Volume discounts encourage consumers to buy more. Banning such discounts should then lead to consumers buying less. This is the thinking behind banning multiple-unit discounts, including multibuy price promotions, to curb excessive harmful consumption of alcohol and high-fat, -sugar, and -salt (HFSS) foods. However, our analysis questions the validity of this thinking, which ignores the possible restraining effect of volume discounts. We find that such a ban for retailing alcohol in Scotland increased rather than reduced sales. Retailers switched to using more straight (single-unit) discounts, which encouraged high-consumption households to increase their shopping frequency and buy more.

Banning volume discounts to curb excessive consumption: A cautionary tale / Bokhari, Farasat A. S.; Dobson, Paul W.; Morciano, Marcello; Suhrcke, Marc. - In: EUROPEAN ECONOMIC REVIEW. - ISSN 0014-2921. - 156:(2023), pp. 2-57. [10.1016/j.euroecorev.2023.104480]

Banning volume discounts to curb excessive consumption: A cautionary tale

Morciano, Marcello
Formal Analysis
;
2023

Abstract

Volume discounts encourage consumers to buy more. Banning such discounts should then lead to consumers buying less. This is the thinking behind banning multiple-unit discounts, including multibuy price promotions, to curb excessive harmful consumption of alcohol and high-fat, -sugar, and -salt (HFSS) foods. However, our analysis questions the validity of this thinking, which ignores the possible restraining effect of volume discounts. We find that such a ban for retailing alcohol in Scotland increased rather than reduced sales. Retailers switched to using more straight (single-unit) discounts, which encouraged high-consumption households to increase their shopping frequency and buy more.
2023
156
2
57
Banning volume discounts to curb excessive consumption: A cautionary tale / Bokhari, Farasat A. S.; Dobson, Paul W.; Morciano, Marcello; Suhrcke, Marc. - In: EUROPEAN ECONOMIC REVIEW. - ISSN 0014-2921. - 156:(2023), pp. 2-57. [10.1016/j.euroecorev.2023.104480]
Bokhari, Farasat A. S.; Dobson, Paul W.; Morciano, Marcello; Suhrcke, Marc
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
1-s2.0-S0014292123001095-main.pdf

Open access

Descrizione: journal pre-proof
Tipologia: Versione dell'autore revisionata e accettata per la pubblicazione
Dimensione 1.3 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
1.3 MB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri
VOR_Banning volume discounts to curb excessive consumption.pdf

Open access

Tipologia: Versione pubblicata dall'editore
Dimensione 2.58 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
2.58 MB Adobe PDF Visualizza/Apri
Pubblicazioni consigliate

Licenza Creative Commons
I metadati presenti in IRIS UNIMORE sono rilasciati con licenza Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal, mentre i file delle pubblicazioni sono rilasciati con licenza Attribuzione 4.0 Internazionale (CC BY 4.0), salvo diversa indicazione.
In caso di violazione di copyright, contattare Supporto Iris

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11380/1306026
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 1
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 1
social impact