Am I imagining it?

[Greydogs123]

Didn’t supermarkets used to sell off stuff cheaply after a season was over? So Christmas and Easter choc, if you went into a supermarket a couple of days after the main event you could bag some bargain chocs. I’ve noticed in recent years that immediately after Christmas, Easter etc it’s pretty much all gone - whipped off the shelves as if it never existed. I’m not imagining it am I?

I think it just goes very very quickly. Someone posts on one of the big money saving groups on FB, then people rush to the shop with the discounts and buy everything they have. They then post a photo of themselves with their 30 discount Easter eggs.

No you are not imagining it.

A few years go I thought I would pick up some eggs on Easter Monday for my nieces and nephews, who I was seeing that day.

All gone. So I have never left it so late again.

Our local supermarket were all sold out by Friday, so no chance of discount chocs today!

We went for a stroll on our local high st and everywhere was sold out of choc eggs except for one independent which proudly told us they were the only shop on the high left with eggs. Suspect supermarkets etc just put out the right amount these days

I think they stop getting new stock so they sell out before the actual day now so there isn't anything to reduce!

Supermarkets are definitely becoming more conservative over the amount of eggs they buy each year. But yes, anything that is left is reduced and the supplier gives the supermarket money to sell it cheaper.

Since the electronic point of sales came in maybe 20 years ago it is much easier to replenish stock accurately according to sales so if you sell 200 mars bars the warehouse sends you 200 next time. Previously stores would have to guess consumption and would over guess. If you have 200 on the shelf an no one buys them hoping for reductions they wont be replenished. Then on the last minute you sell 200 as the public buy them the epos thinks we'll I won't replace them Easter is Sunday so we don't need to restock let's send Fathers day socks instead.

It's not whipped off the shelves it's sold at full price before the event. I'm sure supermarket buying these days is sophisitictaed enough to get it spot on in terms of the balance of running out v selling at a reduced price

I read an article somewhere about how electronic stock control programs got much more sophisticated around 5-10 years ago, which meant that stock control is a lot tighter than it used to be, and shops often under-order rather than be left with overstock.

I fondly remember even 7-ish years ago you would be able to buy super cheap sale stock in JL and M&S for weeks after Christmas; and I remember an Easter around 2015 when MIL went to town in Thornton’s on about twenty £1 big sale chocolate eggs after Christmas! I think the big high street stores started reducing and tightening stock dramatically after that —they hardly ever have much reduced stock now.

Hmm, greater stock control sophistication makes sense, but doesn’t entirely explain it. I live fairly rurally, so only have one supermarket in a 10 mile radius. On Friday they still had shelves full of eggs etc, I can’t see that they sold everything on Saturday and they were shut yesterday. Today I’ve gone in and they have one lot of Cadbury choc orange eggs (not reduced) and a load of Kit Kat bunnies (also not reduced).

I think sometimes surplus stock as you mention gets sent to the discounters - B&M, Wilkos etc to be sold at a lower price there. As it’ll be a while before the products actually go off

That was Friday though. Easter chocolate sales have come in really, really late this year compared to previous Easters so I suspect a huge amount was sold on Saturday.

The supermarkets agree a fixed number of each product with each supplier months before Easter. They may back out of this agreement midway through the season if sales aren’t going as they expect, but this is negotiated between the supplier and the supermarket.

Easter 2020 made everyone much more cautious as retailers and suppliers were stung during COVID with excess eggs. This year you also have the dynamic of the new HFSS government legislation limiting where many products, including Easter eggs, can be displayed in store.

@Youngatheart00 is absolutely right though, if there is excess stock where the supermarkets aren’t taking their original commitment then B&M etc will usually buy it at a discounted price. Wilko not so much this year, as most of the trade credit insurers are refusing to insure them, so you are seeing empty shelves in many stores on confectionery as it’s not a focus area for them and they are prioritising their cash elsewhere.