is the antichrist trying to come into power thru this store? He’ll have to deal with Lloyd 1st…thank goodness! Give him the look Lloyd.
Beth says
I’m just glad they have dark chocolate ones. Even if they’re ripping me off.
(Which they do on diapers also, by the way. Companies package special boxes in a different size just for WalMart so they can sell them for about 8 cents less than the bigger box of diapers available at Target. Deception at its finest. I HATE that.)
Deanne says
You could argue that it’s not really deception, since they list the per-unit price on the shelf. Do they list the per-unit price on the shelf?
Beth says
No.
Peggy says
Regardless it’s still sneaky, not very nice & a terrible way to do business.
Lloyd says
Yeah, it’s the “not very nice” that bothers me. If you’re offering a larger size of something (that is otherwise identical, and one of the items is not a trial/travel/individual size) it is rude to charge more for the larger item.
Curt says
For me the key is per-unit price. I know Walmart screws with people, but as long as they don’t start publishing the per-unit price incorrectly (which they probably do and I haven’t seen it yet), I can see through their deceptiveness. If they don’t post it, I usually try to do it in my head. Which sucks cause my math skills suck after using the computer for many years.
Beth says
They do publish incorrect unit prices. I have seen them on both 2-liter bottles of Pepsi, and on Snuggle fabric softener. Because I buy both of those things.
And while I really do appreciate WalMart. I get torked off at them, too.
Curt says
Blasted!! Now I have to think even more when I shop.
Mark says
Lloyd,
You just handed me a story about marketing to use in my class this coming Monday night. Thanks!!
(Oh, and this is a TOTAL ripoff for the consumer. Unethical, and – if the box isn’t clearly marked – I would say deceptive. Not quite consumer fraud, but close.)
Curt says
On the subject of Walmart, I was shopping there last night and I think I saw a guy steal an apple. I thought I saw him put it in his pocket but I was turning my head as he pulled his hand back out so didn’t see his empty hand afterward. I didn’t stop and say anything as I was in a hurry. While in the checkout line I was thinking of what I could have done. Maybe I could have said to the guy “If you have to steal the apple, I will buy it for you.” That would have been a good response. Why can’t I think of these lines sooner?
I also thought, “It’s just apple”. Maybe he was one of the many homeless people in the store.
What do you think I should have done?
Lloyd says
“If you can’t afford that apple, I’ll buy it for you.” seems like a nice way to say something like that while not just letting it pass.
I don’t know if you’d want to do the same thing for, say, an x-box.
Kitt says
There’s another math problem here that you failed to expound on: How many of the cherries were consumed by you over what period of time? i.e. how many time units of pleasure did each cherry deliver? Call it the “amortization of indulgence.”
But the real reason I stopped by was to share this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ErMWX–UJZ4
Lauren says
Well, THAT just made my day!!
Lauren's mom says
I got stung once. Their Great Value cane sugar was in the center aisle, -much cheaper than the C&H brand, so I bought it. However, when I got home, I discovered it was a 4 lb. bag, not a 5 lb. bag.
I had never seen a 4 lb. bag of sugar before!
Karla says
Sadly, we have 4lb bags of sugar out here. I hate it. 🙁
Karla says
You guys really need to watch this episode of Frontline: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/walmart/
It’s amazing and sad all rolled up into one.
I didn’t care for Walmart before but after seeing this show, I HATE Walmart and spend as little money as possible there. Seriously, I get most of my stuff from Meijer and Target.
Christina says
yuck! I think chocolate covered cherries are way too gooey to be eaten….
Lloyd says
Then I magnanimously volunteer to eat yours for you. Also, I now know just what to get you for Christmas.
Amy says
Wow!! that’s crazy! stupid walmart!!!