
By Elliot Podwill
Suckers beware. That’s the implicit warning when tourists and (even natives) buy a hotdog from street vendors in front of the Museum of Natural History or on Columbus Circle. The majority don’t list their prices, sometimes charging the ‘right’ person a staggering amount. Does this warning apply as well to Fairway, our bedrock supermarket? In one case at least, you betcha.
I did my Thanksgiving shopping at Fairway a few days before the holiday. On a stand of its own in the absolutely packed store, in a corner that receives lots of traffic, not far from the dairy and the deli counter, stood a pyramid of Eli’s Stuffing Mix. Like many other shoppers, I grabbed a couple of bags, assuming it might be better than standard brands since Eli’s carries the Zabar’s imprint. I looked near the stand, then on the bags themselves, for a price. None was to be found. But hey, how much can a bag of small crisp squares of bread cost?
Going through the checkout line, I was startled to see, as the items were rung up, that each bag cost $20 (ok, ok, I don’t want to exaggerate: $19.99). I was tempted to tell the cashier to remove the bags of mix (hardly a “mix”: the ingredients include only flour, water, yeast, and salt), but the line was long; I didn’t want to slow the cashier down, and if I returned the bags I’d have to go to another equally crowded store to buy the same product. The two bags cost almost $12 more than the substantial turkey I bought for $28.63.
Days later, online investigation and perusal of stuffing mixes in several stores revealed this to be a product that generally sells in the $6-$8 range. The same brand is for sale at Eli’s Manhattan on the UES for $12, a more upscale place to shop than a supermarket. That Fairway displayed the Eli’s Mix so prominently — without posting a price — a few days before a major food-buying holiday suggests they knew that many shoppers, just like me, would grab a bag or two and not make a fuss at checkout as we’d be more likely to do on a less hectic day.
I returned to Fairway a week later and spoke with a customer service representative, who told me Fairway regulations prohibit giving refunds for products that customers buy, and later feel are overpriced. However, she said I could return my remaining unopened bag for a refund. The product is not currently for sale. Let’s hope that remains true during the pre-Christmas shopping rush.
Most of us wish Fairway well. It’s not as good as it used to be, perhaps for reasons tied to its financial miseries. But it’s still valuable — well located for some, diversely stocked, just plain useful. Nevertheless, at least some of us will shop there less or boycott it entirely if we feel taken advantage of. That was my first response after ogling my receipt. But yes, I’ve been back, a matter of convenience. I’ll get individual items elsewhere when convenient. However much the place profits by overcharging for a product and not listing the price, the loss created by shoppers going elsewhere will more than offset the gain. Too bad. They need us and we need them, a partnership easily disrupted.
I use their option to scan and bag my items as I shop. Beware. Many of the scanned items scan higher than posted!!!!!! Always end up at the customer service desk for price adjustments!!!!! Happens too frequently.
We’ve largely given up on Fairway, for a variety of reasons, but this was one of them — constant mispricing, and if you say ‘wait, sorry, the sign said it was….’ it’s a sigh from the cashier, aggression from the mgr who will half the time tell you to go get it or show them, and understandable irritation from the endless line of people waiting behind you. Then it’s ‘just go to customer service’ where it’s another line, waiting, having you go show them the item in their own store, and a store credit.
It’s always ‘oh, someone didn’t enter the right price’ or somehow ‘oh, we just didn’t change the shelf price’ which a mgr somehow expects to mean you pay the randomly higher price.
Plus crappy, overpriced produce, rotten items (do NOT shop the cold bakery case), old items… all overpriced…
Better produce next door at Citarella. Some higher, but items like lettuce, etc. even cheaper. Citarella’s produce is always clean and fresh.
P.S. (to my prior comment). Trader Joe’s at 72 and Broadway is a true pleasure. From the stock people to the cashiers (I think they all rotate), shopping there is always a positive experience. They are hiring from the same employment pool, as Fairway, no? It must just come down to management and corporate philosophy.
Trader Joe’s is indeed very pleasant…if you don’t mind escalators. Personally, I love a supermarket on one street level, thank you. And I do want my recognizable brands…like SKIPPY peanut butter and GOLD’S or BOOKBINDER’S horseradish, not TraderJoe’s. That’s why I prefer Fairway. And as far as the value component, then just compare 3 items from Pioneer (Columbus & 74) with Fairway. But if location is truly important, Fairway is very convenient. So for me paying a few bucks more – with less schlepping – is worth it. But let’s see what Morton-Williams offers when it opens a new market in Fall, 2023 on Broadway & W. 69th.
There was a podcast about Trader Joe’s philosophies and staffing/hiring on Planet Money on NPR I believe — they purposefully overstaff so there are always meant to be workers out on the floor, visible, ready to help, and they rate being chatty and outgoing highly for hiring, and encourage cashiers (and yes, everyone rotates), to chat with customers. They also pay decently over min. I think the TJ starts like $18-21/hr.
I know there are concerns, esp since the pandemic, and there are unionization issues, but it still seems more tilting toward better than worse in terms of hiring and treatment of their workers, which I think is reflected in interactions with their staff.
Mispricing at Fairway happens ALL the time at Fairway to me. They always claim the computer wasn’t updated (in other words, someone isn’t doing their job). Fine…once,…twice…three times…maybe. It’s been happening for years. This is a real business under Wakefern Food Corporation (also owns Shoprite). So, not a mom-and-pop store.
It just shows a gross disrespect for the customer. Fairway is not a discount store by far. The community deserves better.
I have found this as well. I almost think they know that because they’re so surly, shoppers won’t want the hassle of having to engage with them about the incorrect scan. When this happens, I just put my stuff back and leave. I’m not playing their stupid game. I shop there because it’s really close to home, but the place reeks of dishonesty lately and I’d rather go a bit out of my way now than buy in to this nonsense.
Don’t “put it back”. Just leave it wherever you happen to be. They have overworked staff that will take care of it. The more this happens the better the chances they will fix it. They often charge a price that is different from the price marked on the product. Thomas’s English Muffins are an example. A double package of muffins was marked “suggested” price of $5.95, at the register, it was $6.45. Yes, it was a suggested price, but when has anyone found the price paid to be higher than the suggested price, in a supermarket, in NYC?
As Elliot Podwill himself admits many retail places do have all items marked clearly with prices. This is fairly common in good majority of NYC supermarkets and has been so for decades. He also admits seeing price of $19.99 per bag being rung up at checkout. Still he purchased the bags of stuffing out of convenience and not wishing to make a fuss; fair enough….
Had Mr. Podwill whipped out his phone then and did a quick internet search he would have found other places selling Eli’s stuffing mix cheaper. But when you factor in travelling from UWS to UES and back just for a bag of stuffing, how much money are you really saving? Don’t forget to add cost of your time and effort.
Finally yes, there is a huge science and psychology behind retail end caps and placement of other items. None of it is random with managers, students of retail merchandising and others spend hours learning.
Hell yes, I would have returned it on the spot. You can always pick up a replacement at a local bodega or even buy fancy fresh bread for half the price and just cut it into cubes.
While Fairway may not have been inclined to offer a refund later based on buyer’s regret, they may have violated basic consumer protection laws. All products must be displayed with a clearly visible price. Since there was a whole display and not just a single bag you found out of place, they probably violated the law. Sometimes it’s good to remind business that you are aware of your rights.
I have no idea how Fairway is still in business. It’s “flavor” is gone. The checkout lines with a cashier are never-ending, and many employees will snap at you for no reason. I stopped going there years ago.
Bring back WALDBAUM’S.
Only Brooklynites and Long Islanders will remember. Great prices and a family run enterprise! Thank you Julia Waldbaum for the memories.
I agree with all of the observations here: Fairway is not Fairway. It’s an experiment in urban food retail by a suburban food retailer. The soul is gone. The offerings are mixed up and dumbed down; much is gone; things are constantly moved. The bagels and breads are the worst kind of flavorless mass produced junk; fish and meat departments are particularly awful now and I miss the great guys behind the counter and their warm service. But I have found the staff to still have something of the old ethos. Invariably helpful and kind. They are as much victims of soulless Wakefern as we are. Unfortunately we still have to shop there but get more and more elsewhere: TJ’s; street stands; farmers markets;the great bread and pastry shops in the neighborhood. I can’t imagine a good future for Fairway. But it’s more than just a grocery store. It had a key role in making the neighborhood.
Ditto My wife was nearly assaulted by one of their delivery shoppers last year.
That is a shocking markup. I bought Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix at (of all places, Gristedes) and it was $2.99/bag … the price was prestamped on the bag by the manufacturer.
I purchased Pepperidge farm cookies & the store owner put a higher price over the stamped price ,I told him that it was illegal, he gave no response so i reported him, a week later his higher price was removed
Nope. As long as the original price is obscured by the sticker with the new price, this is entirely legal.
I picked up a bag of pretzels at Fairway – with the price imprinted on the bag by the manufacturer. They scanned at a higher price. When I went to customer service, I was told “the (higher) price IS the price you pay.” I put them back. (Probably should have asked for a manager)
Don’t reshelve it for them, just leave it with the cashier or scanner. They might get the message.
Stores are not allowed to put a higher price on any product that has the price stamped on it ,they can go lower but not higher, it’s against the law, call BBB, I called & they made an appearance @ the business I reported & fined them.
“…[sic] & fined them.”
No they didn’t. The Better Business Bureau is a private organization and has no authority to fine anyone.
The better business bureau isn’t a government agency and has no authority to issue fines.
It is against the law to charge for higher price when item has two prices on it. Few people know this and even less question it so that is why it emboldens stores to deliberately rip off its customers. If more people speak up, more changes will be made.
Sad to hear such of a response!
That’s a low blow from something that has “fair” in its name. It would never have occurred to me to check the price for something like that that surely must be rather cheap, right. I hope this is not common.
I once grabbed a soda from the fridge of single item drinks because I was thirsty, it rang up at $7.99. Went back, grabbed another brands drink and it rang up even higher. Called a cashier over, turned out it was ringing up an 8 pack for my single can of soda 🙁 I only go to fairway since it’s on my way back from tjs so I’ll grab a few items I wasn’t able to find there, otherwise it’s just too stressful to have to look up each items cost as I check out. I’m very confused as to why there are still so many people shopping there when it consistently comes up as double the price for basic items.
New York City has a truth-in-pricing law, which I believe requires display of the price of an item at the point of display. I don’t think it provides recourse for buyers, however.
In some states if at the price at the cash register is higher than the price should be (fraud) there’s a buyer gets a $$$ penalty.
Not that it excuses either party, but Eli Zabar charges $12/bag for the same stuff on their own site. Now that I think about it, they also wanted $12 for an 8oz bottle of OJ at LGA.
I only patronize Fairway for Greek yogurt (Cabot’s 2% is usually on sale) and other loss leader items. Yesterday when I was there I saw that half-and-half was $1.99, so I grabbed it. However, when the cashier rang it up, it was $2.49, so I said I didn’t want it.
@LK You should have told the cashier to go and check the price and then to delete the spurious charge and replace it with the correct one. If he/she refuses to do that, call a manager over. As others have remarked here, they MUST charge you the posted price or lower, but to charge you more is actually illegal
W e were visiting friends in Washington, DC. Three times at t supermarket there, items rang up incorrectly = each time customer service refunded the entire amount – not just the difference. If it mis-scans, it’s free. (Not at Fairway where they even questioned a photo I ‘d taken of the sign)
Yes; it happened to me yesterday. I purchased Oikos yogurt. Having had issues with pricing before, I took iPhone pics of price and product for both large size and smaller size containers. The supervisor yelled and demanded to see my phone & immediately sent clerks to check pricing of both products. When they returned and saw that the photos were correct, Sonia, supervisor, did not apologize. But they corrected the price after 25 minute haggling and wait!!
Ever since it was acquired by ShopRite, which is owned by yet another company, standards and service plummeted.
I gave up my Fairway habit. No regrets.
Thank you for letting us know about this practice.
I’m now very disappointed in Fairway.
It used to be my number one supermarket, but not so much in the last few years. Now after this incident I feel Fairway culture is gone for good.
Just complain. The cashier can void it. Gristedes does this all the time. Or pay then scoot over to manager window for a refund. I get your complaint and it can be reported as price gouging too. But no need to meekly accept it.
We’re Upper West Siders, for goodness sake!
If you feel like you’re getting ripped off or charged an INCORRECT price…then SPEAK UP by all means! Speak to the On-Duty Manager and tell them it’s not acceptable for them to make these sloppy errors!
I didn’t want to get back in line with my new bags of stuffing. I knew I could complain at a later, less crowded date. Got a refund yesterday for the bag I didn’t use. It was necessary two days before Thanksgiving for me to complete my shopping.
Elliot, author of piece.
Fairway just keeps going from bad to worse. It’s a pale shadow of what it once was, in so many ways that I’ve stopped counting. The quality of the products, the horrible self checkout system, the meat and cheese departments, produce, etc, etc, etc, not to mention possible illegal price gouging such as in this article. I used to go there all the time, almost every day. Now I go to Citarella and even Broadway Farm at 85th & Broadway.
I love self checkout! the only thing wrong are the technically unsavy people requiring too much hand holding, but with Fairways help those are becoming fewer and fewer.
I don’t get what’s to love about it. The old express checkout with clerks was faster because they knew the codes to type in. Now you have to do a search, wait for approvals on certain items, etc., and they probably fired ten people for this. Self-checkout for grocery produce items is not faster, it’s just cheaper for the owners.
Self check-out is great because hardly anyone uses it. The key is to scan as you put the item in your shopping bag (so you don’t have to do any research at check-out), and if you see the price is wrong, take a photo of the price sign. I’ve never had a problem getting Customer Service to make a correction. The system makes going to Fairway for even one lonely item a breeze….in spite of the reported frequent errors.
Zabar’s sold me the same bag for $15. Although, the bag was labeled. Maybe it’s an UWS premium
Fairway was bought by Shoprite. It is NOT what it used to be at all.
Just look at the price before you put it in your bag.
It sounds like an error on the way from shelf the scan. It’s not legal as a business practice (see Barzinis) but are we really using this one example to suggest Fairway is running a con?
I’ve found it basically the same since the takeover. They reduced some duplicate sections. The phone-checkout system is phenomenal. Selection remains pretty good and diverse.
Since Fairway went corporate, but for its legitimate sales (I love how they boast that $.20 off is a sale), it’s no longer competitive. Who would’ve thought Pioneer could have better prices on many items.
I also picked up two bags of this stuffing on Monday before Thanksgiving. The cashier was kind enough to warn me before she rang it up. I ran over to the bread aisle and pick up a few boxes of Stove Top stuffing for less than $1 each.
I purchased two bags of Buffalo wings 4lbs each from my neighborhood store, I realized they were $29.99 a bag when I got home, I was so upset I reported the store to the AG office for price gouging, after they investigated I was sent a 60 dollar refund from the store, They said it was priced wrong and apologized. Sometimes you have to report the store for overcharging. Also prices are supposed to be displayed in the supermarkets.
Exactly. If more people spoke up, stores would be less likely to do this. They rely on people being too busy or too afraid to speak up. In this economy, everyone is hurting but corporations still make out better than individuals.
I never buy without a price. Haven’t been to Fairway since the uptown one closed but they never did that before.
its worse than shop rite and worse than Fairway , the kosher department is the worst
since the old Fairway changed owners we would not go back
Agree that the kosher department is poor.
Stopped using Fairway a few weeks ago; they barely even have stock so it’s more of a hobby-owner, not a real business.
I noticed this when shopping for Thanksgiving groceries. A lot of staples were overpriced. A whole foods pumpkin pie was $20! I went to west side Market and got it for $7
Fairway, at 74th Street, really Wakefern, making another argument to shop elsewhere, especially once the new Morton Williams opens down Broadway in the fall of 2023.
I think Morton Williams uses Wakefern as its supplier. It may be some sort of partnership.
I lived in the ues where Morton Williams was one of the only options and found it horrible. Quality much worse than Whole Foods, prices felt like they were marked up at least 3x versus fairways 2x. It would be interesting to see a real comparison once it opens up.
Supermarkets aren’t generally very good on the UES.
Haven’t been in a Whole Foods in years, did Amazon fix the problems?
There are significant staple items that cost much less at M-W than at Fernway. It’s not universal, but why hassle one’s self if M-W is convenient to said items. Fairway is cheaper for ice cream and potato chips.
Morton Williams is the best(the one on 11th av) indeed when it opens on 69th and Broadway we can all desert abusive Fairway forever!
Just use the mobile app and scan it on the spot
Looking forward to the opening of the new Morton Williams Supermarket on West End Ave between 68th and 69th, though it won’t be until Fall of 2023. It’s a schlep from where I live, but based on my experience with other MW supermarkets, I’m expecting a diversity of good quality products, helpful employees, and honest prices. TBD!
Stopped in at the MW on 58th and Columbus just to see what to expect when the 68th-69th St store opens. Hugely disappointed. Meats a very poor quality. Practically no fish at all. Produce mediocre. Cheese department limited almost exclusively to Boars Head. They seemed geared mainly to sell foods from an expensive salad bar. If they don’t up their game, I won’t be shopping there. I don’t care how convenient it is.
Be prepared to be disappointed then. MW is another urban mark-up brand like Duane Reade, DAg or Fairway. Outrageous prices compared to Aldi or TJ…. which is the whole point.
It’s going to be on Broadway & 69th, not West End. The Morton Williams on 60th St is on West End.
Wasn’t the new Morton Williams supposed to be on Broadway btwn 68-69?
Yes, The Morton-Williams Market is taking over the entire retail frontage along Broadway in the Dorchester Towers between West 68th & 69th Streets, opposite Loews AMC Lincoln Square Theater. Scheduled to open Autumn, 2023., it will add to the price/quality/customer service competition in trying to lure business away from Fairway’s and Trader Joe’s target market consumer base.
That’s good news for all UWS customers!
Ty for the info, I think it’s great news!
Having grown up on the UWS, I have been going to Fairway for most of my life, first as a child with my mom and later on as an adult on my own. I can actually recall when it was a neighborhood supermarket (about the same size as Pioneer) before it took over the spots next to it on both sides and expanded into the really big market that it is today. Up till now, I have been a very loyal customer. Always found their fresh fruits, vegetables and most other products to be both the highest quality and best-priced in the area, even before gentrification took over. They were the only store in the area that carried eggs from humanely-treated free range chickens before other stores jumped on that bandwagon. Lately, though, I too have found variances in prices from what is listed on the shelves where the item is located to when I check out at the register (and I always use the self-checkout). I have learned to become vigilant about this as I notice a number of discrepancies. Items marked as being on sale for 1.99, for example, ringing up as higher (likely the regular price). Never have I come across such a huge mark-up as the Eli’s Stuffing, though. However, I never have an issue when I see a price discrepancy. I simply ask one of the self-checkout assistants to either delete the item or fix it. It’s sad to have to be alert for this kind of thing, but I don’t feel it is any different than if I go to any other kind of store and the cashier tries to charge me a higher price for, say, an article of clothing that is listed as being reduced. If enough people complain, they will stop (or at least drastically reduce) the practice. If a store refuses to either lower the price at the register (or offer a refund right after purchase), then that’s the time to file an official complaint.
They did give me a refund yesterday for one of the two bags I bought, though there was a bit of a problem with the clerk saying the purchase consisting of both bags while I was returning only one for half the total price. I’m the author of the essay you’re responding to. Thanks for reading.
Elliot
So it’s ok for price gouging of food but not gasoline? If gasoline costs $3.50 a gallon and one station decided to price gouge by charging $8.49 a gallon, guess who complains and reaches the news media for all the world to know? If this market price gouges deliberately just before a major holiday and no one complains then don’t write about it. Complaints should be filed with local consumer agencies. Reaching out to news media may bring attention to store management and repercussions.
Fairway prices are through the roof. $8.99 for TemptTee Cream Cheese.
$46/lb for Pecorino with Black Truffle is gererally $30/lb elsewhere.
It s not Fairway. It is ShopRite.
.And the self-checkout lines are a nightmare. They have very few actual cashiers.
I’ve shopped there for 34 years and it was never pleasant, but this is a whole new level of garbage.
MG
Same thing happens with displays in Wegman’s. Be aware if you ever shop there.
Wow, when I lived in NJ, I shopped at both Wegmans and ShopRite. I never noticed this sort of price gouging, but that was 10 years ago.
Let’s NOT forget about the Poland Spring Gallon-sized water, which used to cost me $7.00 per case of six gallon-bottles.
NOW, they charge me $2.99 for each individual gallon-bottle. From $7.00 per case, to $17.94 per case; and we’re a disabled couple.
What a “set” they’ve got !!!
Why are you buying plastic-bottled water? NYC tap water is some of the best water on the planet.
Why not get a water filter and save the schlepping and stop trashing the planet with plastic. (No it is not really recycled. 95% ends up in landfill or oceans.)
Similar things happen at Morton Williams on 60th St. and west end. Prices are outrageous and far exceed the Brooklyn fair on 62nd and West End.
Dispute the charge with the credit card company. You will receive a full refund and the store will have to pay the cc company
A credit card company will not refund your money just because you think the price is too high. They will only intervene if there’s something truly wrong like a product not arriving by mail even after you have paid, or if a store refuses to take a return. And you still often have to attempt to deal with the store first. The writer of the article said that Fairway refunded the cost of one unopened package so technically they did what they were required to do.
Fairway definitely has it’s problems. I would guess that at least two thirds of their money comes in through the self checkout machines but there are always two of them out of order and on the Saturday before Thanksgiving four of the machines were out of order. This isn’t accidental. They just don’t have someone on staff who really cares. I also agree that many of the staff seems angry.
I’m shopping at Trader Joe’s more often as well as Jubilee Market on Freedom Place and for those interested in traveling down to West End Avenue and 62nd there is Brooklyn Fare in the former Western Beef space. The giant Morton Williams store is south of there and they have a kosher freezer section.
We vote with our pocketbooks!!! Good luck to all my neighbors!!!
To be fair, the staff has seemed angry for decades.
On the bright side, however, at least they’re clearly empowered—and potentially encouraged?—to mistreat customers without fear of employer reprisal.
Show up at the register with another brand too if the item you want is not priced. Then tell them you don’t want the unpriced if it rings in to high or the priced item if it’s on budget.
Since ShopRite bought Fairway, it has gone straight downhill, becoming a shadow of the essential UWS store it once was. While we bemoan the loss of quality, low cost food markets in the neighborhood, I am surprised how almost nobody (commenters to this article, elected officials, community leaders) raise the devastating impact of Fresh Direct on neighborhood grocers. The concern I have is that FD gives itself an unfair advantage by commandeering our streets to run its business, parking its trucks all day every day in vehicles lanes. (For example, for years a FD truck has been blocking a lane of Amsterdam Avenue at West 103rd Street.) Unlike USPS, UPS and other deliveries that make short stops and move on, FD parks trucks in the same spot all day and uses our streets as delivery hubs, with the cost of whatever tickets they get a drop in the bucket compared to the UWS rent their competitors pay. Until elected officials and community leaders take on FD, we can expect our grocery options to keep getting worse.
Agree wholeheartedly with this (though the decline of Fairway began long before ShopRite bought the 74th St store).
Fresh Direct is in some ways a simple real estate arbitrage play – the cost of traffic tickets for using public streets as waystations would be far surpassed by the costs if they had to use traditional brick and mortar warehousing.
It’s not just Fairway. Many shops either have no price on display or charge a different price than the displayed at the register. I often photograph the display price as I shop (including bar code) to show the cashier or self-checkout assistant. Or else I leave the register to dash to the aisle to photograph and return to show them (it is faster and more accurate than having store staff go search). They give me the display price or I refuse to buy. On average it is 1-3 items every time I shop at Fairway, Whole Foods, Target, Rite Aid, … infrequently but occasionally at Key Food, CVS and Duane Reade. Never at Trader Joe’s that I recall.
My local store routinely has sale items ring up at the non sale price. I point it out, and they call a manager who adjusts it.
But they don’t correct it in the system. So they continue overcharging everyone else.
To do it by accident is illegal. To do it after you indisputably know is intentional fraud. I an very sorry to hear Fairway has sunk this low.
My local store is barely making it so I don’t bust them. But Fairway is a cash cow. They need to get busted till they stop intentionally defrauding people.
At least at Whole Foods they will give you the item for free if it scans wrong.
Given the author’s account and many of the comments, I wonder if Fairway should be reported to the State AG’s office.
I’ve experienced price gouging at Fairway for months. I finally called 311 and asked them to submit a Dept. of Consumer Affairs complaint against the store. However the extremely poor way that the supervisors and other workers treat the customer at Fairway is humiliating and inhumane. I will report them. Awaiting word from Linda Rosenthal’s office on where to file that complaint.
I stopped going to Fairway years ago. Rude customers, rude employees and products sometimes sold after expiration. It used to be great, that was a long time ago.
No surprise here. I can echo what others have said . While I have almost entirely switched to Trader Joe’s, I occasionally shop at Fairway and use their app. Invariably, the loaded prices are incorrect- always in their favor. While shopping at Fairway in the past was never pleasant, at least the prices were low and the quality was reasonably high. These days it’s the reverse- low quality and high prices. Such a shame.
Buyer be ware! If you see an item with no price attached, ask for the price before purchasing, even if you are in a hurry. A bag of stuffing mix for $19.99 is outrageous, no matter the moniker. If there were very few purchases of this item, a Fairway price reduction would have happened to move the product out of the store.
The reason Fairway isn’t what it was is that it’s now a Stop and Shop, and several teams away from the way it was when three guys owned it, ran it, and were in the store everey day. They also left unbought produce for free in bins on 74th Street for those in need. But it isn’t onl Fairway: one of Trader Joe’s best items (the autumnal pumpin cranberry crisps, selling for $3.99 a box) were boiught up by bottom feeders and resold on Ebay for $30. I suggested limiting the number of boxes allowable per customer, but the greedy will find a path around that right away.
I’ve shopped at Fairway for 10+ years and the quality has gone down and general customer service is hit or miss . As an EMT, they actually have a Fire/Police/EMS 10% discount which helps (EMS is not considered an ‘essential’ service in NY state so we don’t make a lot of money) – I was told by an employee that I only apply for the discount if I’m in my uniform. So I asked for the manager and she said the same thing – I told them I’m meal prepping for the whole week and I don’t wear my uniform on my days off. I showed them my hospital ID and my state EMT license. They still said I don’t get a discount. I asked for the store manager who promptly came, yelled at everyone and gave me the discount and apologized.
I wrote a complaint to the company and ever since I just show my ID and I get the discount.
Always ask for the highest authority and question what they do.
I’ve noticed in a couple of cases, that both CVS and Harmon’s have a online price that consistently is lower than that of their stores in Manhattan, Harmon’s seemed very willing to adjust it, but a lot of pushback from CVS, The manager there told me it was a “National” price, although the item in question had the “online” price with a window to request the item at a local store at the lower price. He finally adjusted the price for me.
As Manhattanites, this two-tier pricing is reprehensible.
I do not live on NYC anymore but always lived on the UWS. Shopping at Fairway was a godsend when it opened. It truly was a gourmet food store. It has not been that for many many, many years now. Unfortunately, price gouging is so common and we as consumers must always be aware.
Fairway is an empty shell of what it once was. Like all NY’ers we are fast to complain that ‘things ain’t what they used to be.’ But Fairway has become one of the worst markets as far as quality and customer service. Wakefern decimated the cheese, meat and fish departments. Their produce is nowhere near what it once was- $4.99 for a wilted head of lettuce – gimme a break! I won’t shop there if I can help it.
Such a shame…when it was privately owned and managed, and had only one location, they would’ve never hustled like that. In fact, in the eighties you could do deals with them for bulk fresh produce etc. Another example of everything that went wrong with the UWS…
Yes ! Buyers beware. …. similar issue with the purchase of 6 Yahrzeit candles. . … Charged three times the amount that sign indicated. Wasn’t worth my time going back there , especially when they have an attitude. Their prepared food is very poor quality…. even got my family sick ! Can’t wait for the new Morton Williams to open.! After 35 years of shopping in Fairway , I am done !!
None of the comments address what should be glaringly evident as a course of action: report this where something can be done and it is made public. I’m not sure as to whom to report it to., but this is possibly illegal and certainly unethical. At the very least contact one of the local TV stations or the Times, News, Post. They should not be allowed to get away with that egregious a markup.