Major brands from P&G, to Kellogg's, to Kraft-Heinz have all announced price hikes recently.
But what about store brands, those inexpensive alternatives?
We discovered that some of them are going up in price too.
And that is unfortunate for shoppers like Mary Jackson who turns to store or "house" brands to save money.
"They're running out of all the generic stuff because everybody's buying it," she said, "because they they've upped the prices on everything."
Carol Pearson suspects even those generic brands are raising prices too.
"Those are pricey too, even the house brand," she said.
Of course, it can be tough to remember if prices on a store brand item you bought have gone up, unless you happen to save receipts over a several month period of time.
So we did just that.
What our price check found
Our receipts from one Ohio Kroger grocery store showed that since last September:
- Store brand napkins that were $1.79 are now $1.99
- Store brand canned seltzer water that was $2.75 has since jumped to $3.99.
- 2-pack paper towels that were $3.79 are now $3.99 for the exact same item.
At a Target store in Missouri, meantime, we found hikes on several store products including milk, now 20 cents higher than just a few months ago.
Kelly Goldsmith, a marketing professor at Vanderbilt University, is not surprised.
"They couldn't keep them down forever and that's why now we're starting to see these increased prices," she said, "regardless of if you're a national brand or a store brand. Everyone is dealing with supply chain shortages."
The future of store brands
But does this mean store brands will be the first to cut prices when supplies improve?
We reached out to Walmart, Target, and Kroger, but none would comment on price changes on their store brands. (See Kroger's statement below)
But Goldsmith says shoppers should not worry about big price jumps in these store brands.
"These are well managed, highly profitable companies, they want to make money by selling to you, so it's in their best interest to solve this problem," she said.
That means that store brands know that most consumers won't buy them if they are as expensive as the big name brands, such as Tide, Kleenex, and Bounty, so they are likely to keep prices down.
And that way you don't waste your money.
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FULL KROGER STATEMENT:
"As far as pricing, Rodney McMullen spoke to this during our Q3 earnings, saying "Kroger's strategy to lead with fresh and accelerate with digital continues to connect with our customers. Our agility, and the commitment from our amazing associates, is allowing us to navigate current labor and supply chain conditions and provide the freshest food at affordable prices across our store and digital ecosystem."
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