Tesco is to introduce unit pricing across all promotions for its Clubcard Prices loyalty scheme.
Over the coming weeks, the supermarket would begin to include the unit price on the PoS signs and shelf labels promoting products included in Clubcard Prices in all its supermarkets and Express convenience stores, UK CEO Jason Tarry told customers. The prices are already being displayed online.
Unit pricing – which breaks down the overall price of an item to its price per specific weight or measure – has been under renewed scrutiny by the CMA, which in January 2023 looked at how retailers apply and use unit pricing as part of its investigation into competition within the grocery sector.
In its report, which was published in July, the regulator found no evidence that retailers intentionally misled customers. However, it did highlight several specific concerns over the way that unit prices were displayed across retailers, which it said could make it harder for customers to identify the best value product.
The main concerns, which were all previously identified in the CMA’s response to the 2015 super-complaint by consumer group Which?, related to inconsistencies in the weights and measurements used, and a failure to display unit pricing in loyalty promotions.
In an update issued in January, which included a study of how consumers reacted to unit pricing, the regulator publicly backed proposals by the Department for Business & Trade to introduce more rigorous guidelines in how retailers display unit prices.
Tesco, like other supermarkets, regularly displays unit price on the shelf label of products not on promotion. However, it indicated plans to roll unit prices out to its Clubcard promotions last year, in response to a high-profile campaign by Which?.
It brings Tesco in line with Sainsbury’s, which has included unit prices in its Nectar Prices since its launch in April 2023.
“We know Tesco shoppers will still be looking closely at the products available in their local store or during their online shop to ensure they are getting great value – whether that is on own-brand lines or well-known brands on Clubcard Prices promotions,” Tarry said.
“We announced last year that we would introduce unit pricing for simple promotions to show their value by weight or volume – something that will make it even easier for customers to understand how competitive our Clubcard Prices offers are,” Tarry added.
”This is something that we have been planning to do for some time, and I am really pleased that we are ready to make the change. Over the coming weeks these changes will appear in all our stores, as our colleagues update millions of price labels on the shelf edge. We will also be adding these unit prices to our Clubcard Prices deals online,” Tarry said.
Clubcard Prices currently extend across more than 8,000 Tesco products, and account for more than 80% of Tesco sales, Tarry said.
The inclusion of unit prices would allow for “direct comparison” between the Clubcard Price offer, and the price of alternative products, Tarry said.
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