Stop & Shop has heard what people are saying about them: particularly the complaints around the pricing.
The northeast grocery store has had an eventful year, with the announcement that they were closing over 30 underperforming Stop & Shop locations and their brand president Gordon Reid stepping down. Roger Wheeler became the new company president on Sept. 30, with a goal of having people think about the company differently.
“We don’t want to be known for always having the highest price,” Wheeler told the Providence Journal, part of the USA Today Network in an interview. “Here we are today lowering [prices] on thousands of items across the entire store. Because we want you to think of us in a different way than you might have thought of us for the last however many years.”
The changes are starting Quincy-based company’s 25 Rhode Island locations, and will eventually come to Massachusetts.
“We have a bigger footprint in Massachusetts, so it’s going to take some more time to scale,” Stephanie Cunha, a spokesperson for Stop & Shop said in an email. “We have already lowered everyday pricing at stores in Connecticut, Western Massachusetts and select stores in the Greater Boston area – and we plan to continue to lower prices across Eastern Massachusetts in the coming months.”
What steps is Stop & Shop taking in Rhode Island
In Rhode Island, the approach is three pronged.
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Customers no longer pay 10 cents for paper bags
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Creating ‘saving kiosks’ where customers can quickly activate all the digital coupons on their card, in addition to printing out ‘deals of the day’ and personalized deals based on their shopping history
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Lowering prices on everyday items in the stores such as boneless chicken breast, butter and thousands of other basics
More: Stop & Shop is trying to win back customers. Here’s their strategy.
How much lower can you expect food prices to be?
The company said they are lowering prices across departments on at least 3,500 items, in a press release.
Examples of that include:
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Boneless Chicken Breast Value Park dropping from $3.99 a pound to $2.79 a pound
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Hass avocadoes dropping from $1.66 each to $1.25 each
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Kraft Shredded Cheese 8 oz. dropping from $4.29 to $3.49
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Yoplait Yogurts 6 oz. dropping for $1 each to $.89 each
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Lay’s Potato Chips 7.75/8 oz. bags dropping from $4.99 to $3.49
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Green Mountain Coffee K-cups 10 to 12 count dropping from $10.99 to $8.99
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Land O’Lakes Butter 16 oz. dropping from $7.39 to $6.29
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Stop & Shop brand pasta 16 oz. dropping from $1.39 to $1.19
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Stop & Shop brand apple juice 64 oz. dropping from $2.49 to $1.99
What can you expect in Massachusetts from Stop & Shop?
In Massachusetts, Cunha said Stop & Shop is already taking steps to lower prices and pointed to the store’s loyalty program and weekly promotions as a way for shoppers to get deeper deals.
“We’ve lowered the everyday price for poultry products across Eastern Massachusetts stores, including Perdue, Stop & Shop brand, and Nature’s Promise boneless chicken breast and more,” Cunha said. “Stop & Shop continues to offer weekly promotions and sales through our circular and GO Rewards Loyalty program, which allows enrolled customers to earn points with every purchase that can be redeemed for dollars off their next grocery purchase, free products, or gas savings.”
Grocery news: Stop & Shop brand president announces he’s stepping down. New brand president named
When it comes bag fee, she said the store is looking to eliminate it within the Bay State, but said the some local ordinances require them to charge for paper, slowing progress.
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Stop & Shop is lowering prices to win back customers. What to know
