High prices

Recently I chatted with a local merchant who runs a small store on the west side. I mentioned that I was in the process of moving here and he asked me what I thought of the prices the markets charge for things here. Prices of everything on Kaua'i are decidedly high, as I have blogged previously.

"So what do you think about prices here?"
"Oh yes, every time I shop it's astonishing how much you pay things here."
"Do you know why prices are high?"
"Well, they say most everything in stores has to be shipped from the mainland. Plus, it must come through Honolulu and then shipped over here by Young Brothers or Matson on a second leg."
"True, but then why are prices on the Big Island much better than here? Their stuff gets shipped in the same."
"I didn't know that. I have no idea why that would be."
"And did you know that prices weren't so high three years ago here?"
"Really? That is about how long I have been coming here."
"Yep, that's when Times market bought Big Save."
"But on the island we have Safeway and Foodland, too."
"Not on the west side we don't."
"We do have Ishihara and Sueoka Markets."
"Too small scale, they can't compete on prices."
"So you are saying it's lack of competition?"
"I'm saying thank goodness we have Costco now."

I think he has it right. Kaua'i is just too small to have very competition. Not only are there well under 100,000 people on the island, for the most part folks stay in the region they live or commute and wouldn't regularly venture too far from home for regular shopping. People living on the west side or north shore have nearly an hour's drive if they want to shop in another part of the island, so the few local stores are really the only practical choice the have. On the west side there are several Big Save markets but other than the small groceries mentioned above, you have to drive to Lihue or Kapa'a to reach another brand supermarket. So there are even tinier captive markets at the ends of the road of perhaps under ten thousand, and the merchants know they can get higher prices because people really have no alternative.

The stores do tend to run sales from time to time. I don't know but I imagine when they do overprice stock enough to discourage buying it builds up and then they have to drop prices to move it, so in a way it does balance out somewhat.

Best strategy here is not to make a shopping list of exactly what you want and then go buy that. Rather, walk the aisles and see what is marked down or doesn't seem eye-poppingly expensive and then creatively see how you can make meals around the lesser expensive things that are on sale. Also, it's good for many reasons to buy all the fresh local-grown produce you can at the Sunshine markets.

I do not mean to complain: this is capitalism and the local economy, both locals and visitors, has long since adjusted to the realities of high prices.