We’re on the verge of a massive sea change; it’s festering. Companies are scrambling to find the next money maker to compete, to retain earnings, to be profitable, to stay clean and away from the eagle eye of Uncle Sam litigation and taxes.
Everyone is trying to make a buck; yet, the lowliest of low is regarded as the fall guy. Who is at greatest risk of toppling and never recovering? It’s not big business, that’s for sure.
It’s you, me, we, us – the consumer.
Brands Are In Bed With Investors
They have to be; that’s how the bread and butter get served at breakfast. To make investors happy and to finance struggling business units, corporations are de-volumizing everything possible.
For years now, we consumers have noted smaller cereal boxes, candy bars, beverages and personal hygiene products. Now, even Kimberly-Clark and Proctor & Gamble are desheeting.
Kimberly-Clark Corp. is now selling “bulkier” yet “stingier” Kleenex tissue, says this story in the Wall Street Journal July 25, 2013, “Desheeting” Shrinks Rolls, Plumps Profits. Each box of Kleenex has 13% fewer sheets with higher or the same retail prices. Taken from the story, “Kimberly-Clark executives told analysts that they expect the practice to benefit the company’s consumer-tissue unit in the second half of the year.”
Several weeks ago, I bought a 12-pack of Stella Artois. When I popped a coldie, the bottle was 11.2 ounces rather than the customary 12 ounces with the same or higher price for this premium beer. I wonder how much the manufacturing expense was to retool all the factories to make the green bottles smaller? How about that packaging? Did they save two inches of cardboard on the carton?
When a consumer gets disgusted and turns to brand B to find a better price point with more volume, the quality sucks. We either pay more for less to get the quality we’ve been spoiled with, or we pay the same for more and poor quality. What’s it going to be?
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