You aren’t going crazy. You’ve been tracking the price of your favorite detergent for weeks, knowing it’s always $12.99. Suddenly, on Monday, you notice the price has jumped to $15.99. You’re annoyed, but you pass. Then, on Friday, the new sales ad drops: “This Week Only: Buy One, Get One 50% Off!” You feel a rush of excitement, thinking your patience paid off. But you shouldn’t. You’ve just witnessed a deceptive (but common) retail trick where stores intentionally inflate a price before they put it on “sale.”
