Shrinkflation And The Economy
SOMETHING DIFFERENT ABOUT MACDONALDS COFFEE
Oddly enough, even though I live in the UK, I pay closer attention to American politics and economy than that of where I live. Usually the two mirror each other anyway, to an extent. The economy of where I live, on the other hand, I just feel.
I walked into Asda this morning to pick up a few things and noticed that, yet again, the prices have gone up another 5-10% on pretty much everything. This is the 3rd price hike I’ve noticed this year. They used to happen once every two years or so.
Inflation is completely out of control across the board. Even at MacDonalds, who’s cheap and not-too-bad coffee used to be the respite of cash strapped coffee addicts, has also raised prices. What used to cost £1.29 has crept up to £1.89.
I got some letters in the post from several of my services that they’re going to be raising prices. Energy cost is the same - “going up soon”.
Meanwhile across the country wages have remained stagnant for years. What this means in simple talk is that not only are your savings worth much less now, you’ve also been taking a steady pay cut this whole time. That’s if you had a job at all in the first place.
Talking of jobs, I’ve noticed older people doing jobs that were previously dominated by the youth. Food delivery, traffic wardens, fast food staff, etc, are examples of said jobs.
I’ve also noticed a mass exodus of people from my area, probably out of London entirely, perhaps even out of the UK. I wouldn’t blame them. Our council tax alone is bad enough to scare off anyone. I feel the people left here are probably either rich, own their own home so don’t pay rent, have children in school, or something like that.
Self employed people such as myself are also particularly affected by the cost of living crisis. Not all though - I know a couple of self-employed folks that are very successful and are completely immune to the crisis, but they’re few and far between.
Ah! About the coffee at MacDonalds. Something else has changed there too. Externally, yes the cups are more minimalist and pleasant to look at with the bold brown on yellow aesthetic. It’s about the content of the cup. The coffee itself tastes kinda watered down. It’s a kind of shrinkflation - a phenomenon whereby the cost stays the same but the size/quantity of the product reduces. I feel they are using less coffee and more water so it tastes diluted. The cup itself looks a little smaller than it used to be. I wouldn’t be surprised if it were. It only takes a little reduction in diameter, or height, to achieve a significant reduction in volume.
I’m starting to get ready for the cold season also. Alas! my boiler packed up last week, haha, just in time for the season change, so that’s another cost. I’m thinking of moving to a fully electric system next summer. I’ve stayed in holiday cottages with only electric devices and it seemed doable. The technology is finally good enough and matches gas in efficiency but vastly outperforms when it comes to cost and safety. I can fix my own electrical problems without fear of burning down the entire estate caused by a gas explosion.
Anyhow, I hope you guys are all ok and not too affected by these hard times. Hopefully they give way to easier days soon.
Peace & Love,
Adé