Hanschell Inniss forced to cut prices

HANSCHELL INNISS GENERAL MANAGER Gareth Narinesigh recently revealed that the company was “forced” to drop its prices in order to keep up with the competition.However, Narinesigh said he expected that the price of some imported products could rise between now and Christmas.In an interview with BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY during a recently held trade show at the Savannah Hotel – Hanschell and Langston Roach Industries Expo – Narinesigh said: “We have been forced to drop some of our margins to try to fight with our competitors and they have to do the same thing to fight with us . . . to try and get that business from out there which has shrunk. “We have not compromised quality but we also have to see if there are substitutes from selected brands, and we try them. “In some cases we even have to negotiate for a better price to help us and to help some of the distributors in the market,” he said. He noted the company was trying its best to provide the best quality at affordable prices through “prudent” sourcing of products. He said, however, there had been an increase in the price of certain products over the last 18 months or so.“Up until the middle of this year we found that our average retail prices have actually gone down. “What we do is that every time we go to purchase, we try to get at least two or three quotes. . . . We have been very prudent to source our products from the most economical producer.“What we have seen happen in the past six weeks or so is that the prices of some products have been going up . . . we are anticipating, unfortunately between now and Christmas, some price increases – not across the board, but in certain items such as imported meat. “I don’t think it would affect the local products right now,” said the general manager of the 120-year-old company. (MM)