The Grinch Who Stole the Christmas Candy

Its hard to say that a company who paid me to take candy off of the shelf at CVS this week is a Grinch, but if you are planning to buy holiday candy you may want to take a second look at the package. While at CVS I discovered that a package of Holiday Hershey Kisses are only 8.5 oz while the regular package is 12 oz. Both packages are on sale for $2 each before the buy $20 get $10 ECB deal. You may prefer the holiday packaging if you are planning a special project using Chirstmas colors, but if you are looking for the least expensive candy buy the normal packaging instead.

Due to our current economic state, more companies are reducing the contents of the packages without lowering the price. Some companies are redesigning their packaging while other packages are staying the same but are not as full as they previously were. Most reductions will be 10% or less to prevent most consumers from noticing the decrease in size. Lisa recently sent me this Newsweek article discussing decreases in the package contents.

The long term reduction in the amount is a form of inflation if the cost of the product stays the same. In the case of the holiday candy, I would say Hershey's is taking advantage of the sentimental consumer and possibly trying to make up for the additional costs associated with the promotional packaging. However, I wouldn't be too surprised if there is a reduction in the size of their regular packages in the near future.

Remember to stay alert for price and size changes when purchasing products. Even a seemingly small difference adds up over time.