"Not to be sold individually"

MrStuffins

Hi,

My local Spar refused to sell me a special pack of Coca Cola, I think it was 2 of €3.50, on the basis that "We're opening them and selling them separate".

They then opened up the packs and sold them as individual bottles for €2.40 a bottle, dispite the fact that it said "not to be sold separately" on the bottles.

Is there anyone I can email in this situation?

L1011

As far as I know there is absolutely no legal restriction on this, the marking is solely there to try discourage it from happening. Realistically their wholesaler won't care and Coca Cola HBC won't have a direct relationship with them.

irish_goat

Take your business elsewhere.

Ken.

Coke-cola is the only one you could email. There is no law against it at the moment. http://www.valueireland.com/2013/04/its-not-illegal-to-sell-multi-pack-items-individually/

The_Pretender

I think the only thing you can really do is contact the supplier, there's no law against it as it's just down to manufacturers.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Not much you can do about it. I saw the local garage shop emptying selection boxes in January to sell the bars separately but nobody I contacted cared an iota about it.

eireannBEAR

Rey Raspy Yokel wrote: »

Not much you can do about it. I saw the local garage shop emptying selection boxes in January to sell the bars separately but nobody I contacted cared an iota about it.

Why do you care about it?

MrStuffins

Yeah I didn't think there was much to be done legally but it seems a bit unfair to the consumer.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

eireannBEAR wrote: »

Why do you care about it?

I don't particularly, but felt it was mean-spirited and wondered was it even legal. Not that I should have to explain myself to you. I was answering the query raised by the OP!:mad:

Red Crow

Actually the manufacturer should care about it. Usually these promotions are done at the cost of the producer so that they can get new customers to try their products hence the special price.

However, they know this happens all the time. The only way to deter this practice is to take your custom elsewhere. These are just greedy shop owners who are refusing to pass on the discount to the customer.

Red Crow

Just in case you're interested I'd say the deal you're referring to is the current Coca Cola Promotion which is 2 x 2ltr for €3.80. Typically a batch of Coca Cola 2ltr bottles will come in 4's. This means that in a single batch there will be 4 x 2ltr bottles. They buy these in for about a €10 delivered, which Spar would probably be able to negotiate an even better price. If they split these double packs that means that they have 8 x 2ltr bottles of Coca Cola which they bought for €1.25 each and are now selling them for €2.40 each.

That's a profit of 92% when they should be only making 52% profit on each 2ltr pack if they sell at the manufacturers recommended price. In monetary terms they're charging you an extra 50c a bottle just to shop with Spar when Tesco and Dunnes will probably have the €3.80 promotion.


Shop local, eh?

Atlantic Dawn

For certain items that are sold seperately from the main box (eg if you were selling individual bars from selection box) the wrapper of the item doesn't come with the ingredients in english and contact details of a European supplier, selling items like this would be illegal. Selection boxes normally list the items ingradients on the main box and not on the item itself.

OP if it was me I would take my business elsewhere.

Soundman

From the National Consumer Agency's Facebook page dated 4th February:

Have you ever seen items being sold individually that say they are part of a multipack? Phrases like ‘not to be sold separately’ are only a recommendation from the manufacturer - it is not a breach of consumer law.

punisher5112

Maybe contact the main brand of Spar as it is a franchise and the department may not be happy with this type of thing going on as they will loose business.

These types of offers are what brings customers in.

To me it seems very bad practice but do know where there have been times where the order was late and products may be split to cover the area of single bottles lets say.

foggy_lad

Soundman wrote: »

From the National Consumer Agency's Facebook page dated 4th February:

Quote:
Have you ever seen items being sold individually that say they are part of a multipack? Phrases like ‘not to be sold separately’ are only a recommendation from the manufacturer - it is not a breach of consumer law.

But if the label on the inner packaging does not carry certain information about weight, ingredients nutritional values etc that must legally be provided on food then offences are being committed by the shopkeepers.

OP you should contact the manufacturers and let them know. They will get on to the wholesalers who should sort it out.

punisher5112

foggy_lad wrote: »

But if the label on the inner packaging does not carry certain information about weight, ingredients nutritional values etc that must legally be provided on food then offences are being committed by the shopkeepers

Usually all thats missing is the barcode.

Shelflife

Red Crow wrote: »

Just in case you're interested I'd say the deal you're referring to is the current Coca Cola Promotion which is 2 x 2ltr for €3.80. Typically a batch of Coca Cola 2ltr bottles will come in 4's. This means that in a single batch there will be 4 x 2ltr bottles. They buy these in for about a €10 delivered, which Spar would probably be able to negotiate an even better price. If they split these double packs that means that they have 8 x 2ltr bottles of Coca Cola which they bought for €1.25 each and are now selling them for €2.40 each.

That's a profit of 92% when they should be only making 52% profit on each 2ltr pack if they sell at the manufacturers recommended price. In monetary terms they're charging you an extra 50c a bottle just to shop with Spar when Tesco and Dunnes will probably have the €3.80 promotion.


Shop local, eh?

Im not condoning what the shop did, for me its poor practise. However your figures are so far off the mark its a joke.

Based on the €3.80 price the shop will make approx. 13% profit by doing what they are doing they would make approx. 30%, which are nowhere near what you are quoting.

Quoting crazy figures which fail to take VAT into account gives people a false impression of the profit margins that retailers have.

glued

Shelflife wrote: »

Im not condoning what the shop did, for me its poor practise. However your figures are so far off the mark its a joke.

Based on the €3.80 price the shop will make approx. 13% profit by doing what they are doing they would make approx. 30%, which are nowhere near what you are quoting.

Quoting crazy figures which fail to take VAT into account gives people a false impression of the profit margins that retailers have.

Hi Shelfie,

Both of you are completely incorrect.

The vendor pays €1.25 per bottle. That has a VAT input of 29c. They sell for €2.40. Which has a VAT output of 55c. This gives rise to a VAT liability of 26c per bottle. The vendor makes €1.15 - 26c = €0.89 per bottle.

You would probably want to get your figures correct before attacking another poster.

dudara

Coca-Cola take their marketing & brand very seriously. Contact Coca-Cola Hellenic (the bottlers and distributors for Ireland).

foggy_lad

dudara wrote: »

Coca-Cola take their marketing & brand very seriously. Contact Coca-Cola Hellenic (the bottlers and distributors for Ireland).

They will remove any of their fridges or promotional materials from shops that split multiple packs or sell imported cans/bottles of coke. I reported a shop in Carlow before that was selling foreign coke with Arabic writing, had no ingredients in English which was illegal and the shop had them in a fridge rented from coca-cola.

L1011

Spar shops rarely (not never obviously) have branded fridges from my experience.

JackieChan

This practice seems to be more common.My local Supervalu does the same with beers. Ive seen them take the cans out of 8 packs(which they sell at 13 euro) and sell them individually for somewhere between 2 and 2.15 a can nearly dependending on the day you go in!

foggy_lad

JackieChan wrote: »

This practice seems to be more common.My local Supervalu does the same with beers. Ive seen them take the cans out of 8 packs(which they sell at 13 euro) and sell them individually for somewhere between 2 and 2.15 a can nearly dependending on the day you go in!

The difference there is those cans do not have "not to be sold separately" printed on them.

Akrasia

Its a free market. If your shop wants to charge you a hundred euros for a bottle of coke, he can do so as long as the price is marked clearly. You're free to take your business elsewhere.

Some convenience style shops like to offer variety and value, others choose to sell a limited stock of items at a higher mark-up and compete based on the convenience of their location. The consumer then has the choice to pay the higher price for the convenience, or shop somewhere else.

The margins in small shops are excruciatingly tight. All shops need a few reliable sellers that are higher mark-up so that they can afford to cover the costs of other items that are sold at barely even break-even prices. (Ice cream cones, deli food, car washes etc have kept petrol stations going when the profits from the sale of petrol itself could be miniscule (or even loss making when theft is factored in)

doublej

glued wrote: »

Hi Shelfie,

Both of you are completely incorrect.

The vendor pays €1.25 per bottle. That has a VAT input of 29c. They sell for €2.40. Which has a VAT output of 55c. This gives rise to a VAT liability of 26c per bottle. The vendor makes €1.15 - 26c = €0.89 per bottle.

You would probably want to get your figures correct before attacking another poster.

I'm taking the quote "delivered around€10" to be a VAT- exclusive trade price as that is how retailers understand pricing,i.e cost price is an ex VAT price.
If the retailer sold at €3.80 that is VAT incl so it's €3.09 ex VAT.
They sell at 3.09 having paid 2.50, a profit of .59 cent, or 19.1%.
If they choose to break them up and sell each bottle for €2.40 the sale price is €1.95 ex vat on a cost of €1.25, a cash margin of 75c or 38.5%.
The shop sells 4 x 2 packs and earns €2.36 or the shop sells 8 individual bottles and makes €6.00.

skelligs

glued wrote: »

Hi Shelfie,

Both of you are completely incorrect.

The vendor pays €1.25 per bottle. That has a VAT input of 29c. They sell for €2.40. Which has a VAT output of 55c. This gives rise to a VAT liability of 26c per bottle. The vendor makes €1.15 - 26c = €0.89 per bottle.

You would probably want to get your figures correct before attacking another poster.

vendor price is never ever quoted including VAT.

Also cost price of €10 for 4x2x2l bottles is probably the bulk discounted price. Musgraves currently show that selling at 3.80 give a 13% return which gives a cost of about 2.70 + vat per pack.

I'm in Musgraves later and will give a precise price. Also, the cost price difference between the promotional packs and the normal packs is miniscule.

P. Breathnach

Promotional multi-packs are intended to benefit the consumer, and the supplier gives discounts that are intended to be passed on to customers.

If a retailer splits them in order to take for himself the benefit of the discount, it is a mean thing to do. I see that as an issue between the retailer and the supplier.

Where, as in the case described by the OP, the retailer actually refuses to sell any of the multipacks, it is meanness on a level that shows contempt for consumers, and that retailer would never again get my business.

Shelflife

glued wrote: »

Hi Shelfie,

Both of you are completely incorrect.

The vendor pays €1.25 per bottle. That has a VAT input of 29c. They sell for €2.40. Which has a VAT output of 55c. This gives rise to a VAT liability of 26c per bottle. The vendor makes €1.15 - 26c = €0.89 per bottle.

You would probably want to get your figures correct before attacking another poster.

How to calculate magins 101.

Cost price of product is €10.85 (actual price charged to me by my supplier) this is net of vat. therefore each split single unit costs €1.36 and the twin pack costs €2.72

Selling price is €3.80 less the vat €3.09.

Take €3.09 - €2.72 = €0.37 this is your gross profit

€0.37 is then divided by the vat exclusive selling price (€3.09 in this case) to give you your gross margin % which is 12%

Based on selling them individually at €2.40 each the gross margin works out at 30%.

glued dont try to tell your moma how to suck eggs

glued

doublej wrote: »

I'm taking the quote "delivered around€10" to be a VAT- exclusive trade price as that is how retailers understand pricing,i.e cost price is an ex VAT price.
If the retailer sold at €3.80 that is VAT incl so it's €3.09 ex VAT.
They sell at 3.09 having paid 2.50, a profit of .59 cent, or 19.1%.
If they choose to break them up and sell each bottle for €2.40 the sale price is €1.95 ex vat on a cost of €1.25, a cash margin of 75c or 38.5%.
The shop sells 4 x 2 packs and earns €2.36 or the shop sells 8 individual bottles and makes €6.00.

You can't ignore VAT inputs when calculating profit. It defeats the purpose

TerrorFirmer

My issue would be far less with selling 'not for individual sale' items but you actually went to the till with a promotional pack that was intact and at the point of sale you were told "sorry, you cannot buy this promotional pack as you found it on the shelf for sale, as we open them and sell them individually"?

glued

Shelflife wrote: »

How to calculate magins 101.

Cost price of product is €10.85 (actual price charged to me by my supplier) this is net of vat. therefore each split single unit costs €1.36 and the twin pack costs €2.72

Selling price is €3.80 less the vat €3.09.

Take €3.09 - €2.72 = €0.37 this is your gross profit

€0.37 is then divided by the vat exclusive selling price (€3.09 in this case) to give you your gross margin % which is 12%

Based on selling them individually at €2.40 each the gross margin works out at 30%.

glued dont try to tell your moma how to suck eggs

:rolleyes:

Read my post again