Belgian food retailers start 2020 with huge discounts

Six major food retailers have started 2020 with important discounts, including several who offer at least a 66 % discount to their Belgian customers. Albert Heijn is not the only one to offer “buy one, get two free” stunts, even though the Dutch chain received the most publicity for it.

More stunts

Albert Heijn got a lot of attention from customers, media and the FPS Economy for their “1+2” stunt, the latter being most interested if the action is actually legal. The Dutch chain is not worried about the inquiry, especially as it now turns out that several other Belgian retailers have similar discounts.

Data-analysts at Daltix have found 27 products at at least three different retailers that have a 66 % discount or more – the equivalent of a 1+2 action. No fewer than 549 products at six different retailers had a 50 % discount (equivalent to 1+1), showing that competitors try to keep up – even with such deep discounts.

This signals a trend that RetailDetail has pointed to before: both for consumers and for retail experts, keeping track of prices is becoming increasingly difficult as retailers change their prices at an increasing speed (often several times per day) and they tailor them to local circumstances. As customers are struggling to keep up, their attention is less on general price perception and more on stunt promotions. Whether the first two weeks of 2020 are the tune the rest of the year sings to, is yet to be determined…