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Sunday, August 26, 2012

Yglesias

Matt Yeglesias tweets


Safeway needs to introduce congestion pricing for supermarket lines.


Well yes.  Why don't they ?  Look part of the huge price of business class airfair is that business class travelers avoid the long lines (I don't know the rest cause I've never flown business class or first class but I envy them when waiting in line).

A store with "discount" cash registers with long lines could price discriminate.  I think it is obvious that all but one register would be "discount" so that people willing to pay a few percent more would have no wait.

Why don't they do this ?  For one think Yglesias can go out to Friendship Heights and look at the Neiman Marcus where they sell the same stuff for ten times the price.  I've been there.  I've never actually seen anyone buy there, but they don't have to sell much to be profitable given 905 % profit margins.

I think it doesn't work at safeways because rich twits shop in some gourmet place or send servants to shop for them or something.

But I think it is a mystery.





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