It’s not just the prices that are eye-popping at grocery stores these days — it’s the labels themselves.
Digital price tags are popping up in aisles everywhere with the ability to update in real time as shoppers browse the aisles, and it seems like they’re here to stay.
Sobeys recently announced its plan to roll out five million electronic labels to its stores across the country by April 2026, joining other major Canadian grocers in doing so.
The labels Sobeys uses are made by a company called Pricer, which says they improve price automation, store operations and shopper engagement by allowing retailers to update the digital display on the price tags in real-time over a wireless connection.
The tags can also optionally be equipped to be compatible with NFC (near-field communication) technology, which could give shoppers access to more product information by simply tapping their mobile devices on the labels.
If you’re a price-conscious shopper, these tags might leave you wondering whether you’re getting the lowest price at that moment, or if prices will change by the time you check out.
Here’s what we know.
Why the shift to electronic labels?
There could be multiple reasons why a grocer or any retailer would choose electronic shelf labels, and they aren’t all “nefarious or intended to take advantage of customers” when it comes to price, explained Eric Dolansky, an associate professor of marketing at Brock University.
At the top of the list is the fact that printing and replacing labels every time there’s a price change costs money. “Now, someone in an office — not even necessarily in the store — can change those prices at virtually no cost,” said Dolansky.
When asked about the rollout of the new shelf labels, Sobeys told the Star they’re now an industry standard — used in other grocery stores like Loblaws and Metro — and will help “minimize waste and allow us to deliver reliable value and an enhanced shopping experience with innovative solutions for Canadian families.”
Loblaws shared similar reasons for the switch, adding that the new labels aren’t a very different experience for customers, but “we have found there’s more price accuracy (particularly when products go on sale) as the updated pricing is consistently loaded across all products overnight,” a spokesperson said in an email to the Star.
Combined with other interconnected devices and AI technology, the labels can also be used to make the shopping experience more personalized by performing “advanced data collection and analysis,” which leads to “greater profits and higher levels of consumer trust,” according to JRTech Solutions Inc., the Canadian retailer Sobeys is getting the labels from.
What’s the new labels’ edge?
Being able to update shelf labels simultaneously and at a lower cost also means that it can be done more frequently. Once a store has electronic labels it “could then conceivably change its prices every hour if it thought it was worthwhile,” said Dolansky.
That lets retailers more seamlessly implement a model known as dynamic pricing, in which prices fluctuate regularly based on multiple factors, including supply and demand.
“The ability to control the price of eggs by a few pennies here and there throughout the day or throughout the week, means that (grocer) is in a position where they can actually leverage the bottom line and enhance profit,” explained Markus Giesler, a professor of marketing at York University’s Schulich School of Business.
“For us as individual consumers, the difference is actually barely measurable,” said Giesler.
Dolansky agreed that for the average shopper, the changes often go unnoticed. “A lot of these items we just pick up and put in the cart without looking at the price at all,” he said.
It’s when price fluctuations become noticeable that tension starts to rise.
What does this mean for shoppers?
Though dynamic pricing is not uncommon in retail, when it comes to groceries, Dolansky said people typically “don’t expect the price to fluctuate regularly every day,” so they’ll be less likely to shop at stores where they feel that’s happening.
Electronic shelf labels and the ability to quickly change prices may further contribute to that feeling, Giesler said, because some consumers, especially older ones, don’t have the same level of “trust and faith” in them as their paper predecessors.
“We don’t know if the price was cheaper five minutes before we walked into the store or if it will be cheaper five minutes after we walk out,” said Dolansky. “It creates a situation where we feel less confident that we are getting a fair and representative price.”
Luckily, there’s a “very simple solution” for people who may find themselves in that situation.
“If a consumer is uncomfortable with the practices of any business that they’re buying from, buy from somewhere else if you have that option,” he said. “That’s what’s going to make the business take notice.”
