Lifestyle
Walmart Employees Share Insights on Rising Prices: What Shoppers Need to Know
Walmart customers may have noticed a surprising trend recently: significant price hikes on a variety of products. According to employees, these increases are not just confined to groceries but extend across many categories, with some prices rising by more than 50%.
Walmart’s Chief Financial Officer, John David Rainey, previously acknowledged the impact of tariffs on the company’s financials. He told CNBC, “the magnitude of these increases is more than any retailer can absorb.” As a result, shoppers were warned to expect “higher prices” on certain grocery items, with these changes becoming more apparent towards the end of May and into June.
However, as June unfolds, it has become clear that the price hikes are broader and steeper than initially anticipated. Employees have taken to social media platforms to highlight these increases, sharing images of new price tags that reveal significant jumps. One viral post on Reddit showed a Baby Born doll’s price escalating from $34.97 to $49.97, marking a 43% increase.
Another example includes a Jurassic World Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur action figure, which saw its price rise from $39.92 to $55—a 38% increase. Just a few months ago, this toy was available for $20 on sale. In a striking case, the price of a Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack toy surged from $5.88 to $19.97, amounting to a staggering 240% increase, although it is currently on sale for $7.88 online.
One Walmart employee shared their experience of adjusting prices, stating, “I’ve been doing price changes, and some of them are absolutely INSANE. Half of them were like a 20$ increase, and some got close to even 50$ more.” Another employee noted, “Die cast cars big increases as well I noticed the 1/24 scale F1 cars went from $26 to $36 and every smaller car went up at least $3 or more.”
The trend is not limited to toys. An employee from Western North Carolina reported, “Did 185 price changes in toys on Tuesday. All $5-$30 up change.” Another added, “I work in Toys and we had about 600 price changes in the last couple days and EVERYTHING went up. Most things went up 4 dollars but the bigger toys like RCs and hover boards jumped a whole 40-50 dollars.”
Beyond toys, price hikes have affected other products as well. A viral post showed a new price sticker for an Abu Garcia fishing reel, which increased 45%, from $57.37 to $83.26. Another employee commented, “My big selling formula all went up like $3 or more. So over $20 for a small can… I’ve been apologizing to parents left and right. I feel horrible about it.”
One Walmart worker claimed, “A 6 pack of recessed light bulbs went from $12 something to $89,” while a shopper noted, “The wet food I buy my dogs went up like $10, it’s crazy.” Another added, “Maxwell house coffee went from 12.96 to 17.97 like over night.”
Amid the backlash, a Walmart spokesperson assured Business Insider, “We have always worked to keep our prices as low as possible and we won’t stop. We’ll keep prices as low as we can for as long as we can given the reality of small retail margins.” Despite these assurances, the reality of rising costs is evident on the shelves, leaving both employees and customers to grapple with the new pricing landscape.
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