Eight shavers for £2.29 or £1.49 for 10, which do you buy? The cheap ones? What if they were 8 ladies shavers or 10 mens shavers… would you still pick the cheapest?
The argument (which often is true) is that the lady varieties often have extra ingredients or extra parts to them (e.g. gel strips on shavers etc) however in this example there was no obvious difference other than the price.
The problem on this occasion is that most likely Boots will simply increase the price of the gents version in-line with the £2.29 price, however we’re yet to see this happen.
In a statement, Boots said that:
‘Our pricing of the products fell below our standards and we’ve taken action to correct those that do not completely our principles with immediate effect.’
‘We have clear pricing principles that ensure all of our products are priced individually based on a range of factors including formulation, ingredients, and market comparison and were surprised and disappointed to see recent examples in the press that did not reflect our own standards,’ it said in a statement.
‘Boots disposable razors and Botanics eye roll on, are indeed exceptional cases which do not completely meet our principles and we have taken action to correct these with immediate effect.’
The Houses of Parliament were talking about similar issues on Tuesday (2nd Feb 2016).
Labour MP Paula Sherriff said:
“Women are paid less but expected to spend more for products that often have no discernible difference to the equivalent products for men.”
Equalities minister Caroline Dinenage said:
“Actions speak so much louder than words and while women’s voices must unite on this, it is even more powerful if women speak with the power of our purses.”
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