What items are inexpensive in your opinion and you’re surprised they are still so cheap?
Asked by
JLeslie (
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October 6th, 2022
from iPhone
Prices are US.
Everyone is talking about rising prices, and it’s true, some things I buy regularly are now much more expensive, but I still come across things in the store that are still reasonably priced or even cheap. I just bought Morton’s salt for $1.79, it will probably last me a year. I’m not really sure how fast I go through salt.
I bought private label cereal for $2.70, and I don’t know how many bowls I get from it, but it’s more than ten.
We buy packaged salad for my husband with the dressing for $3.33—$5.00. It’s a whole meal. I sometimes split it as a side for two meals.
A lot of clothing is still reasonable, although some is very cheaply made. I remember being a kid 40 years ago and paying $15 for a t-shirt, and now you can still get T-shirts for $15—$20.
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11 Answers
I mean, given the way we print money like it’s going out of style, it’s a miracle ANYTHING is affordable. I think the last several decades have seen trade and automation advances that would have resulted in massive economy-wide price drops and thereby raised our standards of living. But politicians keep spending and printing, counteracting this progress. This recent surge in inflation is us reaping what we’ve sown.
As to specific items…I just bought one. A desk fan by Vornado called the ‘Zippi’. It’s quiet, has cloth blades, it’s small, puts out solid air movement, and under $20. Earlier this year I paid like $80 for a ‘bladeless’ desktop fan that is noisy, huge, and expensive by comparison. It does move more air because it’s bigger, but compared to the value of the Zippi….I regret buying it. I can’t believe this little thing is under $20.
BTW, Vornado, if you’d like to pay me for my advertising…gimme a call.
@Tropical_Willie Maybe it’s a loss leader for Costco. I don’t know if states still have laws against that?
@Entropy I so agree with so much of what your wrote.
Absolutely nothing.
On the flip side I can name so many things that are way too expensive and surprised they are so expensive.
Limes = $1.00 each I had to cut down on my Gin and Tonic consumption as the Limes in each glass were more expensive than Top Shelf Gin..
Going out to the Movie Theatre. I think it has gone down in the past ten years. (Supply/Demand vs Home Streaming)
@Forever_Free I don’t want to get on an expensive tangent, maybe start a new Q about that, but YES, limes and lemons are crazy expensive. I want my own tree.
A one pound tub of mixed greens at Costco has not changed despite inflation. It’s still $4.29. I eat a lot of it.
Televisions. I have literally paid more for a truck load of dirt than the last new television I bought.
Costco also has, in the Food Court, a large hot dog and a large soda with free refills, $1.50. It’s been the same price for many years, as has the $4.99 rotisserie chicken mentioned above. @JLeslie Every state has the same Costco deal, as far as I know, and if it were illegal, I’m sure Costco would have heard about it by now.
Rotisserie chickens are all like five or six bucks wherever you go here. Economies of scale I suppose.
@jca2 They might actually make a profit now that I think about it. Even states that had loss leaders laws (I don’t know if any do anymore) just couldn’t sell at a loss. It was to protect small businesses. A hotdog and fountain soda at cost is probably less than a dollar for the Costco.
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