Pricing

Brand used to guide choice. Increasingly, price is becoming the dominant decision influencer. Zappi’s 2026 CPG Mega-Trends report shows brand-name-only buying has dropped from 21 percent to just 10 percent in less than a year. At the same time, nearly one-third of shoppers (32 percent) say they will buy the cheapest option that meets their…

Companies that use customer data to adjust the prices shoppers see, whether online or in-store, should know that regulators are paying attention and the legal landscape is changing fast. "Surveillance pricing" — the practice of using consumers' personal data to set targeted, individualized prices for a product or service — introduces legal risks for both…

Target announced on Wednesday it was reducing prices for more than 3,000 "on-trend" items across apparel, home baby, food and beverages for spring. The company said most of the price reductions would be between 5 percent and 20 percent. It's unclear how long the lower prices will last. Cara Sylvester, executive vice president and chief…

Artificial intelligence promised to kill gut decisions in retail. Instead, it made guessing more expensive. Retailers have added more AI tools, more dashboards, more predictive models — all of which have created more noise. And it’s left retailers more uncertain about their decisions and further from their customers than ever before. The problem with retail’s…

PepsiCo said Tuesday it would reduce the cost of snacks and chips like Lay's, Doritos, Cheetos, and Tostitos following a year of customer complaints. “We’ve spent the past year listening closely to consumers, and they’ve told us they’re feeling the strain,” said Rachel Ferdinando, CEO, PepsiCo Foods U.S. “Lowering the suggested retail price reflects our…

Retailers today are battling a relentless gauntlet of unpredictability: geopolitical instability, supply chain shocks, and persistent inflation. For leaders, the mission is singular: to protect the bottom line in a market where external costs, particularly tariffs, can erode margins overnight. Traditional pricing models, reliant on static data and historical markups, simply cannot keep pace with…

One of the biggest shopping days of the year is around the corner: Black Friday. Last year, consumers around the world spent $74.4 billion USD during the day-long shopping frenzy. That’s a big chunk of revenue to tap into — or miss out on. Optimizing pricing is a critical part of ensuring key moments in…

We’re living in an era defined by constant change, and with it comes uncertainty. From inflation and supply chain disruptions to shifting consumer habits, retailers must adapt more quickly to an increasingly dynamic environment. Digital displays are already commonly used in restaurants, gas stations, and other commercial settings where price volatility exists. However, scaling digital…

Target announced on Tuesday that it will cut prices on 3,000 food, beverage and household essentials, joining retailers across the nation lowering prices on milk, eggs and butter ahead of the holiday season. The moves come as millions of Americans await November federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits and others remain cautious about higher…

America’s increasingly chaotic tariff policies have hit its businesses hard. In an effort to explain the resulting unpredictable pricing to customers, some businesses have placed lines on their invoices disclosing tariff-related fees, a move that the White House described as akin to treasonous, calling it “hostile and political.” But which is more political — giving…