Procter & Gamble is planning to raise prices on several of its items in the midst of increasing inflation.
CNBC reported that the company made the announcement during an earnings call on Wednesday, saying that it has already informed retailers about an increase in prices on certain products, “like Tide detergent and Downy dryer sheets, slated to take effect Feb. 28. On Tuesday, the company told retailers that some personal health care products will see higher prices in mid-April.”
The company has already increased prices on ten item groupings, including “baby care, feminine care, adult incontinence, family care, home care, hair care, grooming, oral care and skincare,” per CNBC.
“The degree and timing of these moves are very specific to the category, brand, and sometimes the product form within a brand. This is not a one-size-fits-all approach,” CFO Andre Schulten reportedly said on the earnings call.
The price hike will also impact international customers, not only those in America, per The Hill.
The company appears to be hoping that customers will continue to buy from familiar brands, even if the prices go up, rather than switching to a less expensive alternative.
“Pricing has been a positive contributor to our top line for 17 out of the last 18 years, 42 out of the last 45 quarters. When you have a business model that’s founded on innovation that provides higher levels of delight, solves problems better upon the consumers, you are able to charge a little bit more,” CEO Jon Moeller said Wednesday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
“While it’s very early for these commodity-based price increases, to date, we see positive signs,” Moeller said on “Squawk Box.” “Probably 20% to 30% less price elasticity than we were expecting, and if you look at, for example, private-label market shares — private label being the lowest price offered on the market — they’re down.”
Moeller noted that there still could be problems ahead connected to prices.
“There will be bumps in the road,” he said. “There will be cases where we take pricing, and we either encounter the consumer reaction that some of you are rightly looking to or a competitive reaction.”
The news comes as companies continue to adjust to rising inflation and supply chain issues, while customers change their expectations and alter their budgets for the coming year.
As The Daily Wire reported last week, “[w]holesale prices rose at the fastest pace in recorded history last month, according to new data released by the U.S. government.”
“The Producer Price Index for final demand increased 0.2 percent in December, seasonally adjusted,” the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. “This rise followed advances of 1.0 percent in November and 0.6 percent in October. On an unadjusted basis, final demand prices moved up 9.7 percent in 2021, the largest calendar-year increase since data were first calculated in 2010.”
The Daily Wire also reported that “the Labor Department revealed data showing that in December, consumer prices rose by 7% over the previous year, the fastest increase in roughly 40 years. The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the consumer price index increased 7%, the fastest increase since 1982.”