Dear Matzav Inbox,
I’ve been following the letters on Matzav.com about the supposed overpricing in kosher supermarkets with great interest. While I can’t claim to know the exact markup or whether these stores are indeed overcharging us, there’s a broader issue that needs addressing.
Why are we putting all the blame on supermarkets? Are they really the only ones taking advantage of our wallets? Let’s take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
Consider the high-end makeup artists charging $2,000 for a set number of faces at a wedding. Whether you need one face or five, you’re stuck with that exorbitant fee. How is this not just plain price gouging? It’s not just a matter of supply and demand—it’s a matter of taking advantage of people’s simchos.
And what about wedding hairstylists who demand hundreds of dollars for each head? This is inflating prices to levels that are simply unreasonable. Is this not a form of exploitation?
Let’s not overlook the musicians and singers who charge thousands upon thousands of dollars for their services. The fees they demand often seem detached from reality.
Jewish clothing stores are another example. The markups on their clothes are often so high it makes you wonder if they’re pricing us out of the market entirely. How is this different from the issues we see in supermarkets?
We shouldn’t forget other service providers as well. Caterers with hidden fees, event planners with inflated charges—the list goes on. All these vendors seem to have no qualms about squeezing every last penny from us.
Yes, we should be vigilant about prices in our grocery stores. But let’s not fixate solely on supermarkets when there are so many other areas in our kehillos where people are getting ripped off just as badly, if not worse.
If we’re going to hold supermarkets accountable, we need to apply the same scrutiny to all the other vendors who are equally, if not more, guilty of overcharging.
Sincerely,
Tired of Being Ripped Off
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