I worked for a number of years in a specialty retail shop and our GP margin was a lot higher than those of the supermarkets. Our prices were higher than competitors who ran similar outlets in the same industry. Were we price gouging because we charged higher prices? I think not and our customers were free to buy elsewhere .
By the same token, as a small family business we were cheaper on exactly the same products that a hardware store would sell you and on some items we were cheaper and supplying a superior product. At the end of the day you quote a price and it is up to the customer to accept it or buy elsewhere. I won’t defend the supermarkets on under paying staff but this whole price gouging argument is infantile.
