|
|
There’s an art to getting the unsuspecting shopper to spend more at the grocery store. Among the classic ploys is the use of misleading pricing and signage—like posting a “NOW!” price that would imply a discount, when the item is actually selling at the same old price.
Tapping into the bargain-hunting mentality that resulted in an epic spending frenzy over the holiday weekend, fast food outlets are hoping that consumers have built up an appetite—for their food, of course, as well as more enticing deals. Ultra-cheap offers from the likes of McDonald’s and Subway form the basis of the recipe restaurants are [...]
Not long ago, supermarket house brand foods were easily detected by their lame packaging, if not the groans they elicited from kids forced to eat the cheap knock-off goods. Times have changed.
Thanksgiving has a long-standing tradition as the ultimate home-cooked holiday. But 14 million Americans are expected to dine out on Turkey Day, and another 16 million households will use ready-to-eat takeout foods for some or all of their “home-cooked” Thanksgiving dinner.
Bad years don’t necessarily taste bad, and since they’re cheaper than vino produced in “good” years, they can be fantastic values.
It’s not a coupon. It’s not exactly a rebate either. Saving money requires the shopper to purchase specific brands, but it’s not necessary to make all purchases at one time, nor even at the same store. Facebook is involved.
Which sounds more appealing: an artisan sandwich, or just a plain old sandwich? Marketers are increasingly tossing the word into the name of food products because consumers assume “artisan” means the item is somehow made with love and expertise and individuality. But many “artisan” foods are processed and mass-produced just like their standard-issue non-artisan counterparts.
Remember when your parents told you to finish the food on your plate because “people in China were starving?” Well, the Chinese might well be saying that about America these days.
Compared to traditional home cooking, fast food is more immediately gratifying and pleasurable and, well, faster to prepare and consume, from beginning to end. But no matter what some people say (particularly right after a pricey run to the grocery store), dinner prepared by McDonald’s isn’t cheaper than dinner prepared at home.
Is $6 too much for a fast food burger? Judging by how many quickly-served, higher-quality burgers are hitting the market lately selling for $5, $6, and up—strictly for the sandwich, not a whole meal—diners seem to be game for paying more for better, bigger burgers.
There are also money lessons to be learned in this roundup from millionaires who hate fees as much (or more) than you and I, high-profile pawn shop owners who are wise enough to walk away rather than lose money on deals, and parents who rarely if ever splurge on purchases for their kids.
