I was typing too fast, lol, I meant to say "the prices at point of sale have gone up significantly more for some people." Especially in places that used to have a competitive grocery environment. I think people tend to mistake their personal experiences for broader trends.

Of course I agree with you about how CPI samples are taken and that they are representative of the market as a whole.

tl;dr: I agree with you, I'm just floating a theory as to why some people may have significantly different experiences on a micro level.

> places that used to have a competitive grocery environment

This is what I’m seeing, anecdotally. In towns with more than one non-affiliated grocer, prices are cheap. In towns with consolidated groceries, prices are higher. Enough that the “savvy” shoppers, i.e. those with a car and time and liquidity to enable bulk buying, drive to the next town over.