Supermarkets making profits or PROFITEERING??

[DistinguishedSocialCommentator]

I posted on this forum couple of months ago on some thread that supermarkets were IMO profiteering. Yes, a business has to make profits but not this

As you know almost everything has gone up in the supermarkets, IE prices up, size and weights of items down

AIBU to feel that the supermarkets are profiteering?

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13368851/fury-supermarkets-profits-cost-living-crisis.html

I work for a supermarket and have shares that we buy through our salary. Obviously I want the company to do well because my shares go up and it gives us job security if they are making profits.

I don't think people realise how many stores Tesco own plus the other companies and subsidiaries such as Booker, One Stop, Tesco Mobile, Tesco Bank. Other supermarkets just don't have the same scale of operations that Tesco have and that's why they'll always make the most profit.

They also pay all staff the same regardless of age which is right because everyone is doing the same work. It's not all sunshine and rainbows working there and they've made cuts over the past few years but on the whole I'm sure there's worse places to work with less perks.

"Profit" is misleading. Depending on what you plan to do with the "profit", there may not actually be any.

A 3-4% profit margin is borderline breakeven.

We have insisted on buying "cheap products, which mostly have to imported, and because of Brexit, small volume imports are no longer financially viable (The reason there isn't any Irish Soda Bread for sale in UK supermarkets is because import volumes are too small to make it worth the pallet cost) so we have to pay big supermarkets to supply our food.

There was an article in the news recently about strawberries being grown in Devon, that were shipped to the Netherlands for packing, and then shipped back into the UK for selling ( I will try to find the article).

We don't want to pay farmers here what it actually costs to grow the food we consume. If we did perhaps we wouldn't have to rely on a virtual cartel of half a dozen supermarkets

Supermarkets make money from high volumes of sales, not from large markups on items.

I posted this on a thread the other day:

"£2.3bn profits for a year. Sounds big, but think about it for more than a couple of seconds.

Over their 3,433 stores in the UK, that's £670k profit per year per store.

That's £1,835 profit per store per day.

With an average of 4,000 customers per store per day, that's 46 pence profit per customer visit.

Lets say an average customer shop of 5-10 items. About 5p-8p profit per item. The profit they make on each item is literally pennies.

Supermarkets make profit from volume of sales, not from gouging prices and having big markups on things.

If they stopped marking anything up tomorrow, you'd maybe save a tenner."

Not only bulk buy and sell cheaper, but bulk buy, sell cheaper or even at a loss and close down the little guys, then up the prices.

It's called 'Economics.'
More will be supplied at a higher price until demand falls.

Labour's Barry Gardiner has been indignant about Tesco's results. Unfortunately, he comes from the mathematically challenged wing of the Labour Party, as did many others including Ed Balls and Diane Abbott.

People who can't read accounts (or don't understand them, or are deliberately cherry picking figures to score political points) are making a big deal about the 160% increase in Tesco Profits Before Tax. Profit before tax includes things like impairments/provisions/property revaluations etc. The more useful figure on an ongoing basis is the Operating Profit. The increase in operating profit is 12.8% from last year, but it is almost exactly the same as it was two years ago.

Tesco Revenue (£billion)
2021/22 = 54.768
2022/23 = 57.216
2023/24 = 61.477

Tesco Operating Profit (£billion)
2021/22 = 2.825
2022/23 = 2.509
2023/24 = 2.829

Tesco Profit Before Tax (£billion)
2021/22 = 2.033
2022/23 = 0.882
2023/24 = 2.289

@DistinguishedSocialCommentator have you studied all their accounts, have you covered all their expenses , all there investments etc ?

sshhhhhh some just want to shout big business is bad etc

Hi

No, why should I??

Have you?

I thought not.

because chances are it then helps to explain what the actual profits are after tax, etc its easy to assume they are making x amout but without proper analysis of what is actuall profits etc then how can a discussion be had about big companies ?

This is a good point. If they just stopped paying all of their employees and shareholders they could put the price of beans down!

Incorrect!

The facts are - Like most people, there are many things where I have to put my faith in the media and this is one of them

Importantly, I have experienced firsthand the price hikes and at times, the reduction in size/weigh of the items.

When Labour comes into power and it will, I hope they put a stop to these massive profits

how ? considering the complexity of tax rules that is pretty much the main way to reign in big business other than that its part and parcel of part of a capitalist system

"how."??
You wont have to wait too long for the hypocritical Labour lot to come in and do their bit to make them look good

Labour is seen as the "peoples party," in reality they are like all other political loe IE, in it for themselves for better or worse.

government control of big businesses can have complex and varied effects on prices for the public. While certain regulations and interventions may lead to lower prices by promoting competition, consumer protection, and efficiency, others could potentially result in higher prices due to increased compliance costs or market distortions. Effective regulation requires careful consideration of trade-offs and a nuanced approach tailored to the specific challenges and opportunities within each industry.

Don't bother wasting your time with this one, it's like screaming into the void.

So......after reading about profits being up (in the middle of a cost of living crisis), I said I would boycott the profiteering bastards. Does this thread mean I can take Tesco, Sainsbury and Heinz off my blacklist?

yes because without said profits then those supermarkets would be unable to provide to society and then there would be no big supermarkets,

Is that the profit before they take out wages and costs of running each store or is that after that has all been paid for?

inspired by this thread ive created: Should big businesses eg supermarkets etc still profit During tough times? | Mumsnet

Tesco share price was 301.15 in September 2000 and is now 298.4. The Dividend per Share this year is 8.3p (2.8%). People with an instant access building society account are raking in more than Tesco shareholders.

much appricated

any more points ?