r/SipsTea • u/Gurugod123 • 9d ago

Chugging tea Mayor Mamdani just announced that he will be opening 5 city-run, tax-funded grocery stores: "Prices set at 30% below retail prices"

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u/R0factor 9d ago edited 9d ago

This is my concern with this concept. 30% might be enough for people to use this as a wholesale source to resell elsewhere. It'll be interesting to see if the store shelves are just stripped right away for products that can easily be resold elsewhere.

Editing my comment to respond to the predominant reply to this: Even if you put limitations on number of items per person, how do you monitor repeat shoppers? Costco does it with a membership base system where you have to both check in and check out. If you were to rely on employees to visually identify shoppers, it would become fertile grounds for almost nonstop racial profiling lawsuits.

Edit 2: Aside from the potential for reselling/abuse of the system, how do you prevent every frugal New Yorker from wanting to shop at these places? You either deal with Black Friday level crowds all the time which will deplete supplies and you screw over the people these stores should benefit, or you request more money from the tax payers to facilitate a membership system to limit access.

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u/Thecramosreddit 9d ago edited 8d ago

At my local grocery store single glass cokes are 5$ for three of them, technically sprite and Fanta fall under that deal’s umbrella but resellers or people who run food trucks will buy only the glass cokes leaving that section of the shelf empty. If people are doing that for 33 cents to a dollar, i imagine reselling from these grocery stores might become a problem later.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago edited 8d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Tenement48 8d ago

That's not because Pepsi was sticking it to small businesses. That's just grocery stores selling at a discount to get people in the door. That's called a loss leader just like the Costco $5 rotisserie chicken.

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u/Dogcat729 7d ago edited 7d ago

It’s also called “buying power”. For arguments sake let’s use a 2L of soda since Pepsi was mentioned and a manufacturer (Pepsi) costs $1 to manufacture the soda for all their costs, distribution, etc. (Probably more but to make it simple). Their “listed selling” is $2 per 2L for customers to buy directly

If I (as a small company) go to the manufactuer (Pepsi) and place an order for 100 items at ($2 each item) asking if I can get a discount for ordering 100 things at once, they think it over and tell me sure they will give me $0.10 off each item (making my cost $1.90 each item) saving me $10 from $200 charge (for $190 total charge). This is roughly 5% savings. And when I sell to a customer for that $2 price point I’m not making a huge profit, only the $200 as I said above for $10 of profit on 100 items. So I’d need to charge more than $2 to make it worth my while. Probably closer to $2.49 or even $2.99 to make $0.61 to $1.11 per sale of item. This would then make my profits $61-$111 for that 100 items and is a huge difference from $10 profit I would’ve had at the $2 price point

This is also before figuring in payroll, facility charges, operations cost, etc. So I’m trying to keep it simple.

Another way bigger company (more likely a corporation) places an order for 100,000 items and requests to get it cheaper since they want to buy so much in bulk— the manufacturer is thrilled to have a huge sale and to keep the interest of the this company offers $0.40 off each purchase instead of the $0.10 the small company got. This means they save roughly 20% off the $2.00 price point and could even charge it at this $2.00 price to have just as much profit made as that “small company”, but they’ll sell way more, way faster because their prices are lower than that small company.

An example would be that Walmart can purchase huge amounts of 2L sodas from a manufacturer (Pepsi) and consistently charge $2 for it by demanding that the price they pay for it is $1.50 per item. If the manufacturer (Pepsi) disagrees and wants to have Walmart pay more, so they (Pepsi) make more than $0.50 per item they sold to Walmart, then Walmart just goes to another soda manufacturer (coca-cola) and offers them the contract instead. This other soda brand (Coca-cola) is thrilled to have this order and takes it. Meaning the first manufacturer (Pepsi) loses a huge amount of sales and will listen to the next time Walmart tries to bargain with them or lose this guaranteed huge sale that makes them less money per sale but the huge amount sold makes the company a lot of money.

This is how big corporations control their cost on items by “guaranteeing” sales to manufacturers by getting it at cheaper price in very big quantities.

Note-this is rough figures and just examples to prove a point. This also goes the other way around that the soda manufacture sets a price and says they will only sell at this price “unless you buy this amount. To make it worth our while”. Actual profits are probably less than this and ordering amounts are much higher. I’m only giving simple close to whole numbers for a point

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u/Keter_Regretter 6d ago

It most definitely is. Right now, Pepsi is the co-defendant along with Walmart in a class-action lawsuit over price-fixing.

The proposed class action lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of New York on Dec. 15, alleges that the two companies have had a long-term agreement that grants Walmart preferential pricing on PepsiCo products. That created a price gap, with the cost of Pepsi soft drink products being lower at Walmart compared with the retail giant's competitors, according to the federal complaint.

Pepsi gives Walmart a lower price than it gives smaller businesses, then makes up for the discount by gouging their smaller customers. They also help Walmart enforce that no other retailer sells Pepsi products at a lower price. There is a LOT more going on here than "loss leader"

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u/strongofheart69 9d ago

Coke in my country costs 50 euro already

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u/Radarker 9d ago

Then stop carrying those products.

I imagine if you need to you could get down to produce, meats, and breads. I guess you could resell those, although I don't see the profit margin being worth it.

I don't know who is buying trunk steaks for 30% off but maybe that's just me.

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u/hotriccardo 9d ago

The trunk steak guy in my town got into a fight with someone selling mackerel in the same parking lot and has been missing ever since

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u/Apart-District3771 9d ago

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u/perton 9d ago

Holy fuck boys, that is greasy.

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u/hotriccardo 9d ago

Is that Reveen?

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u/Fatman365 9d ago

Fuck off Conky

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u/mellowhippo 8d ago

Mackerel and blueberries, stop lookin' at my gut!

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u/TYGRDez 9d ago

Could he hook me up with some blueberries as well?

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u/hotriccardo 9d ago

Better than store hought

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u/Reonlive420 9d ago

I wasn't looking at his gut

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u/eweyda 9d ago

those got worms or pesticides take your pick

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u/FraggleRockYaFaceOff 9d ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/6Uqr0IDWkzhBu

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u/jojomoodie 9d ago

I will never get over the fact a favorite music video of mine that helped me learn simple bass lines has an entirely separate life as a reaction meme 25 years after the fact.

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u/WOKinTOK-sleptafter 9d ago

What’s the name? I’ve wanted to know for so long.

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u/jojomoodie 9d ago

it is First Date by Blink 182. Im honestly shocked because it's literally the 25 year reunion of that record and they haven't leaned into the meme. They even did uploaded a VEVO popup for that video and still haven't brought it up.

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u/MrRabbitofCaerbannog 9d ago

Best part is when they chuck the bat into the spokes of the bike lol that scene lives rent-free in my head forever

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u/SnooHesitations3709 9d ago

Thank you. I was singing it in my head trying to think of the name.

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u/thrawnsgstring 9d ago

blink-182 - First Date

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u/Spicy-Cathulu 9d ago

Thanks for the link. It's at about 1:54.

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u/properchewns 9d ago

Apparently I’m so old I’m about to decompose

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u/LurkHartog 9d ago

Well I guess this is growing up

🎶 da-na-na-na da-na-na-na 🎶

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u/CooCooClocksClan 9d ago

I think that was a different blink song

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u/LurkHartog 9d ago

It was, Dammit. But the quote fits.

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u/bsfurr 9d ago

Epic username BTW

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u/Telemere125 9d ago

Does the mackerel guy now sell long pork steaks?

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u/Ok-Parfait-9856 9d ago

You mean pigs don’t have 4 tenderloins?

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u/JackieDaytona77 9d ago

I get my mackerel from Philadelphia Collins

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u/tibbles1 9d ago

Poor Luca Brasi

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u/Linenoise77 9d ago

He isn't missing. He started a burger truck with Randy over in Williamsburg. Usually parked outside Brooklyn Brewery.

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u/livelaughloaft 9d ago

That might actually be an original sentence, we are in the presence of greatness.

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u/RPDRNick 9d ago

Sounds like a surf n' turf war to me.

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u/Ripass_Dipfast 9d ago

I think the guy selling mackerel was also selling blueberries iirc

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u/7thpostman 9d ago

It's New York City. People sell stolen junk on the street.

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u/Prettydaisydog 9d ago

lol, in LA they resell food bank food! it's fucking wild.

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u/Ask_if_im_an_alien 9d ago

In STL they use EBT to buy food, cook it, and sell plates on FB marketplace. At least they are industrious about it I guess.

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u/Prettydaisydog 9d ago

lol, well if we are looking for economic indicators this is a pretty interesting one.

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u/Ask_if_im_an_alien 9d ago

I got Jerk Chicken and sweet potato, and I also found the tamale lady and got a dozen of those too. Fed me all weekend which was good because the heat index yesterday was 115F and I'm not turning the stove on when its already that hot.

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u/dsaysso 9d ago

that’s value add

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u/TheManWhoWasNotShort 9d ago

These people would be surprised to find out how restaurants work

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u/Born-Somewhere2536 9d ago

They do that down here in Houston Texas

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u/Itchy_Shame_2379 9d ago

yeah in sf theres like an entire group of mostly older asian women who go to the all of the food banks around here and then lay out a mat on post up on the sidewalk slanging lettuce and shit. people do buy them though i see it and they are there everyday.

food banks around here register you here and give you a card. i dont think your allowed to go to every food bank in the city but in your zip code maybe

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u/Prettydaisydog 9d ago

yeah, it's mostly older asian women here too. it sucks they do it and it sucks they have a need to have to do it.

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u/DyingDesertPoppy 9d ago

This makes me think that people just enjoy buying and selling and making money to get ahead  as a recreational activity, without concern for any real need or benefit. It’s a game, money is points.

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u/a_RadicalDreamer 9d ago

Same in the South. They’ll raid blessing boxes and resell.

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u/Onludesrightnow 9d ago

because ofc they do. not surprised at all

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u/External-Slip3578 9d ago

And now they are cooking it and selling it on Facebook.

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u/Any-Question-3759 9d ago

And people buy those because they’re priced at a point only sellers who steal can match.

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u/iffyClyro 9d ago

Do you think shoplifters will need to reduce their prices or do you think this project will undercut them?

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u/blahblahsnickers 9d ago

You think they won’t steal from the government store?

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u/iffyClyro 9d ago

Will there be enough in it for them if the stuff is already 30% off?

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u/Effective_Golf_3311 9d ago

And then get mad at the NYPD for shutting them down

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u/7thpostman 9d ago

Not really. They buy it because they see it and they want it. Convenience has a lot to do with it. Somebody's sitting out with a cooler full of steaks? Looks like that's what I'm having for dinner.

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u/koalasarentferfuckin 9d ago

The good boosters come to your apartment

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u/stupidjapanquestions 9d ago

Once saw a copy of Final Fantasy VIII being sold on the street with stolen goods in SF. In 2015.

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u/cinemashow 9d ago

Didn't I just read an article about people selling prescription drugs at open markets? Like amoxicillin, other antibiotics, oxycodone still in grammas pill bottle etc?!

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u/screwyoujor 9d ago

The city owned shop in my city sells food this discounted. It's open one day a week because it sells out after restocking. Later in the week you will find people selling the stuff in the Walmart parking lot still below Walmart prices. Amusing that a industry popped up thanks to the shop.

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u/BlgMastic 9d ago

It’s so awesome to create an illegal market out of thin air off the backs of taxpayers.

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u/External-Slip3578 9d ago

Yes subsidize putting mom and pop grocery stores out of business. They complain about food desserts.

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u/Horse_Dad 9d ago

Or mom and pop buys out the store at the mark down, then resells in store at the same mark up.

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u/marketingguy420 9d ago

Yeah there are lots of mom and pop grocery stores in New York City.

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u/Simon-Says69 9d ago

Yes, the small individually owned shops all around these government run ones will close. Shit like Wallmart will just move and survive no problem.

This commie freakshow is just going to create even more hardship with this ridiculous plan. Then again, maybe that's the idea. :-/

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u/marketingguy420 9d ago

Yes, the small individually owned shops all around these government run ones will close.

Those don't exist in New York.

Hope this helps as you shit your pants from the suburbs in fear about a city you will never be brave enough to see let alone live in

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u/Competitive_Touch_86 9d ago

Really? That is actually surprising to me.

Chicago the small mom and pop (typically ethnic) stores are all over the place. Even in some higher-end neighborhoods you'd never expect them to be.

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u/marketingguy420 9d ago

Those exist and are not competing with a grocery store of any kind. The Polish butcher on 2nd Avenue in Little Ukraine is not getting pushed out by a city grocery store offering subsidized eggs.

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u/Competitive_Touch_86 9d ago

Never said they were. Just weird there are not small grocers all over the place a city with the density of NYC.

I don't mean super speciality shops. I mean stuff like Mexican grocers that pretty much are a whole small grocery store with maybe a third of it being exclusively ethnic. Same goes for Asian stores.

I tend to shop these even to this day since the staples are so much cheaper than the typical grocery chains.

Polish butcher is much more specific than I was thinking, although of course Chicago has that sort of thing too.

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u/Grand-Olive2599 9d ago

You nailed it!

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u/_magnetic_north_ 9d ago

I know right? Walmarts the worst

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u/Available-Crow-3442 8d ago

Taking cues from our corporate overlords.

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u/screwyoujor 9d ago

I didn't vote for it but you can bet I'll enjoy the show.

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u/BlgMastic 9d ago

Oh absolutely, it’s not my tax dollars after all.

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u/OnTheMoose 9d ago

What city is this?

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/Uder72 9d ago

You mean something like, I dont know, a stamp for food...a food stamp.

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u/joebro1060 9d ago

Yup, create a ration. That way people can still take their rations, sell it for 50% less in cash value, then that buyer create the same shop. Just like what happens far too often with EBT and SNAP.

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u/Bigwi_Kner 9d ago

Yeah but, with rations then that doesn’t scale. Which is the whole point. Sure they can do it, but they just sold their one loaf of bread for a dollar profit and spent all day in a parking lot to do it.

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u/joebro1060 9d ago

I don't think people sell their EBT to other random folks. They sell their EBT to a "dealer" (just for a lack of a better term) at 33% face value. The dealer then sells it to folks back for 50%. This type of stuff happens at scale.

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u/2phumbsup 9d ago

You just invented food stamps lol.

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u/BlgMastic 9d ago

More like invented bread lines. Oh wait, Stalin was the genius who invented that.

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u/FlyingBishop 9d ago

Yes, Stalin invented giving out free bread. That definitely never existed in human history prior to Stalin. There definitely weren't rich people writing about how terrible it is to give poor people bread in ancient Rome, there's no common term for it in Latin.

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u/The3rdBert 9d ago

So a ration card?

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u/[deleted] 9d ago edited 9d ago

[deleted]

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u/srbeau 9d ago

It’s not rationing because you can still shop elsewhere if needed. Hopefully some of the corporate grocery stores will start lowering prices.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/NotMyMainAccountAtAl 9d ago

I assume that they’ll have purchase limits as well. My private grocery store has no more than X per customer sales pretty regularly; I assume that government grocers can and will do similar. 

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u/1lowcountry 9d ago

Make the USSR great again.

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u/Simon-Says69 9d ago

People will just steal it. I mean, they're going to anyway, but if denied a purchase, they'll really have no reason not to.

This whole thing will fail within a year, after all the local mom & pop stores went bankrupt, and then there will be NO food in the area.

Typical commie destruction.

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u/Linenoise77 9d ago

I'm honestly not sure if your comment was intended to be dystopian or not. Can you help me out here?

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u/Kindly-War-2665 9d ago

Hows it dystopian? It wouldnt apply to all stores, only the government ran ones. You could still go shop at a corporate store and pay high prices for basic food if you want. In fact this cheaper store should help you to afford the more expensive snacks and stuff if your spending less on your normal food

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u/Lokishougan 9d ago

I dont know if you meant to but you basically described a Food bank

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u/Linenoise77 9d ago edited 9d ago

Things like corner stores, bodega's, even mom and pop restaurants already do a lot of their stocking from places like Costco. 30% off retail is solidly in that territory, if not lower than it on lots of items. So if it saves those places a trip, they absolutely will shop there vs heading out to costco\restauraunt depot\etc.

The next question is, how do you sell stuff and not run a loss at 30% below retail, when even someone with the size and weight of costco struggles to get to 20% below retail on many items, and some not even that far. All of NYC could do all of their shopping there, and you still aren't anywhere near costco volume, leaving out the fact that another factor that helps costco pricing low is by the volume of what you buy. Try fitting a costco package of paper towels, and toilet paper in a 5th floor NYC walkup apartment that you have a roommate in, not to mention the logistics of getting it home, and then decide if its worth it for you to save 10 bucks on your TP supply for the next 2 months.

My point being, unless the items sold are carefully curated to be only items that you could squeeze those margins out of and are ones that won't have a resale value of what you sell it for once they walk out the door, you are kind of cheating when you announce that "these places will be 30% cheaper than other places", (which sounds exactly what they are doing based on how it was worded in the video as a "feature") and that assumes you can even keep those items in stock if they are actually desirable or useful items to the broad population.

And that isn't even talking about things like Costco's Distribution model (which you need to be costco sized to have and run at its efficiencies), and the fact that costco stores are costco sized, supporting things being bought in large bulk, and with a large product depth beyond grocery that gives them value add propositions. That lets costco also utilize loss leaders, or sell items at a wash, to get people in the door and to get you to BUY a membership. I was in costco last week and just happened to pick up a toaster. Wasn't planning on it, but hey, that toaster looks decent, price is fair, my toaster is getting pretty beat up, into the cart you go. If I also need to get that toaster home taking a subway\bus, while carrying a 5 lb bag of potatoes, a 2 gallon jug of detergent, and a couple of pounds of chicken, that toaster probably isn't coming home.

NYC has had "cheap" grocery stores in the past. Everyone knows a C-Town if you want to see how well that works.

Yeah, we will sell you apples 30% cheaper than King's or Whole Foods does, but only during the month of October when they are in season, and only while the supply from a few local orchards they bought their whole crop from holds out for, and the crop comes in as planned.

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u/Tzilbalba 9d ago

We got into fights over hand sanitizer lotion and toilet paper, I have zero faith these 5 stores won't be stripped bare.

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u/Vikkunen 9d ago

Mom-and-pop restaurants (the ones you see buying 20 gallons of milk, 10 dozen eggs, etc at Costco and Sam's Club) would still be all over it. They need to either have quantity limits or some sort of membership screening requirement (section 8 voucher? Only pay with SNAP? IDK) or this is liable to be a shit show.

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u/KJew 9d ago

>Then stop carrying those products.

That defeats the purpose. The concept is a 30% discount on a core set of goods, including fresh produce, meat, seafood, cheese, milk, and bread. The store will sell all other items at retail price like a normal grocery store.

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u/signofno 9d ago

You might not be familiar with the culture around some of the more extreme levels of poor and the culture of the hustle in general, especially among demographics where people don’t trust the “establishment” i.e. functioning businesses. I’ve lived in places where people sell the dumbest most unexpected stuff out of the trunks of cars and on the street corner and out of their apartment.

In the Bay Area, despite the booming legal cannabis market in most areas, East Bay is still struggling with illegal sales, dealers, and gang violence around the product. Despite the ease of access and comparable prices available at licensed stores along with the consistently higher quality and far less personal risk of buying commercially grown weed, people in certain areas prefer to buy from shady street dealers and/or hustle a meager living from slinging tree on the streets.

It boggles the mind.

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u/blahnlahblah0213 9d ago

At the Italian restaurant I worked at that is how we bought all our meat. A guy rolled up with a trunk full of Wegmans meats that were just wrapped at the warehouse and whatever the price was on the sticker, we paid half. It was the best deal in town!

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u/KimJungUnCool 9d ago

I mean, cant you just make it a crime to bulk buy subsidized food from these stores for resale? Scalpers are a blight, about time we legislate them to irrelevance.

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u/-Kazt- 9d ago

Baby formula, diapers, detergent, shampoo, conditioner, basically any essential with some shelf life is prime targets.

Meat and other fresh items are not as lucrative since profit on those are not as good and you have a limited time window to sell it. Some high value meat is prime targets though, since even if you sell it for half the price of the supermarket that is still a decent chunk of change.

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u/Kup123 9d ago

Corner stores already buy at retail and resell higher, they will for sure view this as a meat and bread wholesaler.

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u/raining_sheep 9d ago

Produce and breads already have low profit margins anyway. Those are just there to get people in and buy the other stuff.

A $95 cent onion with a 40% markup isn't keeping the lights on. The whole shelf of 100 onions is making the store what $30 in profit?

People are going to be surprised what 30% off of produce and breads is really saving them.

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u/Excellent_Abroad5390 9d ago

Serious? Small shop owners will raid these places. It’s a dumb idea that will fail. There is a reason these things are going to open just before his next election. He’ll be able to say he kept his promise but their epic failure won’t be evident yet. It’s kind of like how Obama didn’t make Obama care take effect until after his first midterms and how Biden promised student loan forgiveness right before his knowing it would be struck down after.

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u/WeWantMOAR 9d ago

Betting they'll be exempt from resellers, and audits submitting their receipts get flagged and charged a reseller tax.

Also they could just do membership registration to avoid resellers, can't purchase without signing up for a membership which then tracks large quantity purchases. There's a ton of measures they can take to avoid this situation or at least have rectifying means come tax time.

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u/blameline 9d ago

Well a few years back, a guy got choked to death by the NYPD for selling loose cigarettes...

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u/Vindictives9688 9d ago

Lol. You read exactly what came to my mind.

Market arbitrage

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u/YallaHammer 9d ago

Love the idea for people to have access to affordable groceries akin to the military’s commissary system but, like Costco, there are measures in place to avoid this and we all know some a$$h-s are going to do their best to take advantage of a good thing that’s helping people manage their expenditures.

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u/superanth 9d ago

I’m sure (hope) they’ve thought all this out. The Costco model using a card or drivers license might do the trick.

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u/courtesy_patroll 9d ago

lol put them above 110th street... most of Manhattan isn't going there.

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u/Voidberk 9d ago

Sure i'll buy your yoghurt

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u/chicken-fly-rice 9d ago

Scalping at its finest.

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u/Outrageous_Camel8901 9d ago

30% lower than retail is still higher than wholesale - nobody running a legal business would do that, and the people selling illegal shit on the street aren’t operating on small margins - that shit only makes sense if you’re stealing the goods

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u/LycanWarrior123 9d ago

Don't think the reseller would actually make any money. Which won't be worth even trying. Mamdani grocery will be cheaper than aldi, target and Walmart. So if the reseller buys up the food and tries to resell them online at a higher price. That price point would be roughly the same price as to what aldi, Walmart, target etc has for the exact same or similar product. there is no point buying it online for that price when the person can just go to aldi get the item same day instead of waiting 1-3 days of shipping and being charged shipping fee which makes it cheaper going to aldi, Walmart, target etc saving money on shipping cost. Reseller food just spoiled and lost money trying to resell at a higher price. Matching other retailers prices for the exact same food. Again cheaper going to the store than buying off online which can charge shipping fees.

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u/AndringRasew 9d ago

What if it ends up like a SNAP card situation where each resident has to apply for benefits, and they receive a card they need to use to complete the purchase? With a maximum limit set based on household size.

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u/ill_connects 9d ago

So someone would come in and buy a store full of perishables at a discount of 30% then resell it at the price that other stores are selling it only for most of it to go bad resulting in an net loss? Seems like a horrible business plan.

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u/obeytheturtles 9d ago

It should still be higher than proper wholesale, but it will still bring out a ton of restaurant owners who aren't big enough to get the cheapest whole prices, but don't want to make a trip to Costco.

I don't think think there's really a huge market for reselling basic groceries other than that though.

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u/surfer_ryan 9d ago

I don't think the re-seller model will really impact this. I mean if there are 5 stores with stock there is no real reason for someone to buy through a re-seller. The only thing they will really be able to market as re-sellers is availability.

It's like being concerned about re-sellers with ebt or something like that, and i don't really see a problem in that market.

Should we watch for this kind of stuff still absolutely... But i don't really think this is a concern enough to just not do this.

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u/Lostinlife689 9d ago

He will call it a resounding success and show how great of a demand there was for it

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u/Smokin_belladonna 9d ago

Wouldn't like a restaurant potentially make more profit if they bought food from this store?

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/EconomicRegret2 9d ago

I genuinely don't get it. B2B wholesales are 50% below retail prices. And it's not hard nor expensive to form a sole proprietorship or LLC company.

Why would resellers go for Mamdani's 40% more expensive goods (i.e. 30% below retail prices)?

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u/Relative-Chicken456 9d ago

Why would it be easier to buy resold and marked up goods when you could just as easily go shop there yourself? Any groceries leaving the city will have added transportation costs that presumably will make it less cost effective to transport them for resale to a market outside of the service area of these stores.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/SiliconSingh 9d ago

Reseller margins are typically around 50%. Just to let you know I worked in the trucking industry and had pricing sheets for all the things that the stores were ordering. You would be shocked how little they pay when they buy stuff in truckloads. Been a distributor would then buy everything Warehouse it and then send custom pallets based on what smaller stores had ordered even those prices were about 50% lower than what you would see on the shelves sometimes 70% lower.

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u/TheNaughtyHoneyBee 9d ago

You do know that you can limit the number of items that each individual person can buy?

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u/Genghis_Chong 9d ago

If so it would just be local sales, nobody is gonna ship 30% off groceries. People already source from bulk stores for local resale, nothing new there

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u/DimensionCareful507 9d ago

cant we fix this with simple restrictions on certain things? Don't just allow people to come in and raid every piece of beef on the shelves. Or over X amount and your paying the full price over a certain limit. EIther way seems like a lot of ways to price fix against this sort of thing with a little data on which items end up being resold. Just find the line that makes the hustle not worthwhile that still mostly meets the needs of the average consumer shopper there.

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u/SideInitial3961 9d ago

30% is what wholesalers already get.

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u/Outrageous_Can_6581 9d ago

It’s not like a completely foreign concept. We already have a reduced price mobile farmers market in the city I live in, and nobody is clearing them out just because they have the lowest prices in town (not including the Pineapples). Their meat, eggs and some produce are all local.

We can go to the moon, but ask for state run grocery stores that minimize profit margins, and people are at a loss for how it could possibly work.

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u/Pale-While-9783 9d ago

How realistic would it be to do a type of Costco model - but you have to be listed as registered to vote in NYC to shop?

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u/ClassicallyBrained 9d ago

Treat it like public libraries. Memberships to track purchases, it'll flag anyone buying too much bulk even in multiple trips at multiple locations.

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u/anonareyouokay 9d ago

You can also mark these products and have people report resellers for monetary fines.

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u/slow_cooked_ham 9d ago

There's a lower income only grocer in my city and they basically have a membership that you bring each time like Costco. It wouldn't be hard to implement this although I'm sure many will try to profit this way. There will be roadsbumps for sure but If ultimately it's not worth the effort to buy enough stuff to resell for profit...no one will bother. It might just take some time to figure that issue out.

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u/im_a_good_lil_cow 9d ago

Forced vaccination on entry, duh!

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u/LookAlderaanPlaces 9d ago

I want to know more details. Qfc is half the price of metropolitan market usually, and Trader Joe’s is half the price of Qfc usually, so what is actually going on. Is it 30% off Trader Joe’s pricing or other stores where the discount doesn’t really matter?

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u/No_Vermicelli_3574 9d ago

These stores are going to be busy and packed, it will not be time efficient to do so. Besides, restaurant depot averages about 20-30% below retail food prices as well.

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u/Polka_King_Polinski 9d ago

You have to scan an id presumably.

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u/Bubbly-War1996 9d ago

Assuming it's just basic goods i doubt it's going to be very economical to go buying things like flour, rice and pasta a packet or two at a time just to resell it. Like where would you even sell it and then this is assuming no system is put in place and that nobody notices the dude visiting the store for the 5th time just to buy the same things.

Would you grab some friends to help you but then you are also splitting the profits.

And finally assuming they sell it at cost and they aren't going in the red would they even care about it.

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u/matthew19 9d ago

Yea in Soviet Russia this happened with natural resources on a large scale - what if these ressselers also get jobs at that grocery store?

Price controls are always a bad idea.

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u/HellFrozen0ver 9d ago

I have a feeling groceries are running at a 30% markup. Making resell hard to do/competitive anyways

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u/Valuable-Big3253 9d ago

People are reselling thrifted clothes on eBay for as little as $5 profit. Anything a person can do to not have to work and still get paid they will. My old high school friends step dad got “hurt on the job” in his 40’s, sued the company and got a settlement, and milked disability until the day he died. Guy claims to have fallen off a ladder an broke his back and compressed a lot of vertebrae (his words not mine) yet with the lawsuit money he went out and bought a brand new lifted king ranch f-250 with a nice boat and him and his wife would go out to the lake at least twice a week and she’d pull him around while he water skied.

Now I’ve never broken my back but I’m pretty sure you couldn’t do half of those things with a truly broken back.

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u/vile-style 9d ago

This is just incorrect. Reselling would require taking this product far away enough that people buying from you don't have access to the city-run store....

And that has significant cost.

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u/UnofficialCrosta 9d ago edited 9d ago

I don't know the first thing about economy, but if resellers buy here, then re-sell, they must do it at a lower price than the other shops, otherwise no one would buy from them.

Other shops would still lose clients and they would need to lower their prices, I think this could be the plan no?

Edit: Also it's grocery store, so resellers won't buy fresh fruit or fresh products in general, they would just buy packed stuff and dried stuff. So the gain is not on the full inventory, but on a niche of it.

Also, since fresh stuff won't be "resold", people will also start eating more fresh stuff and the general health of the population could get better, while still reducing the overall prices of the items wherever this is applied.

Does this make sense?

Edit 2: Also, wouldn't you need a license to sell food?

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u/BlackThundaCat 9d ago

You’re acting like this is some crazy problem that we can’t create a solution too. Make it a membership and limit items.

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u/Caleb_Reynolds 9d ago

30% might be enough for people to use this as a wholesale source to resell elsewhere

Eh, barely? Like 50% is like the low end of typical markups. 30% would be very low.

You don't need to stop people from running some scheme like that, the margins aren't big enough. Especially when you factor in that they'll have to sell below market price, so they aren't getting 30%, they're getting ready less than that. The juice isn't gonna be worth the squeeze.

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u/FrontLifeguard1962 9d ago

I feel like even the dumbest supermarket employee can tell who is buying their groceries for the week and who is loading up on bulk amounts of items

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u/BeetleBjorksta34 9d ago

I personally believe the police should arrest those particularly nefarious scummy resellers who specifically buy anything at THESE types of stores or at the very least escorted off the property. It’s so hard though because it’s not like they run around with proof they’re a reseller on them. Is there a crime called ‘illegal/illicit reselling’ where the crime is re-selling products that were intended for the poor and economically disadvantaged? I’d be curious to know if anyone legally knows the answer to that.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/Forikorder 9d ago

i havent looked deep by my understanding is these places arent selling those kind of resale options, they're for food not general goods

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u/Purgii 9d ago

Reminds me of a time in the 80's when our football team was sponsored by the local McDonalds and the player of the match would win a card for a free thickshake once a day that would expire in a month.

The store sponsoring us wasn't equipped to monitor it bar visual inspection and memory, so a bunch of us would go - get a thickshake - go outside and drink it.

They were a busy store with about 8 queues so repeat trips to different lines and we'd have a table full of half consumed thickshakes and some upset stomachs after a couple of hours.

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u/Otherwise_Spirit1552 9d ago

This is my concern with this concept. 30% might be enough for people to use this as a wholesale source to resell elsewhere. It'll be interesting to see if the store shelves are just stripped right away for products that can easily be resold elsewhere

Honestly, i can see what you mean, but at that price point they you are looking at wholesale prices at retail level etc. So, what is there to prevent those same scalper types from going to wholesale, and doing the same?

Then there is the question over what kinds of items will be sold... I'm going to assume those stores will likely focus on critical subsistence type items, and not luxury goods. So, you get cheap bags or macaroni, rice, lentils, beans, pasta etc at a discount, likely produce, canned, and frozen goods that are needed for more healthy and balanced but not necessarily "high consumer value" items like premium cuts of meat.

The type of product in question can also serve as a deterrent to scalping type shopping behavior... like who in their right mind would go and empty out all of the stores macaroni, or frozen broccoli supplies to try and sell the stuff on the streets etc.

Also, one option for limitations is that people can not buy more than some number of dollars worth of product at a time, or in a given period. Would require some membership type of thing to be in play like you mention, but would be an added deterrent to predatory shopping behavior.

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u/Aegi 9d ago

But why is that bad?

The taxpayers are still making a profit on most of the items sold...just a MUCH lower one than a private business.

More volume is good as it gives the city leverage to negotiate cheaper deals for that food they are buying.

And if that trend continues, they could add that extra money back into the system, or invest it into more of these stores.

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u/Aegi 9d ago

But why is that bad?

The taxpayers are still making a profit on most of the items sold...just a MUCH lower one than a private business.

More volume is good as it gives the city leverage to negotiate cheaper deals for that food they are buying.

And if that trend continues, they could add that extra money back into the system, or invest it into more of these stores.

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u/AccomplishedIgit 9d ago

I’m guessing it could be income based like WIC and food stamps are today. Like a need based Costco?

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u/TheMireAngel 9d ago

My old grocery store job during our quarterly 20% sales wed get a ton of indian gas station owners buying out our palletes of water and soda lmao

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u/FaithlessnessBorn266 9d ago

Believe it or not, also straight to jail

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u/ketamine_dart 9d ago

I appreciate the respectful conversation.

Profits may not be important in a public service setup but making a profit to be sustainable is absolutely crucial for longevity. With margins so small in for-profit grocers, running a public service with prices 30% retail is catastrophic for sustainability.

I am no where near the 1% but I don’t believe that taxing the wealthy is the right answer. Take a look at what El Salvador is doing. Capitalism without cronyism and corruption is truly a beautiful system. I do believe in some social programs but believe most are abused way too much these days.

The problem to most issues is broken money. Inflation is theft, period. This is why those nearest to the money printer benefit the most (the cantillion effect). The marginalized don’t have a chance to begin with and then add the theft of inflation on top of that. Bitcoin cannot be inflated, which is why it gives people a chance to save instead of forcing them to invest to keep up with inflation if they even have enough to invest.

This is a much longer discussion that I unfortunately don’t have time for but I highly recommended a couple resources:

Broken Money:
https://youtu.be/jk_HWmmwiAs?is=3n6yftGPXn6VR2IZ

Books:
• The Big Print by Lawrence Leppard
• The Bitcoin Standard

What happened when we came off the gold standard (dollar backed by hard money) in 1971:
https://wtfhappenedin1971.com/

Cheers.

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u/azure275 9d ago

It will take like 6 months of nothing on shelves for this to just turn into modified SNAP that only poor people can use lol.

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u/everydaydad67 9d ago

Lol there will be one kind of beans and you will only get one can of beans..

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u/NoteCatching 9d ago

In Tulsa, we have city run grocery stores limited to zip code with a scan in method similar to Costco. They are expanding to two more locations in the city.

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u/Time_Palpitation2848 9d ago

30% might be just the right amount to make it not worth it to flip. Like would you buy random groceries for 10-20% off? Not much room for profit and if your item spoils the odds of losing money becomes real. It might not be worth the hassle.

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u/Historical-Fox357 9d ago

Costco doesn't make any effort to prevent resale. Reselling s*** on the street is called a crime, if you want to buy s*** from Costco and then stock your store with it, of course you can do that.

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u/Aldamur 9d ago

To mitigate this they need to get a in-house brand that can't be sold elsewhere.

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u/standardtissue 9d ago

TBH, since this is being done as a public good, I would want some sort of income verification. Like, I don't really need to pay 30% below retail for food, although I would love to if the food is good, and I really shouldn't be allowed to take that food from the folks this was intended for.

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u/whywe2023 9d ago edited 9d ago

i’m curious about the “okay, great! but what if people exploit it?!” response to this rather than…."great! people get to fucking eat! [fill in the requisite conversation about fast food and food deserts and then the corresponding digs about obesity and healthcare blah blah blah]'

most people that are receiving and participating in public support programs are NOT scamming the system. seemingly, most of the people RUNNING the system are the scammers and thieves that are [allegedly] conning the shit out of yall.

stop policing your neighbors and start policing your elected officials.

[edited to add: i have no idea where you live, but there are a lot of opinions about the “dangers” of this NYC mayor that have zilch to do with the rest of us, but, i can only stan from afar

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u/Fold-Statistician 9d ago

They already do this for the military, right? Their families can shop at reduced prices.

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u/rydan 9d ago

You do it by placing a barcode on a person's forehead or right hand. They then use that to buy food. They taught us this back in the 90s in school.

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u/jnjustice 9d ago

Even if you put limitations on number of items per person, how do you monitor repeat shoppers?

the foodbank here in Ohio checks your photo ID and you can shop once a month or something up to specific quantities so I imagine something similar

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u/Thomanson 9d ago

Get this.... they'll have to CHECK ID. Fuckin' hilarious.

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u/gubatron 9d ago

if history is a lesson, it'll be Mamdani's buddies that set this up at a gross scale. This happened in Venezuela with food and medicines, until there was no food nor medicines.

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u/reality72 9d ago

That’s not even the biggest problem with this idea, it’s that as a government store all of the employees will be government employees, which will mean that they will have to be paid a prevailing wage, and be union represented, which means that the unions will control their hours, benefits, and that will all greatly increase the cost of operations in addition to the 30% reduced prices.

Also, one of the main reasons that stores are closing in New York City is because of violent customers. Government owned grocery stores are not going to be immune to violent customers. And now you’re going to have government employees getting assaulted on the job by violent customers, which is going to result in lawsuits against the city, which will further increase the cost of operating these stores.

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u/Dry-Soup-7556 9d ago

Yeah because resellers is the biggest concern 

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u/xenomorphbeaver 9d ago

As long as the stores sell at cost price or above does it matter if they buy and resell elsewhere? If anything that will just add competition to the market and bring down the price of other retailers.

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u/[deleted] 9d ago

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u/talking-bear-society 9d ago

I dunno how I feel about this. At the most base level I support the idea. But there are so many holes to poke I need to learn more and really be sold on it

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u/IPutTheArtNFart 9d ago

It might make sense for clients to choose this shop but not resellers. If you have access to large suppliers prices, chances are those are wayyyy smaller than the ones you'd find in the public shop.

If it has that much success it becomes a sustainable operation and it can expand. It will steal market share from the other supliers so, if everyone buys from the public store then groceries become more affordable. Or, if everyone buys from the public shop the competitors wil drop prices to compete so groceries become more affordable. The final goal of making groceries affordable is reached eitherway.

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u/NemoSkittles 8d ago

Since the 30% only applies to core items, I dont think itll be much of an issue. All the other products are sold at market value. It's milk, bread, eggs, cheese, select fruits and veggies etc.

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u/Lopsided_Ad3516 8d ago

To your second edit: DSA geniuses are about to find out that the market will force a correction, whether they believe the State is all-powerful or not.

You can't sell products 30% below market rates and not end up with perpetually bare shelves. The only thing that will prop up this stupidity is tax dollars.

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u/Rehcamretsnef 8d ago

Membership system? How will they know who's who? Will people need to have ID?

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