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Just in time for the Super Bowl, PepsiCo is cutting the price of Doritos, Cheetos, Lay’s, Tostitos, and other snacks by up to 15%. The move comes after consumers complained the chips were too pricey. “Our customers . . . have been honest with us about how rising everyday costs are making their daily decisions harder. Message received,” PepsiCo said in a statement. Lowering the suggested retail price reflects our commitment to help reduce the pressure where we can,” PepsiCo Foods U.S. CEO Rachel Ferdinando added. The new discounted prices roll out this week, ahead of this Sunday’s big game, one of the biggest days for snack purchases. PepsiCo said supermarkets and other retailers ultimately set the prices for the chips, so the savings that shoppers see will depend on the store. And no, you’re not imagining it: Grocery prices have increased. In one year alone they jumped 2.7%, from August 2024 to August 2025; and they’re up a reported 29% from 2020, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. That’s due to several factors, including inflation, weather events, and ongoing global supply chain issues, coupled with higher labor costs from the COVID-19 pandemic. The food and beverage giant, like many of its competitors, has raised prices, hiking snacks by 1% and beverages by 7% in North America, which, along with the impact of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs, has only decreased consumer demand. “This pricing change is part of PepsiCos broader strategy to increase accessibility and offer more choices for consumers,” Ferdinando said. “Were continuing to refine our portfoliofrom thoughtful recipe enhancements, like the removal of artificial flavors and colors from Lays and Tostitos, to packaging updates aligned with evolving consumer preferences.” PepsiCo had previously agreed to lower prices and revamp its business, after activist investor Elliott Management demanded the changes after disclosing a $4 billion stake in the company this past September, CNN reported. PepsiCo financials PepsiCo’s fourth-quarter earnings, released on Tuesday, beat analyst estimates, with quarterly revenue coming in at $29.34 billion versus an expected $28.97 billion, and earnings per share (EPS) of $2.26 adjusted versus an expected $2.24. Shares of PepsiCo (Nasdaq: PEP) were up over 3% midday on Wednesday, at the time of this writing, after closing nearly 5% higher the previous day.
Category:
E-Commerce
Rent can eat up an entire paycheck at the start of the month, so a growing number of renters are turning to a financial product that promises relief by letting them split the bill for a price. So-called rent now, pay later services have emerged over the past few years as housing costs climb and paychecks grow less predictable, particularly for lower-income and gig-economy workers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, rents have jumped nearly 28% in past five years. Companies such as Flex, Livble, and, more recently, Affirm, say breaking rent into multiple payments can help renters manage cash flow. But consumer advocates warn the products typically function like short-term loans, layering fees onto already strained budgets and, in some cases, carrying triple-digit effective interest rates raising questions about whether they ease financial pressure or deepen it. Kellen Johnson, 44, started using Flex to split up his rent payments about two years ago. Instead of paying the whole $1,850 of his rent on the first of the month, Johnson would pay $1,350 on that date, and $500 on the 15th. For the service, Flex collected a $14.99 monthly subscription fee, as well as 1% of the total rent, which for Johnson was $18.50, bringing his monthly charges for the app to more than $33. Johnson said he was willing to pay the extra costs in part because he worked as an independently contracted delivery person for Amazon at the time, and his paychecks could vary. It was an expense that I was incurring, but I went ahead as it was more convenient, said Johnson, who now works as a driver for senior citizens in Sacramento, California. Roughly 109 million Americans, or about 42.5 million households, are renters in the United States. The Census Bureau estimated in 2024 that a large share of those households pay 30% or more of their monthly income on rent. The bureau considers such households to be cost burdened, meaning rent consumes so much of their income that they have less ability to plan for future expenses or build wealth. Rent now, pay later services generally operate the same way: The company pays the landlord the full rent when due, and the renter repays the company in two or more installments over the course of the month. Because rent can be such a large expense, the companies argue that spreading payments out can give renters more cash on hand. Many of these services come with fees. The fees can be structured differently but should be generally thought of as cost of credit, consumer advocates warn. In Johnsons case, he was paying $33.49 for a two-week loan of $500, for an effective annual percentage rate of 172%, when expressed using standard consumer-lending calculations. Renters should be skeptical of any financing providers that have partnered with a landlord, and be skeptical of anything that sells itself as no fees or no interest, said Mike Pierce, executive director of Protect Borrowers. Pierce previously worked at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and co-authored a report that was released this week on the industry. Launched in 2019, Flex is one of the largest companies focused on splitting rent payments. The company says its 1.5 million customers now send about $2 billion a month in rent through its system, and several of the countrys largest landlords accept Flex as a payment option. Flex says most of its customers are lower-income renters with weaker credit profiles. The company reports a median credit score of 604 among its users and says about one in three customers works more than one job to make ends meet. A Flex spokesman says the average customer uses the service three to four times a year. Johnson used it every month. Livble does not charge a subscription, but charges renters a fee ranging from $30 to $40, according to the companys help page. Depending on how long the renter defers part of the payment, Livbles fees can translate into effective annual percentage rates of roughly 104% to 139%. The buy now, pay later company Affirm said this month that it is piloting a program allowing some customers to split rent into two payments. The program is being tested in partnership with Esusu, a company that reports rent payments to credit bureaus to help consumers build credit. An Affirm spokesman said the company is not charging renters interest or fees to use the product, but may charge landlords fees. As another financing option, landlords are increasingly accepting credit cards for rent payments. Bilt, a credit card startup, built its brand around targeting renters when it launched, and some tenants also use credit cards to accumulate rewards or points. But paying rent by credit card can also be costly. Landlords typically pass the processing fees on to tenants. Depending on the card issuer and payment network, these fees can range from about 2.5% to 3.5% of the rent. For a renter paying $1,500 a month, that translates to roughly $37.50 to $52.50 in fees a monthly cost comparable to what services like Livble and Flex charge. Economists and renters advocates argue that none of these financing options address the fundamental issue of affordability in the rental market. If credit cards, or flexible rent payment options become more widely used, they worry rents could rise further as landlords start factoring in a potential renters weekly cash flow as opposed to the rental market in the area the building is located in. Merchants already pass along credit card processing costs to customers in the form of higher prices, and advocates worry that the rental market could adopt similar patterns. For example, Livble is owned by RealPage, which last year settled allegations that its algorithm allowed landlords to collude and push rents higher. By Ken Sweet and Cora Lewis, The Associated Press Economics Writer Christopher Rugaber contributed.
Category:
E-Commerce
Amazon is rolling out a new feature in hopes of retainingor perhaps attractingnew Prime members. The tech giant announced Wednesday that Alexa+, its AI-powered assistant, is now available for free to all Prime members. Last March, Amazon began offering an early access preview for the new voice assistant that saw an inspiring response, with tens of millions of customers requesting access, according to a statement. The company has revamped its legacy Alexa product to handle more complex interactionsoffering examples of how users can engage in deep conversations with Alexa+ that may be ongoing over the course of potentially several days, as the technology can remember context, said Daniel Rausch, Amazons vice president of Alexa and Echo, in the statement. Homeowners are also pairing Alexa+ with their Ring cameras to identify unusual patterns around their homes, he said. People are engaging in two to three times more conversations with Alexa+ than they were previously, Rausch told CNBC. Every week in a customers journey, engagement goes up, and that is really the sign of a hit product, basically. USERS ARENT SOLD ON ALEXA+ Despite Rauschs cheerful assessment of the product, reviews elsewhere are more tempered. One Redditor posted Alexa+ is a mess on an Alexa subreddit four months ago, lamenting several of the technologys shortcomings, including that it feels like a huge downgrade from regular Alexa. The post garnered more than 240 responses, with other Redditors sharing similar frustrations. Still other Redditors shared near-daily complaints about lag times or the quality of responses on that subreddit. One task that Alexa+ may not be programmed to assist with is one thats been on the mind of many Prime members lately. In the U.S., searches for how to cancel Amazon Prime have surged 110% in the past month, reaching the highest level since December 2017, according to Google Trends. AMAZON PRIME FREEBIES Since launching Amazon Prime in 2005, the company has steadily added new features for membersincluding Alexa, which debuted with the first Echo device in 2014. While still available on such devices, Alexa is now available as an app and at Alexa.com. Full access to Alexa+ is available for free only to Prime members, though the company will allow nonmembers to test the new Alexa+ chat functionality at Alexa.com for free. Unlimited access to Alexa+ for people who dont want to pay the $139 annual Prime membership will cost $19.99 per month. AMAZON SELL-OFF The Alexa+ news alone wasnt enough to lift Amazon stock, as fears of an AI bubble have fueled a broader sell-off for tech stocks in recent days. Shares of Amazon have tumbled nearly 4% during the last five trading sessions. Of course, there are other factors at playthe company announced last week that it is slashing 16,000 jobs and will announce earnings on Thursday after the market closes.
Category:
E-Commerce
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