Prices Madness

Probably to discourage the sales of small bottles drinks for environmental reasons, Australia has one of the weirdest pricing of bottled drinks I have ever seen. A small bottle of drink (those kind of 500ml or 600ml ones) cost about $2+, ranging from like $2.30 to $2.80, which a big bottle of drink costs much less than $2! Usually a bottle will cost about $1 to $1.50. When on discounts, you can easily get 1.5L bottled drinks at 99 cents. I bought a 1.25L bottle of Traffic Stoppers Cola at 69 cents. Doesn't seem to make sense, does it?

The prices of the same items can also differ greatly from store to store, even stores of the same chain. Coles is the name of a chain of supermarkets here in Australia. One Coles at this place can have a special offer on some stuff, while another Coles can offer the same item at a higher price. We bought brussel sprouts at Coles yesterday for $2.99 per kg, while Harris Farms (another store) was selling them at $3.98 per kg. We often had to travel between different stores to get the best deals.

Oh. Don't be misled by the 99 cents etc. They usually just round up the amount. For example, if your total bill is $3.98, they'll round it up and charge you $4. Some places round down as well. So if the bill is $4.82, they'll charge you $4.80.