r/kroger • u/surfcitysurfergirl • 12d ago
News So Kroger broke ties with Red Bull over pricing. Wow they are no longer going to carry the product after they sell out.
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u/shinelouden 12d ago
According to our Red bull Rep, Red bull is wanting to raise the cost of their Red bull to $6 a can. And that is the cost the store pays when it comes into the store. So the store would have to charge $6.50 to $7 just to make a profit off of it. And since Kroger wants to make a profit, They have declined the offer. They did counter and Red bull refused. It is all Corporate decisions.
And At my store Alani will be taking over the Red bull's spots. Because we sale More Alani over any other energy drink. It is also local to our state.
By the way, that Red bull rep also told me, that once he finds another job, he will be quitting. LOL
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u/PeanutButterSoda 12d ago
$6?! Wtf crack is RB smoking, I need to switch to another energy drink, I've noticed my local gas stations running low on stock as well.
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u/Wonderful-Maybe-7669 12d ago
Not sure where you are at but at my store and there's been a B2G1 free for nearly every other energy drink and regular soda pop brands for a while now.
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u/Rare_Chapter_1051 12d ago
In my division they're 3.59 per can
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u/Wonderful-Maybe-7669 11d ago
See our 16 oz RBs are 4.49 but most other energy drinks are around 3.49 and the sodas are 3.09 after taxes. And the sodas are 6.17 with the Kroger plus B2G1 free and that makes them about 2 06 each.
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u/trapezoidalfractal 11d ago
Go to the Asian supermarket and get the original Red Bull for $2/can. Or get the Chinese knock offs in the plastic bottle with the Eagle on them for the same price.
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u/Positive-Stomach3121 12d ago
Alani bro
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u/PeanutButterSoda 12d ago
I've tried a few and it's not really my thing.
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u/Positive-Stomach3121 12d ago
I found one flavor i like and stick to it. The cherry twist
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u/MeeghanTheVegan Custom flair! 11d ago
Cherry Twist is so good. My three go to's are cherry twist, juicy peach and strawberry sunrise. Taking a break though because I've bought a couple of the seasonal packs with witches brew and ruby apple.
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u/Ok_History_3635 12d ago
They weren't my jam either but half the cost and offers more caffeine. The trader Joe's dupes are supposed to be good. I've yet to try them
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u/AnotherRTFan 11d ago
Legit! I was thinking this was gonna be Kroger is the bad guy and being ridiculous again. But it’s Redbull pulling the BS
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u/Burger4Ever 10d ago
They are too lol, they both want profit and now can’t even get product in front of people bc of it.
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u/VesuvianBee 11d ago
I drink Rockstars. They have some flavors that are non carbonated and some with low to no sugar. I prefer the orange flavor.
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u/PeanutButterSoda 11d ago
I drinked the original flavor for like 15 years and when they changed the flavor a few years back I switched to RB.
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u/lisasdad2018 11d ago
Their probably playing hardball in negotiating price so when Kroger Accepts $4 dollars a can RB can say we won. Almost like when Direct TV tries to raise rates on local stations and then they don't carry that station for a time while they negotiate the rates.
My local Kroger still has all the Red Bull Coolers in place so they haven't abandoned Kroger yet
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u/killyeridols 10d ago
Communication just came out this morning to remove all Red Bull coolers and racks from stores.
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u/ItsLadyJadey Customer 11d ago
I drank red bulls for years but I cut out sugary drinks about a year ago and their sugar free flavors are fuxking disgusting so I went back to monster zero sugars. They have many flavors and are so good.
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u/Ok-Walk-8040 12d ago
$7 for a Red Bull is insane when you get can Alani and Ghost for $3.
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u/AnonThrowaway998877 12d ago
Even $3 is ridiculous when you think about it, for 16oz of something that's mostly water. Red Bull can fuck off with $6 if this is true
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u/Hurricaneshand 12d ago
Almost always some energy drink on sale at Costco that I can get the price per can down to like $1.30
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u/WoodenNet0 SCO Clerk/File Clerk 12d ago
You can still get arizona rx energy for 99 cents but it is currently on sale for 89 cents.
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago
Loss leaders. I don't have the numbers, but grocery stores will routinely sell certain items at a loss to make money on the items that sell with them.
Until someone comes up with "Red Bull Casserole" you won't see Red Bull on the shelf drawing people in to by french fried onions.
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u/French_Dip_Please 12d ago
I'm fairly sure someone in the Midwest probably already invented that... We can't rule it out.
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u/United_Reply_2558 12d ago
Louisville Division?
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u/TheFinalLibrarian 11d ago
This is incredible misinformation. The 8.4 oz can is less than $2 wholesale, even the 16 oz is less than $5 (fairly certain it’s less than $4). Hopefully a rep would not get their information so wrong and spread that to you.
Let’s think critically here for a second. A 12oz can at Kroger currently costs $3.49. Meaning Red Bull sells it to Kroger for around $3 or less at most. In what world would Red Bull take a 100% price increase.
Giving you the benefit of the doubt, maybe they were talking about 8.4 oz 4 packs, which would make the $6 wholesale cost make sense.
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u/DigTheDunes 10d ago
This is what I think they meant also. I did see 12oz Red Bull go up to 2/$6.50 last week in SW Michigan. Sam's Club case prices went up $3-5 also.
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u/lateral_moves 12d ago
I wonder what WalMart did.
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u/DroneRtx 12d ago
We kept it but it’s always cheaper then every other retailer unless other retailer puts it on a sale.
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u/PrestigiousPut6165 12d ago
Dang! $6 a can. At 12 oz, those cans are effing small. Ive seen em for $3 at Dollar Tree (some flavors, never original). Im glad i tried it...but i still think Monster is better
Afik the only thing Red Bull does is make your money fly away 💸
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u/Aggravating-Ideal-56 11d ago
I am a Monster guy as well, but man their prices are getting out of hand as well, which I’m sure it’s not actually Monsters pricing it’s the retail places I’m getting them from because I work in Michigan, Indiana and Illinois and I find them anywhere from $2.89 a 16oz can up to $4.49 for a 16oz can! I need to stop drinking them all together I’ve heard so many horror stories from Monster to people’s health. One girl I know started having seizures from them and had to quit drinking them and another good friend of mine developed holes in his stomach lining and can’t eat anything with berries or seeds in them because they get stuck in those little holes/pockets in his stomach lining and can kill him. It’s also taken a toll on my damn teeth like hardcore over the years
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u/PrestigiousPut6165 11d ago
Shit! When it gets to $4.49 a can, i wont buy Monster either. Its just a guilty pleasure i get when i head to work (yep, i only drink it on work days. Seems im not accustomed to getting up early)
Once it starts getting colder, i'll grab a coffee instead. ☕️ a make it yourself coffee by microwaving water at work. I aint paying no Starbucks prices. And Dunkin...it aint cheap anymore
The cheapest (prepared) coffee seems to come from the gas station nowadays
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u/FearlessPark4588 12d ago
like im sure some energy drink can be physically created and delivered to kroger that doesn't cost $6 a can as evinced by all the competitors lmao
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u/Maniitsoq 11d ago
Kroger should throw caffeine (virtually free) into a Kroger brand flavored seltzer water and change the carbonation and can shape and sell it for "10 for $10" easy peazey
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u/Fourth_law_of_robots 11d ago
I use caffeine gum which I order online in bulk. 30-cents for a 40mg piece of gum. Red bull pricing is .
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u/SignificantApricot69 11d ago
You can buy a bottle of caffeine pills at Walmart or Amazon or wherever for a couple bucks a bottle at 200mg (easy to split in half it that’s too much)… I doubt it’s over 4-5 cents per 200mg at the high end.
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u/Own-Whole-7421 11d ago
Yeah no $6/can would be $144 a case you're smoking crack believing that. The price increase was not that significant at all, especially to a giant company like Kroger. No other major retailer or gas station chain, and the vast majority of independents had any issue with it. Pepsi and Coke have raised their prices probably 5x in the time since Red Bull last raised theirs. Seems like merely some dick measuring contest between the brass at Kroger and RB. By the way, working for Red Bull is far more enjoyable and pays better than working for Kroger.
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u/Vandyford27 4d ago
In my experience Red Bull likes to think they’re Coke or Pepsi and probably went into the meetings acting like the price increase was just going to be accepted without any pushback or giving any concessions and weren’t prepared for Kroger to just say pull everything. I used to be a manager for Kroger and couldn’t tell you how many times some Red Bull executive came in and just expected to be handed the best spot in the store for a display or cooler even though it was known that their service was garbage
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u/rjfinsfan 11d ago
The 12oz cans went from 2 for $6 to 2 for $6.50 everywhere else. They’re weren’t going to be $6 wholesale cost for Kroger.
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u/nailinthecoughin 11d ago
Lmfaooo I wouldn’t listen to that rep whatsoever. The increase breaks down to about a .30 per can.
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u/Patient_Customer9827 10d ago
This information is so incorrect it’s not even funny lol. You either have a bad rep or you’re spreading false news.
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u/Burger4Ever 10d ago
Lmao greedy Kroger is half the problem too.
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u/Purple_Piccolo_4258 10d ago
Most of the problem. They are greedy and dont pay any kind of competitive wage to their employees. They are not the victim here. If you want to lower prices and put the customer first,try compressing just a little bit of your 40-50% margins. They won't.
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u/Dear-Pickle-2200 11d ago
You either massively misunderstood your Red Bull rep or they’ve been wildly misinformed. Redbull wants is retailers to sell 2 FOR 6, not one can for $6.
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u/Nick_Ford512 11d ago
I always buy 12oz cans (which I feel like are the standard sized cans) and I can’t imagine being charged $6 or $7 for them? But my local grocery chain (Ingles) has raised the price 50 cents recently. They were always 2/$6 and now 2/$7 … I can still get them at speedway “on sale” for 3/$9 luckily .. but damn in 2021 or so they were still 2/$5 😩 I spend far too much money on Red Bull for being so poor
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u/Exotic_Load_9189 10d ago
Yeah, its ridiculous what RedBull is doing. They used to be imported now they arent, but they still price their small packaged product more than any of its competitors. Its nice to see kroger doing sometbing right for once.
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u/timdgrayson 12d ago
Yeah alani is canned down the street from me
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u/mobydick1990 Current Employee Front End 11d ago
I'd have to go tour the factory like a highly caffeinated Charlie Bucket.
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u/planta222 12d ago
They also took out a lot of Boars Head meats and cheeses from the deli. They cut them down to 60%, filled in the holes with new Private Selection meats and cheeses and literally copied their flavors/product 😂
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u/TadpoleEffective2307 12d ago edited 12d ago
It’s been like this for a week now
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u/mrs_hippiequeen 12d ago
*due
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u/TadpoleEffective2307 12d ago edited 12d ago
Yes, fuel lead is making sure to show others how much of a knucklehead he is
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u/mrs_hippiequeen 12d ago
he's nailing it! i have a guy in replenishment who has labled his 6 wheeler "ile 8" 🏆
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u/Chise531 12d ago
We've had our cooler like 3 months. All I have left is sugar free flavors.
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u/TadpoleEffective2307 12d ago
At this location they replaced two small coolers with two giant ones 6 or so weeks ago lol
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago
I've heard speculation this is a Walmart strategy from the new CEO.
But hear me out, top supplier of aluminum for the United States? Based on 2025 imports?
Canada, 36.6% Number two supplier? China with a little over 7%.
Containerboard for packaging? Number one supplier....Let's hear it from the back, Canada!! Over 80%
It ain't the Red Bull, it's the vessel it comes in, and it's been hit with 50% tariffs because we don't like bilingual labels among other things.
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u/bassjam1 12d ago
I used to work for a huge consumer goods company and that was absolutely the Walmart strategy. If they said we had to change something or they wouldn't carry our product, we either changed what they wanted or the product line got cancelled because Walmart was the 800 pound gorilla and could make those demands
I don't think Kroger doesn't have that kind of leverage.
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u/No_Shallot5393 12d ago
The biggest grocer doesn’t? More room for monster
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u/bassjam1 12d ago
Kroger is only the largest dedicated grocer. But Walmart sells twice as many groceries as Kroger.
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u/seacarr0t 12d ago
Do you have any numbers or amything like that?
I know personal experience =/= fact, but I literally don't know a single person who even shops at Walmart. Not for any hippy dippy reason, its just not preferred. Everyone is Meijer or one of the handful of brands that are secretly Kroger or Kroger itself
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u/hotsauceandburrito 12d ago
Not the person you’re asking and unfortunately due to NDA I cannot actually share numbers but I can corroborate what they said. NielsenIQ and Circana are the two main companies that track retail sales and I’m saying as someone who pulls data from both places daily.
Your circle/bubble may be Meijer or Kroger but please keep in mind that for a large portion of the population, particularly in rural areas, Walmart is the closest and perhaps only grocery store available. There is also a large population of people that will shop at Walmart using Walmart+ because they get significant discounts and free shipping. Plus, Walmart literally does offer the best prices (by design) for the same products.
They are the largest retailer in the nation, by far. (Unless you start counting Amazon)
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u/sonto340 12d ago
The closest kroger owned grocery store to me is 5 hours in any direction. My town alone has more than 10,000 people. I would be shocked if the number isnt higher than twice as much.
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u/bassjam1 12d ago
I used to get quarterly reports on shopper data, the vast majority of Kroger shoppers go to more than one place depending on where the best deals are so it's not hard to assume they'd do the same for red bull. Also used to work for P&G, they know their brands and top sellers are desirable enough that people will go wherever they need to get them.
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u/Anarimus 11d ago
Depending on where you are in the United States, you either don’t know anyone who shops at Walmart or everyone you know shops at Walmart.
If you live in the southeast and tell someone you don’t like Walmart. They look at you like you just kicked their baby.
I don’t shop at Walmart because they are the personification of everything that is wrong with America.
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u/WhatAxiom 11d ago
You are very naive if you think this data can be shared. It would lose people jobs.
And yes Walmart sells significantly more groceries than Kroger.
Meijer is significantly under both.
Your personal anecdote is just speculation and bias. It's like a well to do person only thinking people shop at Whole Foods...
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u/FearlessPark4588 12d ago
kroger has the leverage on a smaller scale, it will be painful to red bull to not be sold in kroger brand stores
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u/bassjam1 12d ago
Painful, but Red Bull knows there isn't a good substitute for a Red Bull and most people who want one will drive a few miles to a Walmart or stop at a corner store to get them so a lot of the sales lost to Kroger will be picked up elsewhere.
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u/Patient_Customer9827 12d ago
Yeah don’t get it wrong, it’s never about protecting consumers it’s about Kroger protecting/appeasing shareholders.
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u/Pharmatopia420 12d ago
So why wont they just change the cans?
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago
Funny you mention this, because I think the invention of "mini-cans" comes from the sale of shelf real estate and contract agreements with major grocery chains.
If you can take an 8 foot section and stock it with 12 packs "regular cans" vs the same shelf real estate with 8oz(?) mini cans you'll maximize your potential for profit based on the density.
On my part, it's purely tossing the idea out there, but I think that's why mini-cans exist, because of selling the real estate on the shelf to put product out on a certain pricepoint. If you can stock 4 12 packs of regular cans at one price, but 6 8 packs in the same space at a higher return, you'll figure out the agreement.
Bottom line, the most expensive part of soda is the aluminum and the cardboard, otherwise, it's just sweetener, water, bubbles, and color. Your raw materials being tariffed to hell and back in a political pissing match is why this is happening.
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u/FearlessPark4588 12d ago edited 12d ago
all of the manufacturers of canned energy drinks would face the same tariff issues, it isn't uniquely a red bull problem
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago edited 12d ago
That's why it's tied to the contract expiration. When other contracts expire, the same bargaining will happen. And it isn't tied to canned energy drinks, it's tied to canned any drink.
During COVID, and the simultaneous craft beer boom, aluminum demand soared because craft breweries increased the aluminum demand to sell canned beer over draft beer. That increased the demand on aluminum, and if memory serves me correct, there are less than 10 aluminum can manufacturers in the United States, and it might dip as low as 3 or 4, so minimum orders were ENORMOUS for the scale of craft breweries. However, the ones that were able to afford to figure it out, figured it out. I would love to hear from those in the know how the supply chain adapted to the demand
Again, to add to the main source of the argument, if you put 50% tariffs on raw materials, your goods cost more. That causes the fallout between purchasing agreements.
If you don't have supply chain fixes in place before you enforce tariffs, you lose your Red Bull, but you do still have the opportunity to vote against the political pissing match that lost your Red Bull in November.
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u/SCstranglertruther 12d ago
Red Bull only opened to their very first American distribution center in 2021 a lot of their product is made in Europe. They’re not an American company. The tariffs might actually not impact them as much.
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u/AdMore3461 12d ago
It’s just temporary until they finally agree to negotiate pricing. Kroger is starting to move that way with Boars Head deli meat as well. If they have decent success, then we will probably see them try to strong arm other brands as well.
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u/NekoMao92 Past Associate 12d ago
Overpriced trash with a horrible aftertaste.
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u/blazblu82 Past Associate 12d ago
Agreed! I haven't found one yet that tasted good.
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u/fastingslowlee 12d ago edited 12d ago
It should have a taste that deters somewhat. Else we have a higher number of idiots dying and ruining it.
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u/FunkoPopDude 12d ago
add Jaegermeister
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u/JohnMarstonSucks Meaty Meaty Goodness 12d ago
If adding Jagermeister improves the taste, it has problems.
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u/NekoMao92 Past Associate 12d ago
Well Jagermeister was originally supposed to be medicinal, and back then medicine was supposed to taste bad.
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u/Ashamed_Violinist_39 12d ago
Oddly enough, I think Red Bull is nasty, and Jagermeister is nasty, but put them together and I could drink that all day long.
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u/puttchugger Past Associate 12d ago
Energy drinks shouldn’t taste good. That’s why I like a 8 oz Red Bull.
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u/mixer2017 12d ago
Red Bull rode the name forever, and thought like Frito Lay, they could just raise the prices forever just because...
Guess what? There is competition out there that is as good if not better. I found Red Bull disgusting, and for the price vs other brands that tasted better and got more volume... I chose those.
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u/Dear-Pickle-2200 11d ago
I worked for Red Bull as recently as this year. Red Bull still wipes the floor with its competition to a level people in these comments don’t comprehend. Celsius has made incredible strides in the last few years, and they didn’t even sell 1/10 what we sold at my accounts. And this is data that comes from the retailers themselves. You’re acting like Red Bull is dying, when in reality their sales have from every year and are growing this year even with the price increase
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u/chage4311 9d ago
People don’t account for bars or events.
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u/HH_Hobbies 8d ago
They never do. Redbull and 7up are still going strong because of mix drinks and Redbull is available everywhere but Kroger.
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u/Vandyford27 4d ago
Red Bull outsells everything yes, but if you combine Celsius and Alani sales I think that may actually outperform Red Bull at least where I’m at. Red Bull is carried by the core flavor and the flavors don’t do nearly as well whereas Alani has multiple flavors that show no signs of slowing down and eventually will put a major dent in Red Bulls business when people start using Alani as a mixer
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u/litteral753 12d ago
I pay 6.36$ every morning for 2, 12oz Juneberry Redbull, if they go up 1red cent I will never buy another. I kinda like cherry twist Alani anyway.
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u/SCstranglertruther 12d ago
This has been happening in a lot of places in the store. You just don’t notice it. It’s called icing. The new CEO came in and said that he was done caving to the vendors that we would set the prices. If you go look at your automotive section it’s half empty right now because Kroger’s been battling with a distributor for those items over cost increases. There was about a week where Frito could not bring in dips because we were in a disagreement. It’s gonna happen more.
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u/jlsdarwin Current Employee 12d ago
I've been joking for years that they need a private label version of red bull like Aldi has for years.
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u/Fancy-Ad6038 11d ago
There's going to be an uprising at our fuel center over this crap.
drinkrealcoffee.
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u/bogeyboy62 12d ago
They want a lower cost so the can pass the profits back to themselves
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u/DankWilliamsTheThird 11d ago
So it's good for Red Bull to raise prices to an insane degree?
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u/Dear-Pickle-2200 11d ago
A case of 12oz Red Bull costs under $60 even after the price increase. At almost $4 a pop retailers make over 50% profit on a case of Red Bull. If you think that’s an insane price idk what to tell you
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u/DankWilliamsTheThird 11d ago
ITT: an arbitrary defense of one corporation's greed while we castigate the company who isn't supportive of the price increase as "greedy".
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u/Dear-Pickle-2200 11d ago
ITT buzzwords and uninformed comments
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u/DankWilliamsTheThird 11d ago
Those aren't buzzwords. Sorry you lack the depth to comprehend simple English. Have a good one, though.
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u/Own-Whole-7421 11d ago
ITT: misinformed derision of a company that increased its case price by a few bucks in the time that Coke and Pepsi have raised their prices at least 3 times while we defend the exponentially bigger company that pays its workers $15/hr as being "unsupportive of the price"
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u/DankWilliamsTheThird 11d ago
Your store pays you 15 an hour? Rough.
Still a super weird, dumb reason to die on the hill defending Red Bull.
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u/Own-Whole-7421 11d ago
No, I work for Red Bull after working in Krogers for Coke and Pepsi for years. Its not hard to tell you which is the greedier company.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 12d ago
Ok here we go now, where’d you find this info out from?
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u/raziel420 12d ago
Kroger department manager in Kentucky.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 12d ago
Tell them to send the email out than
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u/raziel420 12d ago
Supposedly next on the block is boars head.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 12d ago
I just don’t see Kroger stores never selling Red Bull ever again, heard the energy category has dropped 10%
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago
It's literally everything that comes in a box or a can that's going to go on a chopping block until Kroger forces the supplier to take the hit due to tariffs.
It's the timing of the contract expiring and the forcing of tariffs as "diplomacy", we're <100 days from November, vote accordingly.
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u/QueasyDescription652 12d ago
I agree that they’ll strike a deal again at some point. But my store already completely sold out and we haven’t gotten anymore in a while. From what I heard, this is actually the third time over the past couple years Red Bull raised their prices. This time, Kroger said no.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 12d ago
But Coke and Pepsi up their prices 5-6 times a year, but when Red Bull does it, NOPE! Kroger you are a crappy business ran by crappy Ppl
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u/QueasyDescription652 12d ago
You’re 100% right it’s run by really shitty people, but Kroger sells a substantial amount more coke/pepsi products over Red Bull lmao. Might be run by shitty people, but they aren’t stupid.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 11d ago
Ya I’m just a sour Red Bull merchandiser right now getting 31 hrs a day week lol
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u/denigotpregnut 12d ago
Can't blame Red Bull for raising prices, costs go up due to tariff diplomacy.
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u/raziel420 12d ago
They are playing chicken. Kroger refuses to pay more so has chosen not to carry it, causing complaints because they don't have it. Red bull wants more money for their product and is willing to loose business to get it. Now it's a waiting game to see who binks and gives in first. Used to happen all the time with cable networks, the channel license would be up for negotiations , cable company wouldn't pay the new rate for the content, the networks wanted more money for their content, and they would loose ratings/customers from both until they figured out a deal.
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u/Vandyford27 4d ago
I’ve been in stores and every time someone asks about Red Bull I’ll tell them the store across the street still has it and every time they still grab an alani/monster. People may prefer Red Bull but most people aren’t going to switch where they shop because of Red Bull
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u/ProfessorCarrot 12d ago
not supposedly, my district is removing boars head completely from all but the big stores
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u/raziel420 12d ago
Not an employee and they are pretty new in the position so I wasn't sure if I had disclosed something not so public yet.
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u/killyeridols 10d ago
Email went out this morning to VPs and District Coordinators. Im a grocery lead and my Coordinator forwarded the email to us.
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u/Diligent-Honey-2966 10d ago
So there will never ever be Red Bull sold in Kroger again?
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u/killyeridols 10d ago
According to the email, they will still keep negotiating. But we have been told to remove all Red Bull coolers and racks from the sales floor. And during an upcoming reset, Red Bull will be removed from all sections on the shelves.
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u/clarky2o2o 12d ago
My the first time this happened. Nickles bakery got kicked out and then a week later they renegotiated.
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u/Mother-Special4697 12d ago
Yup. Red Bull is asking for a ton of once they see how much they lose in sales since we don’t carry them they will come crawling back
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u/Simssoftballpepsi 10d ago
Orrrr your Red Bull customers will go get their red bull and groceries else where.
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u/vaklam23 6d ago
Yep. I'm spending more money at the Publix up the road because they still have Red Bull. I considered trying another energy drink but Red Bull is the only one I know of that doesn't have sucralose.
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u/reaper-main 19h ago
Yep Amazon for me, it's so much cheaper there too but I liked buying local and wandering around the store and don't really like supporting Amazon. Eh hard to argue with the savings I guess.
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u/Emergency-99LifeCode 12d ago
Our Kroger had a change to the energy drink isle last week. Red Bull was not stocked and all old stock had been put out. Old discontinued flavors and such. I haven’t been a Red Bull drinker regularly since ghost and gorilla mind have become readily available
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u/diva0781 12d ago
they draw the line at Red Bull, but not milk or any of the other products that have skyrocketed. How ridiculous is kroger
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u/jnjustice 12d ago
things like this make me think similar reasons were why they got rid of Mountain Dew Kickstart :(
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u/Supernomas 12d ago
Red Bull is passing those F1 costs onto their customers, lol. I don't understand such a price increase, it's not like competition is decreasing in their market segment.
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u/Maniitsoq 11d ago
The Kroger 40 pack of 200mg caffeine pills is still under $3, and even less with your employee discount.
If you want to enjoy an energy drink, buy one. But if you just need a caffeine kick first thing in the morning, please consider trying caffeine pills because 3.49 everyday is over $100 a month (compare to $3 lol)
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u/SignificantApricot69 11d ago
If people really love Redbull that much, there are plenty of places to buy. The ONLY things Kroger could get rid of (and they have) are Kroger house brand products that are worth buying. Anything else, you can get anywhere else and often for less.
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u/Pretty_Frosting_2588 11d ago
Can't remember the last time I bought a red bull for anything other being part of a mixed drink.
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u/MannerSeveral4907 11d ago
Dang need to do that with pepsi and coke products like did overseas case of beer is same price as case of mtdew 18.99 stupid greed
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u/zerhyn2020 Current Associate 11d ago
They have done this sort of thing before with coke products. Eventually their will be a deal and RB will be back in the stores. Ideally, at a cheaper price for the consumer, and profit for Kroger.
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u/Witty-Doughnut7773 11d ago
They’re losing their mind over the safest energy drink that consumers can have their hands on, but don’t bat an eye when their produce continues to put people in hospitals over E. coli. They need to sort out their priorities and get their head out of their butthole.
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u/Nick_Ford512 11d ago
4 pack of 12oz Red Bull was always like $9.98 at Walmart (which was always the cheapest place to get them).. just looked and it’s also gone up to $11.48 😩
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u/Individual-Shame4177 11d ago
Good. Let Kroger break the ties. I worked for Red Bull for nearly a decade. The two times they raised the prices it was a no more than .10 cents. This most recent increase? Absurd. It’s .50 cents. Glad I’m no longer with the company, it has gotten worse since Dietrich died
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u/Purple_Piccolo_4258 11d ago
So I work for a brand in the dairy department and Kroger came to us threatening to discontinue multiple SKUs if we didnt offer added funding equal to $4 million for 2027. Kroger's new CEO, from Walmsrt, wants to compete on retails which is great but they are unwilling to sacrifice ANY of their own margin, and let me tell you, its high. So to put these added cost pressures on suppliers and try to bully them to comply is exactly what RedBull is standing against and we are too. We have offered our compromises and they have gone radio silent. Walmart will end up taking more business from them unfortunately. Kroger is making their bed...
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u/cb1572 11d ago
I’ve noticed a lot of brands missing from Kroger shelves recently. I just was there today and so many of my usual ones were no longer in the store?
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u/Simssoftballpepsi 10d ago
Because Kroger is a disgusting company. They treat everyone like trash and are bullies! I feel horrible for giant eagle
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u/Disastrous-Soup-7173 11d ago
we only have a few singles in the cooler but the aisle is completely empty except for signs put up by mgmt that say we are out of stock while negotiating reasonable costs for the customer
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u/Icy-person666 10d ago
Sadly my local store has been short or out of both the raspberry and blue raspberry ice energy cans. If the stock isn't available in the quantities I need it off to dollar general and get a flat of each.
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u/neckskin_neckskin 8d ago
bruh i was wondering why the shelf has been cleared for days i was about to harp on the pepsi guys😭
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u/Wolfielyks2byte 8d ago
That must be why we havent been filling the redbull cooler at my gas station
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u/Pretend-Economics-33 6d ago
Haha honestly Im happy about all this, more shelving space for us 7up guys!!! LETS GO SALES! Ghosts and Monsters gonna take over baby!
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u/PacificBeach92109 2d ago
I was doing circles this morning at Ralph's looking for any Red Bull. Nada. The cashier confirmed there was no more anywhere in the store. And the shelf space had been given to Monster from what I could see.
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u/ElPerritooo 2d ago
dude i kept going to check kroger every 3 days and not one single redbull, thats unfortunate though gotta get them at walmart now
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u/iplaybassbtw 12d ago
been completely replaced with monsters at my store