They say “what goes up must come down,” but as CPG prices continue to climb, it seems like it’ll take more than gravity to drag them back to Earth.

Over the past few years, prices have soared as companies passed on inflated supply-chain expenses from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine to consumers. January’s Consumer Price Index revealed a 0.5% price jump in January, with food at home prices up 0.8% month over month and 11.3% year over year. Other CPG categories didn’t fare much better. Personal care products, for example, were up 7.1% for the year and 0.3% for the month.

• Procter & Gamble just raised prices again last month, and Coca-Cola said it also planned more hikes this year. Unilever CEO Alan Jope noted to CNBC that the company was “past peak inflation but not yet at peak pricing.”

While some persist, many supply-chain issues have begun to ease, and several companies that have raised prices are also touting strong earnings. On its fourth quarter earnings call, Mondelez CEO Dirk Van de Put said the company saw a “record year” in profit dollar growth. General Mills last month raised its profit forecasts, while Kellogg reported a 12% year over year sales increase for Q4.

Despite this, shoppers are still faced with elevated prices, and even some retailers are getting frustrated. So how and when will prices finally come back down to Earth?

Need or greed: Justin Cook, US consumer products research leader at Deloitte, noted that many CPGs are still struggling with high input costs from energy to labor, but even as those ease, “prices go up faster than they come down.”

Keep reading here.—EC

You’ve probably used a Brannock Device, even if you didn’t know what it’s called. Invented in 1925, it’s the gizmo that measures foot length and width. Although revolutionary at the time, and still popular in stores, more sophisticated measuring devices are challenging the device’s supremacy.

One gaining, in every sense, a foothold in shoe retail is a 3D foot scanner from Volumental, a Stockholm-based startup whose retail partners include Hoka, Red Wing Shoes, and New Balance.

To see one in action, on a recent morning I headed to an NYC Fleet Feet, the running store that has been using the devices since 2018 in its locations, which today number about 260.

And what I’d learn would be more than just the dimensions of my feet. Among the device’s biggest selling points are ancillary benefits, including capturing customers’ email addresses and reducing returns.

Foot traffic: Located on the second floor of The Shops at Columbus Circle, the bright, airy store commanded an apt view for a running store: the southwest corner of Central Park, near the New York City Marathon’s finish line.

There, Clarke Babcock, operating partner at Fleet Feet New York City, instructed me to remove my shoes and socks and roll up my pants to mid-calf. (I’ll pause while you catch your breath.) I stepped onto Volumental’s device, which resembles a bathroom scale, with pillars at the corners that help capture the scan.

“The Brannock Device is like the grandfather of the Volumental,” Babcock said. “It’s taking what the Brannock Device does, and...it blows it up, and it just gives you more information.”

Moments later, the scan was complete, and Babcock showed me an image of my feet on a tablet, looking as if they’d just been sawed off at the ankle.

Keep reading here.—AAN

Today’s top retail reads.

Unclear and present danger: How the US recall system makes products even more hazardous. “Our recall system itself is broken because there just aren’t good ways for consumers to find out,” said Teresa Murray, consumer watchdog at the US Public Interest Research Group. (Vox)

Dishing it out: “Rage reviews” on platforms like Yelp are on the rise, and sometimes the reviewers regret it. “There was that cathartic experience for about two to three minutes,” said Andrew Kiel, who slammed a Charlotte, North Carolina, wing shop on Yelp. “And then there was the kind of like, ‘Am I going to come across as a male Karen, as a Chad?’” (Marketplace)

Can’t-abis: Why voters in Oklahoma, which has comparatively liberal medical cannabis laws, rejected the retail sale of recreational cannabis. (Associated Press)

Brew to the rescue: Has your employee been clocking in an hour late and you’re not sure how to address it? The Brew’s Difficult Conversations at Work course can help you navigate those tricky discussions. Click here to get your team back on track.

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Three of the stories below are real...and one is most definitely not. Can you spot the fake?

1. Malaysia has its first reptile cafe where customers can play with snakes and lizards while ordering drinks.
2. A rapper and a famed Michelin star chef have collaborated to create a peanut butter and jelly jar.
3. A restaurant in Croatia has hired a robot chef that can whip up 70 different types of one-pot meals.
4. A luxury brand in Italy is creating “unique accessories” made out of recycled tires.

Keep reading for the answer.

Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.

• Our takeaways from eTail West 2023
• Simon Miller’s challenges at it expands beyond the US
• Rothy’s chief supply-chain officer on reaching full circularity