I remember many years ago when I went shopping for the first time in Sydney that most price tags carried 99 cents.
For example, an item had a price tag of $24.99 and another item was on sale for $15.99. Another example is a pair of shoes with a tag price of $149.00. Add another dollar and presto, you actually spent $150.
Having been used to shopping in San Francisco, I expected a one cent change but eventually found out that there was no such coin in Australia. Much worse, the item marked $24.99 was rounded off to $25.00.
Of course, if one is buying groceries most of which are marked with 99¢ or 98¢, the total would be rounded off to the nearest 5 cents. There is no rounding off if the customer uses a debit card or a credit card.
The intention is very obvious. The customer is made to believe that the item is less expensive with the lesser digit on display. Whom are they kidding? Let’s call a spade a spade! We are actually paying $25 for an item that is marked $24.99 and $150 for that pair of shoes marked $149.99.
There must be a better way to market a product and not deceive a customer into thinking that the product or service is less expensive by a measly one cent. A one dollar reduction or savings means nothing to most shoppers.