Business

As Inflation Rages, Americans Cut Back

(Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

Charlotte Hazard Contributor
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With inflation rising, customers have been finding ways to cut back spending on staples, opting to go with cheaper options, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. 

Inflation has been rising for the past few months, and reports show it isn’t going to get any lower. According to a report from the Consumer Price Index, prices have risen 7.9% in February of 2022. Items such as diapers, detergents, snacks and soda have all gone up so American consumers are buying them in smaller quantities, according to The Wall Street Journal

Store brands such as Clorox have seen profits in market share growth despite prices being raised. Consumers are turning to store brands to buy products, and staples aren’t profiting as much, the outlet reported. (RELATED: Prices Are Still Rising Despite The Fed Saying Everything’s Under Control)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 10: People walk past the Lincoln Market supermarket on March 10, 2022 in the Prospect Lefferts Garden neighborhood of Brooklyn borough in New York City.The Labor Department reported that consumer inflation rose 7.9% over the past year, the largest rise since 1982, raising the prices of gas and consumer goods. Grocery costs rose to 8.6%, the biggest year-over-year increase since 1981, and gas prices increased 38% all within a 12 month period ending in February. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 10: People walk past the Lincoln Market supermarket on March 10, 2022 in the Prospect Lefferts Garden neighborhood of Brooklyn borough in New York City.The Labor Department reported that consumer inflation rose 7.9% over the past year, the largest rise since 1982, raising the prices of gas and consumer goods. Grocery costs rose to 8.6%, the biggest year-over-year increase since 1981, and gas prices increased 38% all within a 12 month period ending in February. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

This isn’t the first time that store brands have gone up during inflation, according to The New York Times. Back in 2008 when the recession hit, store brands were one of the few companies doing well during that time, the outlet reported.

Vice president of Profitero, Keith Anderson, argued that private labels have a history of growing in the midst of economic uncertainty. 

“There is often a degree of increased planning of what you’re going to buy,” Anderson said, according to Modern Retail. “If you’re starting to feel a pinch, you may start to budget, and so that means you may get more precise about what you’re not just looking for, but going to buy on a given trip.”

Anderson reportedly believes that in times of high inflation, consumers are more willing to trade new brands for store brands, as it makes more sense financially. 

“These private labels are price points that are the openers in the category and therefore more accessible,” Anderson said, according to Modern Retail.