AHOLD'S GIANT REDUCES PRICES ON HBC LINES

MICHAEL SLEZAK

CARLISLE, Pa. -- Giant Food Stores here slashed prices throughout its health and beauty care departments last month and has been running weekly newspaper advertisements to reinforce its new HBC price image.

The 58-store chain, a division of Ahold USA, Parsippany, N.J., announced the price cuts with an advertisement March 15 in The Patriot News, Harrisburg, Pa. Allen Noddle, president and chief executive officer of Giant Food Stores, confirmed March 15 was the day "when the ads [first] broke," but declined to make any further comment. Other Giant Food Stores executives also refused to speak with SN about the price promotions. One Giant employee, however, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the chain has cut prices on 4,996 HBC items.

Giant's first ad, a two-page spread, carried the headline "Giant lowers thousands of health and beauty care prices!"

"We've done it again! We've lowered prices on your favorite Health and Beauty Care Products and passed the savings on to YOU!" the ad continued.

Under those headlines, Giant showed the prices of 80 HBC and general merchandise products before the price reduction and after.

Among the retail reductions noted: Aleve, 100-count, from $8.49 to $7.33; Salon Selectives Shampoo, 15-ounce, from $2.35 to $1.77; Mylanta Regular Strength, 12-ounce, from $4.13 to $3.79; VO 5 Shampoo, 15-ounce, from $1.16 to 93 cents, and Extra Strength Tylenol, 100-count, from $7.41 to $5.97.

The ad also listed 12 Giant locations plus the chain's new reduced prices on photo processing for 24 exposure color prints, down from $3.79 for 3-inch pictures to $2.76. A source familiar with Giant Food Stores confirmed the chain has run ads similar to the one run on March 15 every week throughout March and early April. These ads reinforce a "deep-discount HBC image," the source said.