Buy-one-get-one, 10 for $10, stock up and save – when most grocery shoppers these days just want to pay a fair price for their everyday needs, have traditional grocery promotions reached their expiration date?
Based on what it’s hearing from shoppers, one retail consulting firm says it’s time for grocery stores to rethink their old promotional playbook, stop offering shoppers what they don’t want and give them more of what they do.
That’s the main takeaway from AlixPartners’ “2026 Grocery Shopper Perspectives” report, which finds that a majority of shoppers are no longer getting their groceries from traditional grocery stores, and that outdated, unimpressive promotions are part of the problem.
“Consumers are experiencing ‘discount burnout,'” the report found, as “tried-and-true pricing and promotion tactics aren’t engaging and compelling shoppers like they once did.”
Only 49% of shoppers surveyed for the report spend most of their grocery budget in traditional grocery stores, with most getting the majority of their groceries at big-box, discount, club, convenience and online stores instead. 20% of shoppers said they don’t shop traditional grocery stores at all.
So “traditional grocers who want to stay competitive need to change,” AlixPartners warned, by rethinking their promotions, prices and private label products.
The first problematic practice they highlight is “high-low pricing,” where grocery stores charge high regular prices in order to afford lower sale prices. All that does, they say, is signal to shoppers that they’re overpaying for anything that’s not on sale. The second is treating store brands as a “side project,” failing to offer alternatives to the big brands that shoppers really want. And third, is when grocers claim to have low, low prices – when they really don’t.
“Our survey shows that few shoppers believe the hype,” AlixPartners found. Only 17% of shoppers said their primary store has low prices compared to others. Most say their stores’ prices are fair, at best.
And many aren’t willing to jump through hoops to save money. Nearly two-thirds of shoppers said they like getting a good deal, but it’s often just too much work. When asked what promotions they refuse to engage with, 39% said they will not buy more than they had planned in order to save money (such as “buy three and save”), and 30% will not spend more than planned to reach a certain threshold (as in, “save $5 when you spend $30”). 24% said they will not use an app to get a digital deal, and 17% won’t even clip a coupon.
Many shoppers say they’re willing to pay fair – rather than illusory low – prices in exchange for better quality, service, unique store brands, or other attributes. So traditional grocery stores’ emphasis on sales, deals and low prices, AlixPartners argues, is the wrong approach.
“Unless your name is Walmart, Costco, BJ’s, Lidl or ALDI, the dominant theme of your marketing should not be ‘low prices,'” Matt Hamory, AlixPartners Partner & Managing Director, advised grocers. “Consumers are certainly looking for value, and price is a non-negotiable aspect of it — but the message has to be credible. If consumers don’t believe it, not only does that marketing not achieve its goals, but it may be compromising trust.”
The bottom line, the report concludes, is that “the rules of the game have changed, yet many traditional grocers are still relying on an old playbook.” Marketing shouldn’t focus on price but “on the company’s strengths.” Store brands “should be an area of investment and innovation.” And the traditional high-low pricing strategy “should be dispensed in favor of an everyday fair price strategy.”
Couponers and deal-seekers might object to that advice. After all, those who are willing to put in the time to play the games and jump through the hoops know that doing so means they can pay a lot less than those who don’t. But with more shoppers getting their groceries at stores with everyday low prices, it appears couponers and deal-seekers are increasingly outnumbered. AlixPartners’ advice – and whether grocers take it to heart – could end up determining whether shoppers who like to shop the sales, will have any more sales to shop.
