600 grams of mustard sold to 2,200 yuan! Not long ago, the media's exposure to the "high price of mustard" has aroused widespread concern in the society, "Usually can not get the table of pickles, how to sell the abalone price?" Consumers are not without emotion.

Coincidentally, after the “high price mustard” was exposed, the “limited edition” high-priced mineral water with a asking price of 118.8 yuan was hit by Hangzhou, once again pushing the issue of astronomical commodities to the cusp of the wind.

In the face of these high-priced products that are unattainable to ordinary people, we cannot help but ask: What are the reasons for the sky-high prices of products? Does China, which is still a developing country, really come to an era of sky-high consumption?

Astronomical commodities are not individual phenomena. In recent years, astronomical commodities have appeared in various places. During New Year's Day, astronomical dinners and a high-price Christmas feast are often hotter; astronomical home appliances, high-priced beef and pork are also often found in large shopping malls.

Calling the sky-high price may not be true. “It was just throwing dehydrated cabbage head into jars and throwing the jars into the water.” The self-proclaimed “Agarwood mustard dish” produced in ancient Pakistani methods was recently revealed by the media to cost only 4 yuan. Compared with ordinary mustard, "high price mustard" is not unique in itself, but in the box after adding a pair of sterling silver bowls and chopsticks, under the high-end banner to sell astronomical.

Regarding the appearance of "high price mustard," Yang Zhifan, head of the Commodity Price Administration Department of the Chongqing Municipal Price Bureau, said that mustard is not an important material related to the national economy and the people's livelihood. It has been self-determined for many years and does not need to be filed with the price department. Therefore, apart from other discussions, the pricing of 2,200 yuan is definitely not illegal.

"It is undeniable that the taste and nutritional value of some astronomical foods is higher than that of ordinary foods, but this sky-high price is contrary to common sense." Zhou Sianran, a food industry researcher at CIC Advisors, stated that when companies launch astronomical products, their purpose is mainly focused on commercial hype. on.

According to industry insiders, astronomical products do not dare to brazenly falsify, and they always find a concept of speculation. Recently, the concept of plasma water, glacier water, and weakly alkaline water is a commonly used “toutou” in the sky water, and words such as “high-end imports, pure hand-made, high-tech” are even more used in product promotion. The point.

At the same time, astronomical products have gradually expanded from the consumer product field to other areas. At the beginning of the year, Baoji broke the auspicious national class “Fengming School” and the tuition fee was as high as 10,000 yuan. It was also reported that the Guangzhou Tianda Girls' School, which will begin school in September, charges as much as 60,000 yuan. In the cultural and entertainment field, the price of two-person transfer, sky-high comic dialogue, astronomical theater and other events have long been buzzing.

Astronomical prices seduce high consumption on the website of Chongqing Tianling mustard company, which is a party to the “high price mustard,” and the reporter saw that in the face of doubts from the society “salty abalone sells abalone prices”, Zhou Binquan, the person in charge of the group, explained: “The company is "Shanzhai mustard" was created as a cultural name card to create a corporate image, so it seems that the price is not a problem."

Companies want to take the “high price” route, but are there any such demands in the market? According to the reporter's knowledge, the quantity of Chen Chen and Xuan Chen during the five years of Chen Xiang mustard was very small. The sales situation in other regions was not very good. Basically, it was only sold locally in Fuling and was mainly used for gifts.

Although "high price mustard" can't be sold, other astronomical products seem to have sold well. According to Mr. Zhou Ming, CEO of Le Cordon Bleu 1844 China, the price of Le Cordon Bleu 1844 rose from 298 yuan to 398 yuan due to the scarcity and uniqueness of raw materials, coupled with its special process. Even so, the acceptance of high-end consumer groups still remains. Very high.

"In the consumer society, it is consumer-led production." Lei Hong, director of the Department of Sociology at Huazhong University of Science and Technology, said that the appearance of identity consumption, status consumption and conspicuous consumption is inevitable, but "astronomical commodity" is to some extent Unreasonable, it has a great negative effect on social consumption. "'Astronomical commodities' has made the gap between the rich and the poor more apparent. Basically, it is a kind of abnormal consumer psychology, and it has a negative impact on the public." Lei Hong pointed out.

The root of high prices in the psychological experts believe that the sky-high product highlights the consumer's abnormal psychology and comparison mentality. A veteran wine person briefed the reporter: “The price of Le Cordon Bleu 1844 was just 298 yuan, but the promotion of listing is not ideal. Some high-end establishments are not sure that the price is high enough, not enough for their grades, and later raise prices. Only in this way, the strange logic of "not being the best and only being the most expensive" is being promoted by many consumers and operators.

In addition to the high-end consumer areas, such as “high-priced tobacco and alcohol, astronomical comics,” most of these are gift lines. During the holiday season, astronomical cigarettes and alcohol, astronomical health products, and moon cakes are used as gifts. Although the price is high, it does not prevent it from becoming a bestseller.

Li Xiaoqun, a researcher at the Jilin Provincial Academy of Social Sciences, believes that gift giving is the fundamental reason for giving birth to a variety of astronomical gifts. It is the giftee who loves the face and provides the market for many luxury goods at a high price. It also increases people’s feelings in the process of communication. Debt burden.

Relevant experts pointed out that the negative impact of “high-price commodities” is obvious. It breaks the convention of commodity pricing and disrupts normal market behavior. Local prices, industry and commerce, taxation and other relevant departments should take measures to strengthen the supervision of “high-price commodities”. Norms to return to a scientific and reasonable price level.