In message , Dave Arquati
writes

We were comparing baked beans to TfL tickets. Annabel rightly pointed
out that Tesco might offer 2 cans of baked beans for 40p when one can
costs 25p. That's not a bad thing - you're saving money!

I've never known them do that (and I don't think that is what Annabel
meant). Baked beans last for years, so the consumer would need only half
the quantity and thus Tesco would lose out.

Much more common is to offer two bags of veg or salad (or two almost
expired pizzas) for a reduced price. People fall for the offer but
cannot consume that much fresh food before it goes off - so they throw
away the out-of-date goods.

They then need to buy the same quantity of goods as before ... so
instead of selling two lots of goods at 25p, Tesco has managed to sell
one at 40p and the other at 25p (if not 40p again!).

Sadly, this is becoming *very* common (especially in Sainsburys, but
also Tesco).

Getting back on topic, rail-fare offers will only make an impact if a
reasonable number of people can benefit from them - if the benefit is
limited to a few people, the benefit to the TOC will similarly be very
limited.

--
Paul Terry