This archive report was first published on 11 October 2019.
On October 11, 2019, a disturbing trend was uncovered in the Kenyan supermarket industry. A shopper discovered that some supermarkets were posting different prices on shelves and at the till, potentially leading to customers being misled and losing money.
The shopper, who wished to remain anonymous, recounted an incident where they noticed a discrepancy of Sh200 between the prices on the shelf and the till. When they expressed their surprise, the cashier dismissed it, saying only the prices at the till mattered.
This incident felt familiar to the shopper, who had previously encountered the same issue at another popular retailer. They realized that they had likely lost money on multiple occasions due to not checking prices carefully.
Using some basic mathematics, the shopper estimated that if 125 customers out of 200 leave an extra Sh200 behind due to price discrepancies, the supermarket could make an additional Sh25,000 in a single day. This amount would add up to Sh175,000 in a week and Sh700,000 in a month.
However, not all supermarkets engage in this practice. A small shop in the shopper's neighborhood, where each item has a handwritten price sticker, provided a refreshing experience. The shopper was pleased to find that the prices matched exactly, and they were willing to pay a bit more for the convenience and transparency.
When the shopper visited a small branch of the same retailer that had previously faced criticism for mismatched pricing, they were initially optimistic. However, they soon discovered a mismatch on one item, which turned out to be their own mistake.
