As if Dutch terrace life wasn’t already expensive enough, Heineken announces a price increase on café, restaurant, AND supermarket drinks this summer.
From August 1, it’ll therefore become even more expensive to crack open a cold (Heineken) one, for the second year in a row, writes NU.nl.
In other words, Heineken is joining the (growing) gang of products and services becoming more and more expensive nowadays. 💸
How expensive are we talking about?
In cafés and restaurants, the increase will be at an average of 5,8% and the supermarket prices will be “comparable,” according to Heineken.
If you’re used to paying €5,5 for a pint, you will soon have to spend more or less €5,80 on a night out. It might not sound like the biggest change for a reasonably well-off Dutchie, but for a poor student, this can result in severe lifestyle changes. 😭
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Many entrepreneurs will also get hit by the price change, as most still struggle with recovering from the financial losses brought on by the pandemic (sorry for mentioning it, we know we’re all sick of hearing about it 🙆♀️).
Whyyyy?
“Why oh why,” you might scream in frustration. Well, no particularly ground-breaking reasons have been presented. Unfortunately, it’s quite understandable that the company needs to raise the prices a bit.
Higher energy costs, and increased prices on raw materials, are explanations mentioned. But in addition, Heineken says they’re spending more on wages, transport, and material too.
A spokesperson from Heineken claims the price increases are caused by a mix of the pandemic-which-shall-not-be-named, and the war in Ukraine. In other words — it’s not their fault! They’re simply FORCED to make life just a little bit worse for people who like to enjoy the little things (biertjes) in life. 🤷🏽♂️
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But who knows, maybe the company really just wants to force Dutchies to adopt a healthier lifestyle, or get out of the bad habit of using alcohol as liquid courage. Maybe it’s all for the greater good.
What do you think; will the increase make a big difference in your lifestyle? Tell us in the comments!