A data scientist has figured out the formula behind supermarket pricing strategies in a bid to game the system.
Adam Williamson built an internet browser plug-in which acts as a window into the supermarket pricing machine, predicting patterns with products which often go on sale.
Using the extension, shoppers can see pricing patterns for items such as dishwashing tablets, muesli bars and yoghurt which alternate prices almost weekly.
It’s a simple system of half-price every second week, Williamson told 9News.
“You’re looking at double the cost if you get it on the wrong week,” he said.
“Or as Coles and Woolworths like to say … half price if you get it on the right week.”
Retail analysts have pointed out some Australian states have legislated price transparency for products such as petrol and say these rules should apply more broadly.
“Maybe we should see something similar in groceries, where …