O Tempora!: The Selfishness Surcharge

Monday, April 13, 2020

The Selfishness Surcharge

In any severe emergency, some people feel the need to hoard supplies, and others try to sell items for many times the original prices. While some stores try to ration supplies and the government tries to prevent “gouging”, I think I have a better idea. I call it the Selfishness Surcharge.

Here’s how it works. Retails stores will continue to sell an item at regular price for the first package of the stuff. But the 2^nd package in the customer’s order will cost double what the 1^st does. The 3^rd will cost double what the 2^nd does, the 4^th will cost double what the 3^rd does, etc. So, if hand sanitizer, for example, costs $10 for a large dispenser, and a customer insists on buying two, the charge for the order will be $30. For an order of 3 dispensers, the price will be $70. Four of them will cost $150. And if you really have deep pockets and are really greedy about the item, you will pay $655,350 for 16 jugs of hand sanitizer.

Of course, the customer who wants a lot of hand sanitizer might leave the store after buying a single jug and come back to get another. But the same can be said of store-implement rationing. I think that few would take the time to return, especially when some stores have long lines just to get in.

I suggest that our retailers implement the Selfishness Surcharge immediately.

Labels: hoarding, price gouging, selfishness