What is ‘shrinkflation’ and why are TikTokers so mad about it?

Inflation got you down? Well, shrinkflation is here to leave you absolutely fuming.

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The unpopular business practice appears to be back in full force. Basically, it’s when companies increase profit margins by giving you fewer products instead of charging you more. TikTokers are realizing they’re getting cheated at the store and are up in arms about it.

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What is shrinkflation?

According to Investopedia, shrinkflation is “the practice of reducing the size of a product while maintaining its sticker price.”

The tactic is popular in the food industry. It’s a way of tricking consumers into thinking they are receiving the same volume as always because the package looks unchanged. However, the change is typically noted in small print on the packaging as part of the product’s weight or volume.

Giving consumers marginally less adds up when products are mass-produced, thus enabling retailers to sell the same number of units at the same price while lowering company expenses and boosting profit margins.

TikTokers are sounding the alarm on shrinkflation

The hashtag #shrinkflation has 13.7 million views. People are going viral comparing the size changes in products.

“The robbery that is shrinkflation is so creative and jacked up that you don’t even realize you’re getting robbed,” @krystaltoddcpa said in a video.

Money educator Addison Jarman provided shrinkflation examples. El Monterey’s chicken and cheese taquitos used to come with 21, but now you only get 20 in a box. Pantene Pro-V’s Curl Perfection conditioner once came in a large bottle. Now, it comes in a smaller tube. A family-size box of Wheat Thins once contained a pound; now, it only has 14 ounces.

“It kind of gets my goat that shrinkflation happens and that companies just get to get ‘away’ with it time and time again,” financial advisor John Liang said. He claimed that not only are companies prone to shrinking sizes, but they are also prone to inflating those items’ prices too.

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