Buy ‘value brands’ to manage household budget

[rollover]

A Conservative minister has told struggling families that they can cut their household budget and save money by choosing “value brands” over “branded products”.

Environment secretary George Eustice said prices would continue to rise at the supermarket. He said: “Generally speaking, what people find is by going for some sort of value brand rather than own branded products they can actually contain and manage their household budget.”

He insisted that “the price of food doesn’t necessarily cause poverty", despite many families having to choose between food and rent.

Independent

 

[“Nasty Piece of work”]

The car crash interviews keep coming.  I see the Lib Dem’s having good locals, but I remember the apologist lover boy, and rent boys sh1tting in baths...

[msi]

We've already got 'Value Brand' Tories.... and paying extra for them

[Who am I?]

There goes a man who's never had to look at the price of anything. I'm lucky. I don't have to any more either, but I know what it's like to buy the Asda budget baked beans and still have less money in your account each month.

It's soul destroying to be trying to save every single penny so you can afford to feed your kids and still end up spending more each month than you earn. There will be a lot of people in that position now and a great deal more soon.

[fellow]

He seriously thinks people who are struggling aren't already doing this?

[Social Justice League]

lol, either the current cabinet are idiots or they are doing it on purpose to wind-up the public.

[byron78]

George Eustice, whose education cost twice each year what most families have to live on, and who left that exclusive little world to work for his daddy's farming company, has been helpfully parroting this today...

[Si1]

22 minutes ago, Social Justice League said:

lol, either the current cabinet are idiots or they are doing it on purpose to wind-up the public.

Malice or incompetence? Good question.

[“Nasty Piece of work”]

30 minutes ago, Si1 said:

Malice or incompetence? Good question.

Both, in spades.

[msi]

2 hours ago, Social Justice League said:

lol, either the current cabinet are idiots or they are doing it on purpose to wind-up the public.

They're enabled by the same public that suffers from them.  I have empathy, but my sympathy is getting more and more limited.

[Blobsy]

Reminds me of Krusty and cutting back on Starbucks and avocado toast to buy a house. Clearly so far removed from reality otherwise that would realise their utterances might lead to being assaulted on the street.

[shlomo]

20 minutes ago, Dogsy said:

Reminds me of Krusty and cutting back on Starbucks and avocado toast to buy a house. Clearly so far removed from reality otherwise that would realise their utterances might lead to being assaulted on the street.

Did she really say that?

[scottbeard]

3 hours ago, fellow said:

He seriously thinks people who are struggling aren't already doing this?

+1

I remember when I was at school the Economics teacher saying "if your family was struggling what would you cut back on first?"  I put my hand up and said cakes and sweets.  She looked puzzlingly and said "Really?  That's not what i'd cut back on.  I'd cut the expensive foreign holidays.  I think that's where most people would start."

So says someone who goes on expensive foreign holidays.  As a child, we didn't do that and I just felt really awful in that moment.  I've never forgotten it.

[Who am I?]

1 minute ago, scottbeard said:

+1

I remember when I was at school the Economics teacher saying "if your family was struggling what would you cut back on first?"  I put my hand up and said cakes and sweets.  She looked puzzlingly and said "Really?  That's not what i'd cut back on.  I'd cut the expensive foreign holidays.  I think that's where most people would start."

So says someone who goes on expensive foreign holidays.  As a child, we didn't do that and I just felt really awful in that moment.  I've never forgotten it.

People who haven't been broke just don't get it. Even someone born into the middle class rarely truly gets it. They tend to think there's always something you can cut if you need to or someone you can borrow from, because they've never had to choose to go hungry so there's food for the kids. Or choose to walk to work because there's no money for a bus fare.

There will be people on here reading this who are rolling their eyes thinking "yea, but of they just didn't smoke or had a couple less pints they would have money for the bus". It's impossible to make them understand because they've never lived it, or been anywhere near that sort of life. And those Tory twats are so far removed from it they might as well be on a different planet.

[scottbeard]

6 minutes ago, Who am I? said:

People who haven't been broke just don't get it. Even someone born into the middle class rarely truly gets it.

I've sort of had both sides because when I was very young we didn't really have much money, but as I got older we did.

So I wouldn't claim to know what it feels like to live on the breadline as an adult.  But I do know that when a teacher (or a politician) makes a casual remark like "well just buy non branded goods" it shows that they haven't even tried to imagine it.

[kzb]

If a lot more people start buying the budget varieties, the price of those budget varieties will increase.

Supply and demand, and the supermarkets have to make ever increasing profits.  So they will get the money out of us one way or the other.

Having said that, many do seem to be clueless about shopping.  They put those programmes on TV where families are spending hundreds a week on groceries.   The purpose of those is to make people say "at least I'm not as wasteful as them".

[Former postman]

Lol Eustice really thinks that poor people are poor because they are splashing out on walkers crisps and Heinz beans instead of buying own brands??

[Andy T]

Patronising drivel. So swop your current cheap processed crap for some cheaper processed crap thats even worse for your health. Probably. 

I'm sure I learned on this site (some years back) that UK has the cheapest food in Europe, and only behind USA and Singapore in the World?

 

[Orb]

2 hours ago, scottbeard said:

+1

I remember when I was at school the Economics teacher saying "if your family was struggling what would you cut back on first?"  I put my hand up and said cakes and sweets.  She looked puzzlingly and said "Really?  That's not what i'd cut back on.  I'd cut the expensive foreign holidays.  I think that's where most people would start."

So says someone who goes on expensive foreign holidays.  As a child, we didn't do that and I just felt really awful in that moment.  I've never forgotten it.

You should have one-upped her mumsnet style and said "No, I meant the cakes and sweets we buy for our cleaners". 

Edited May 4, 2022 by Orb

[Gurgle]

5 hours ago, kzb said:

If a lot more people start buying the budget varieties, the price of those budget varieties will increase.

Supply and demand, and the supermarkets have to make ever increasing profits.  So they will get the money out of us one way or the other.

Having said that, many do seem to be clueless about shopping.  They put those programmes on TV where families are spending hundreds a week on groceries.   The purpose of those is to make people say "at least I'm not as wasteful as them".

Do they not already make more on those brands though? Generally they’re “own brand” so they’re sourcing direct from supplier with no “brand” making their own profit.

[Social Justice League]

Life is either survival of the fittest, or we help everyone.

I don't think most fat Tories have thought through survival of the fittest, if we see society break down.

[scottbeard]

4 hours ago, Orb said:

You should have one-upped her mumsnet style and said "No, I meant the cakes and sweets we buy for our cleaners". 

Haha that was way beyond 16yo me!

[A.steve]

6 hours ago, Who am I? said:

There will be people on here reading this who are rolling their eyes thinking "yea, but of they just didn't smoke or had a couple less pints they would have money for the bus". It's impossible to make them understand because they've never lived it, or been anywhere near that sort of life.

One thing that really surprised me was how stable my spending patterns were between having negligible income as a student and... later when costs of day-to-day life were no-longer an issue.  If anything, I think (adjusted for inflation) I've spent less the more easily I've been able to spend.  I see something analogous when I observe others... where the importance of getting/doing things that are expensive correlates inversely with how easily I could pay to get/do those things.  I suspect it can be explained by psychology.

[kzb]

1 hour ago, Gurgle said:

Do they not already make more on those brands though? Generally they’re “own brand” so they’re sourcing direct from supplier with no “brand” making their own profit.

There's massive difference in price but they are all made out the same ingredients with minor variations.  Spaghetti is still 20p a pack in both Asda Smartprice and Tesco whatever the equivalent is.  I doubt there is as much margin on that as the branded spaghetti.

If everyone buys the 20p spaghetti and leaves the £1.50 spaghetti on the shelf, something has to give if Asda is to maintain the growth rate expected by their owners and shareholders.

[Frugal Git]

It was a terrible thing to say, not least because when I look at the shelves for things like pasta, it’s the basic stuff that’s gone up 100%+, not the ‘posh brand’

coop brand was ~35p for 500g of pasta 2-3 years ago - today 95p.

The slightly posher black box one whose name escapes me - probably Napolina - was always £1 a box before - now it’s £1.25. 

The de cecco - the blue and yellow one I was something like £1.80, now £2.20.

obvs the latter two were frequently on offer. But the point is, not only are people probably already doing this (buying the own brand) - but it’s those exact people who have always done this who see ‘their individual inflation’ at 100%+. And they can least afford it!

The people who bought the posh stuff ‘only’ face 25%. 

Edited May 4, 2022 by Frugal Git