(Trinidad Guardian) Massy Stores Trinidad CEO Roxane De Freitas says boulanger priced at TT$71.34 at one of its stores was an error.
She has apologised to customers for the mistake.
A photo of the produce, circulated on social media on Wednesday, garnered criticism about its exorbitant cost.
Speaking to the media following the opening of Massy Stores at the Croisse in San Juan on Wednesday, however, De Freitas said, “As soon as it was brought to our attention, the product was all removed. The reality is we made a mistake with the pricing. It was removed and repriced.”
She said the company was sorry for any distress but noted it was “not the Massy way of doing business.”
“Sometimes, like anything else, we don’t always get it right,” De Freitas said.
Regarding general prices of goods, De Freitas referenced Namdevco, as she noted that from July, melongene prices have increased by almost 100 per cent, which, she said, could have been attributed to flooding among other factors.
De Freitas said produce prices fluctuate almost daily.
“We turn over goods very quickly. So we would have bought the goods at a higher price. I would say we made a mistake on that price and the good thing with social media is these things come to light very fast so we can treat with it,” she added.
However, De Freitas said this does not take away from the fact that the entire industry is faced with continuous price increases and other challenges, including high shipping costs and the negative effects of the Ukraine/Russia war.
“On a daily basis, price changes and increases come through to us but all prices go up. Some actually do go down based on the different brands and sizes and all we can do in the industry is ensure we price fairly and competitively,” De Freitas said.
She said T&T had one of the fiercest supermarket industries in the Caribbean.
“If you go around the Caribbean, you would see there are much larger monopolies. We may be the largest chain but our market is very fragmented with many players. That alone regulates the industry and the competitiveness,” De Freitas said.
