SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Grocery Store Where Prices Change 100 Times a Day
who studies retail technology at the University of Texas at Austin’s business school. “That’s a window to the future.” The prospect has raised alarms
among U.S. lawmakers and consumers who fear electronic shelf labels in grocery stores will open the way for prices to go up as well as down — and even unleash surge pricing in the aisles. U.S. retailers have had electronic
shelf labels for some years but their more recent use in grocery stores, including Walmart, Kroger, and Whole Foods Market, has caught particular attention. Lawmakers last year sent a letter
Electronic shelf labels are enabling instant reductions and raising fears of surge pricing. ::
BY JENNIFER WILLIAMS S N
hoppers in norway are used to seeing prices at the grocery store change in front of their eyes.
On electronic labels that line the
shelves, the listed price for eggs or milk fades, the screen blinks, and a new figure flashes up — all in a matter of seconds. Prices can change up to 100 times a
day at Reitan’s REMA 1000-branded grocery stores across Norway — and more often during holidays.
Price Hikes Only at Night
early all of the price changes at REMA 1000 outlets in Norway are set on a national basis rather than store by store. While a store can carry up to 5,000 items, the cuts tend to hit between 50 and 300
items in a given day, concentrated on seasonal items. The tags are connected to the store’s system so that shoppers pay whatever is on the
electronic shelf label when they are checking out, even if the price changed while they were shopping. Other than beating the competition, the primary rule on intraday price changes is that shoppers should only see price cuts, never increases, says the chain’s head of pricing, Partap Sandhu. Any price hikes are done overnight, when shoppers aren’t in the stores.
76 NEWSMAX MAXLIFE | SEPTEMBER 2025 The idea is to match or beat the
competition with the touch of a button, says REMA 1000’s head of pricing, Partap Sandhu. “We lower the prices maybe 10 cents
and then our competitors do the same, and it kind of gets to [be] a race to the bottom.” It’s a matter of time before Americans also see dynamic pricing on groceries, industry experts say. “All one has to do is visit the
Netherlands or Norway,” says Ioannis Stamatopoulos, an associate professor
to Kroger raising concerns that the company’s use of digital price tags could allow stores to raise prices for goods at busy shopping times or during weather events. “Widespread adoption of digital
price tags appears poised to enable large grocery stores to squeeze consumers to increase profits,” said the letter from Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, both Democrats. Casey left office this year. Other elected officials have sought
to limit or ban the use of electronic labels. The issue has caused angst on social media, with visions of prices jumping for party supplies during holidays or ice cream suddenly getting
PRICE TAGS/ZAPP2PHOTO/SHUTTERSTOCK / CASHIER/HISPANOLISTIC©ISTOCK
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