To wonder why Boots is so expensive?

I refuse to shop there now all the tills are self service.

So do I.

it is a good scheme

Remember the gorgeous baby toys like Octopull and Hiking Heidi

Yes, their baby clothes were lovely. That's over 20 years ago though, for me.

I do go in though for make up as still has the biggest range of high street brands.

I do boots recycle, spend £10 and get £5 points back , I try to spend as close to £10 as possible, so everything is effectively half price , I wouldn’t shop there otherwise .
I then use my points ( had £300 last year ) to buy Xmas presents

It's a mystery to me how they keep going.

I bought iron tablets in Boots.£6 . 3 doors away was B and M, iron tablets £2 same strength.
What a pity I had already bought them.

I wondered that too as I paid £2.50 for a mini Vaseline. I live in Nottingham though so I guess I'm supporting the local economy.

Sainsbury's is a rip-off too. Savers is the place to go for decent value, and prices that are just prices, not "points" or "offers".

I used to love Boots. Back in the day we bought our dc's cot and other nursery furniture there, it also used to sell the most beautiful, quality baby clothes. The one in our nearest town was huge, selling photographic equipment, household items etc, all good quality and decent prices. Then they changed their outlook. The big Boots is now half the size and low staff numbers means you can't get advice about your purchase anymore. And in top of that, unless you happen to grab an offer, their prices are very high compared to other retailers.
A couple of years ago I needed to buy a box of ibuprofen. In Tesco at that time, their own brand cost £2.85 for 96 tablets. Boots own brand, same size pack, £9.99! Ridiculous.

Yes exactly

I save my points for things like Lancome, Clinique or Clarins gift with 2 items.

the Lancome one was really good this year and I don’t feel guilty itms

But Boots isn’t a place you head to for basics is it?

could be, why not?
if you have one next to your office, that would be the place to get basics.

I can't really be bothered to scroll through shampoos when I do my online shop either

The only thing I ever buy in Boots is a meal deal at the airport. Just about everything else is stupid prices unless you drop lucky on an offer.

No. 7 stuff is good quality for the price point. Bought some things in there today.

But Boots isn’t a place you head to for basics is it? The boring stuff you normally just add to your food shop. You go to boots for nice treat things or because you need something medical they don’t stock in Tescos. Sometimes I’ll throw a pack of sanitary towels or cotton wool in my basket if I’m in boots buying pretty things, I’m aware I could get those things cheaper elsewhere but my time has a value and if I need stuff between big food shops like that and I’m near a boots anyway, I’m not going to use half an hour going to the supermarket to save 20p.

I think that's the same for loyalty cards full stop. If it's a stupid price for non loyalty card, they can shove it as far as I'm concerned.

I think N7 is over-priced and only worth buying in special offers - which they run half the year anyway. It just means you can't usually grab anything and have to wait, but otherwise it's very expensive (probably making up for the cheaper prices the rest of the year!)

i go to boots for No 7 despite them constantly discontinuing beloved products 😤!

Boots are good for range and higher quality things and they still have a foothold in the high street. I get points too and I always fail the voucher dates which is irritating.
their own brands are reasonable.
I think you have to be discerning about what you get from there.

I hadn't realised they had been sold, but I think you're probably correct. Private Equity company's are rarely, if ever, in it for a long investment. Sadly.

Maybe it depends what stuff you’re buying but I use Boots a lot for baby/toddler toiletries etc & it’s typically the same price as Asda but with Boots I get advantage points + extra points due to being part of the baby & toddler club.

I did a £70 Boots shop last week for baby bits & some postpartum bits for me, all things I needed to buy, same price as at Asda but with Boots I got just over £4 of that back in points which I can then just use whenever.

Our local one hasn't had its sign changed yet. And most people only go in there because it's where the post office is!

It's just a few doors from Waterstones, which is far better for books, there's an excellent stationers opposite that also sells toys and games, and if you want a newspaper or magazine, Waitrose is very close by.

Horses for courses..

Some stuff is a bit more expensive than elsewhere, but other things are cheaper.

I buy 80% of our toiletries from there, and there's pennies worth of difference between Boots and Sainsbury's.

Boots are the only place local to me that sell "premium" brands.

I like some of their No7 stuff. I also find the people on the No7 concession are realistic and approachable. I just wish they'd just price it properly instead of creating masses of paper waste with vouchers for permanent offers.

Unfortunately they have made everything except the pharmacy counter self service and there are never any staff about when you need someone to approve an offer. I have abandoned my shopping so many times.

I'm also having trouble with my advantage card that they seem unable/unwilling to sort.

They used to do nice sandwiches but don't anymore.

Is it more expensive, or are other stores cheaper?

I buy cheaper things in Superdrug, but same brands tend to be similar. I don't see much difference with items bought in my supermarkets.

My local Boots stocks a lot more "higher" brands too, which are obviously more expensive.

Boots own brand medicine is quite cheap.

It's certainly not because they're paying loads of staff.

I popped into my local Boots the other day, there was only one till open and only person serving at the pharmacy counter. Both had massive queues, to the point where it was hard to navigate the aisles. It shuts at 4.30pm and closes for an hour at lunchtime, so if you work locally you're lucky to get in there at all!

There are 3 independent pharmacies in town, but none of them are close to the main shopping area. Only one of them has parking nearby, the other two are on double yellow lines, and the nearest supermarket pharmacy is 10 miles away.

Unless you have a wild hankering to spend your time on earth handing over your personal data, juggling multiple price points and strange purchase combinations, as opposed to just going to a shop and buying what you want, there's no reason to go into Boots now.

No skin off the nose of its owner, who will happily strip it to the ground and pocket any incidental profits it can make from sky high pricing in the process.