Drozyzna is killing Poles. We tighten our belts and buy on promotions

Poles are increasingly complaining about high prices, not only in stores. Expensive food, higher electricity and transport fees make our wallets empty quite quickly. “Over the last year, both inflation and prices have hit us quite hard.” – this is according to the latest research by Fonia, the operator of the discount application.

Expensive food bothers almost all of us. Even wealthy people save

The authors of the report argue that as many as 94 percent Poles felt the increase in the cost of living. This applies to both lower-income workers and more affluent people. “More than half of the surveyed people admit that they felt it significantly” – we read. The next data are also not optimistic. The majority of respondents (85%) said that due to price increases, they have to save, and over half (53%) pay attention to the prices of products and services.

— We analyze our shopping basket more carefully than before, looking at what it costs, how much it costs and what we actually need – they point out. They point out that every zloty spent is carefully analyzed by people whose financial situation should not force them to save money. Consumers and food market experts also speak in a similar tone.

High prices in stores. Customers give up more expensive purchases

“It’s expensive, more and more expensive. Product prices change from month to month,” complain customers who see constantly rising prices in stores. Before making purchases, many people check product prices in search of promotions or cheaper groceries. To save on expenses, some consumers refrain from purchasing more expensive products.

“We buy less and less, we often look for cheaper substitutes”- experts say. “Many people go to the store with a list of products so as not to overpay for purchases“ – they add. In turn, stall owners at local markets noticed another disturbing trend. Some vegetables and fruits, such as blueberries or tomatoes, have become a delicacy, especially for people with less money.

Shopping habits. Many people look for promotions and choose cheaper stores

Such conclusions also come from the study. The high price caused many of our compatriots to change their habits. We look for shopping promotions (62%), choose cheaper stores (46%) or buy smaller quantities of products (35%). It was the rising food prices that were indicated by almost every third respondent (31%) as the area where the cost of living increased the most. The next places were taken by the costs of apartments and houses, including the prices of energy carriers (27%) and transport, including fuel (19%).

Few respondents pointed to the increase in prices of electronics, entertainment, clothing or alcohol as a sign of high prices. As the authors of the study argue, this is a derivative of the shopping basket, and consumers usually buy fewer of these products and they do not have such a large impact on the current cost of living.

There is one more, but very important, aspect that affects our concerns and sense of financial security. – Wage increases do not keep pace with price increases, and as a result we can afford less. We are becoming poorer as a society – explains Tomasz Mazek, operations director at the company carrying out the research. For this reason, we have to tighten our belts more and more often.