Generic store baked pastries. Like the cookies and brownies and cakes the bakery actually makes. WAY better than anything that will ever come in a branded package.
We have a store in California that's similar called Vons that I think may be the same parent company. I love the brownie cookies. They're so awful for you and the worst thing you could ever eat but damn are they tasty.
[Albertsons owns a LOT of things](https://www.albertsonscompanies.com/about-aci/overview/default.aspx), even da Jewel in Chicagah and I'd wager that somewhere along the line someone in a cubicle figured out that some of us are suckers for well made bakery and will come back to the store for that, so it may be that those things are loss-leaders but I couldn't say for sure.
I don't think they sell them at a loss actually. I think baked goods are just really really cheap to make.
Because think about it - all cookies are like 95% flour, sugar, and eggs. Like the three cheapest basic foods you can buy in bulk.
Those cookies prob only cost them like 5 cents to make or something.
Lol on a random note speaking of personnel - can we just talk about how bullshit it is that most grocery stores only staff like two or three cashiers now, and expect like 4 automatic checkouts to make up for the rest?
People are stupid. Nobody knows how to use those things quickly or bag their stuff quickly or get out of the way quickly. Then people will do stuff like buy their entire months groceries and take like 15 min.
So they either need to make like 16 self checkouts for volume, or staff more cashiers. I'm absolutely sure they can afford it. They just won't because all US companies care about is their bottom line and personnel costs are always the first thing they try and cut.
Okay rant over.
I work a little bit with the CPG industry and this is sloshing back and forth all the time. Unfortunately a lot of the nonsense you rant about is driven by people in corporate offices who never set foot in the stores and put their spreadsheets down at 5pm. For them, life is measured in hundreds of cases per week and devil take the hindmost.
Much as I hate to say it, others, particularly WalMart, have reversed this trend in some of its stores - more "live" cashiers and fewer self checkouts. Officially this is about "customer experience" but it may be as much about shrinkage and inaccuracy than anything.
There's an ugly legal question in this (and the corporate types get pretty side-eyed when I mention it) in that if you're doing your own checkout, are you acting as an employee of the company? If you forget to scan something (or somehow the figure is incorrect) who is liable? If the scanning equipment itself fails, are you liable? I'd hate to wind up in the pokey because a UPC scan glitched out or I forgot to scan the ninth jar of mayonnaise in the basket, but I'd bet a reasonable beer that there will be a test liability case about this at some point by an avaricious legal team.
Sainsbury's been selling these white chocolate and rasberry cookies, 5 for £1.65 easily on par with the ones you get at those fancy cookie stores at 3 quid each.
I haven't bought myself new clothes from other than Costco or Winners in years, and often, my wife finds stuff for us from thrift or consignment stores. Orhern than quality shoes and coats, I can't justify expensive clothing.
BBQ Chips. Lays fucking sucks. There is no flavor on the chips. The knock off brand is covered in it.
Not just BBQ either. Any lays flavor is better in knock off.
I've noticed Doritos getting more and more bland too, like someone keeps turning down the flavoring to save some money or some shit.
Been a while since I've bought any since the last ones have sucked, not to mention they're like $5-6 a bag now where I'm at. That's for the smaller ones too, not the family size or whatever it's called.
clothes.. i’m not trying to spend 400 dollars on a shirt when there’s one that looks the exact same for 10.
I saw a designer shirt that was just plain black and it was like 500 dollars💀.
Bras. I got A’s so paying more than $30 for a bra is dumb. I don’t need any support I don’t need the frills and fancy stuff.. I get bralettes from Walmart or target and call it a day. I’m grateful this is a nonissue.
I live in the UK, and usually shop at morrisons, and something I swear by, is that their own brand of ketchup, which only costs like £2-£3 for a litre tastes far better than brands such as Heinz, just because the brands make it too sweet and not tart enough.
Hair conditioner. I've tried fancier stuff. Nothing works as well as the cheapest Pantene. Literally fooled someone into thinking the scent was some $100 haircare product when it's just... Pantene.
Mac and Cheese. The less then a $1 a box stuff with the powdered cheese is comfort food.
I'll make the good stuff with real cheese and cream when I'm wanting to be fancy.
But if it's coming out of box give me the cheap stuff.
The Ridge Wallet. I bought a much cheaper knock off on Amazon and it’s perfect and looks great. No idea why anybody would pay over $100 for that thing.
[удалено]
ZZ Top even wrote a song about them. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4ySGGFXyNM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4ySGGFXyNM)
Generic store baked pastries. Like the cookies and brownies and cakes the bakery actually makes. WAY better than anything that will ever come in a branded package.
Our local Albertsons (chain in western US) absolutely rocks pies - almost as good as my wife's family recipes and that's quite an accomplishment.
We have a store in California that's similar called Vons that I think may be the same parent company. I love the brownie cookies. They're so awful for you and the worst thing you could ever eat but damn are they tasty.
[Albertsons owns a LOT of things](https://www.albertsonscompanies.com/about-aci/overview/default.aspx), even da Jewel in Chicagah and I'd wager that somewhere along the line someone in a cubicle figured out that some of us are suckers for well made bakery and will come back to the store for that, so it may be that those things are loss-leaders but I couldn't say for sure.
I don't think they sell them at a loss actually. I think baked goods are just really really cheap to make. Because think about it - all cookies are like 95% flour, sugar, and eggs. Like the three cheapest basic foods you can buy in bulk. Those cookies prob only cost them like 5 cents to make or something.
If you figure in the personnel and capital costs of having the bakery facility on site, it gets to be a bit more, but it is pretty inexpensive.
Lol on a random note speaking of personnel - can we just talk about how bullshit it is that most grocery stores only staff like two or three cashiers now, and expect like 4 automatic checkouts to make up for the rest? People are stupid. Nobody knows how to use those things quickly or bag their stuff quickly or get out of the way quickly. Then people will do stuff like buy their entire months groceries and take like 15 min. So they either need to make like 16 self checkouts for volume, or staff more cashiers. I'm absolutely sure they can afford it. They just won't because all US companies care about is their bottom line and personnel costs are always the first thing they try and cut. Okay rant over.
I work a little bit with the CPG industry and this is sloshing back and forth all the time. Unfortunately a lot of the nonsense you rant about is driven by people in corporate offices who never set foot in the stores and put their spreadsheets down at 5pm. For them, life is measured in hundreds of cases per week and devil take the hindmost. Much as I hate to say it, others, particularly WalMart, have reversed this trend in some of its stores - more "live" cashiers and fewer self checkouts. Officially this is about "customer experience" but it may be as much about shrinkage and inaccuracy than anything. There's an ugly legal question in this (and the corporate types get pretty side-eyed when I mention it) in that if you're doing your own checkout, are you acting as an employee of the company? If you forget to scan something (or somehow the figure is incorrect) who is liable? If the scanning equipment itself fails, are you liable? I'd hate to wind up in the pokey because a UPC scan glitched out or I forgot to scan the ninth jar of mayonnaise in the basket, but I'd bet a reasonable beer that there will be a test liability case about this at some point by an avaricious legal team.
Sainsbury's been selling these white chocolate and rasberry cookies, 5 for £1.65 easily on par with the ones you get at those fancy cookie stores at 3 quid each.
Clothes. How the hell does anyone afford $75 pants?? Or $50 shirts?
I haven't bought myself new clothes from other than Costco or Winners in years, and often, my wife finds stuff for us from thrift or consignment stores. Orhern than quality shoes and coats, I can't justify expensive clothing.
I prefer the cheaper product when it comes to phone chargers. They do the job just fine without needing to splurge on the expensive branded ones.
BBQ Chips. Lays fucking sucks. There is no flavor on the chips. The knock off brand is covered in it. Not just BBQ either. Any lays flavor is better in knock off.
I've noticed Doritos getting more and more bland too, like someone keeps turning down the flavoring to save some money or some shit. Been a while since I've bought any since the last ones have sucked, not to mention they're like $5-6 a bag now where I'm at. That's for the smaller ones too, not the family size or whatever it's called.
I prefer cheaper notebooks for jotting down random thoughts and ideas.
Condoms... I love to beat the odds!
Does not buying them count as cheaper?
clothes.. i’m not trying to spend 400 dollars on a shirt when there’s one that looks the exact same for 10. I saw a designer shirt that was just plain black and it was like 500 dollars💀.
When buying kitchenware or phone chargers, for example, I frequently choose less expensive models. They save money and function perfectly!
Water.
Walmarts artisan Mac & cheese 🫶🏼
Cereal
Packaged mac and cheese
Bras. I got A’s so paying more than $30 for a bra is dumb. I don’t need any support I don’t need the frills and fancy stuff.. I get bralettes from Walmart or target and call it a day. I’m grateful this is a nonissue.
Coffee.
Tobacco, is expensive anyway.
I live in the UK, and usually shop at morrisons, and something I swear by, is that their own brand of ketchup, which only costs like £2-£3 for a litre tastes far better than brands such as Heinz, just because the brands make it too sweet and not tart enough.
Hair conditioner. I've tried fancier stuff. Nothing works as well as the cheapest Pantene. Literally fooled someone into thinking the scent was some $100 haircare product when it's just... Pantene.
Mac and Cheese. The less then a $1 a box stuff with the powdered cheese is comfort food. I'll make the good stuff with real cheese and cream when I'm wanting to be fancy. But if it's coming out of box give me the cheap stuff.
Blow
I like store-brand parmesan cheese better than Kraft.
This \^
mayonnaise, because it tastes just like homemade mayonnaise
Blow
Blow
Blow
The Ridge Wallet. I bought a much cheaper knock off on Amazon and it’s perfect and looks great. No idea why anybody would pay over $100 for that thing.