(Kayla Wong -- The Beacon)
By Jonathan Nielsen
As a business student, I generally view businesses favorably; however, I am not naive enough to think that all businesses treat customers fairly. Unfair businesses frustrate me because they give the business community a bad name. With regard to Bon Appétit's prices, it is my opinion that they are not offering students a fair shake.
Normally, on-campus students are required to buy a meal plan. This guarantees a certain amount of funds will be spent at Bon Appétit. With rising prices, students like me are beginning to feel that the company lacks an incentive to provide fair prices to forced customers.
The high prices are clear for all to see. It is a fact that you can buy a 16-ounce energy drink in a vending machine just outside The Cove for $2.50. Oddly, the price for the same drink changes to $3.25 in The Cove. Moreover, the $3.25 price tag understates its true cost to students with meal plans because of the "operations fee" that Bon Appétit charges them. For example, students who buy Meal Plan 3 will pay $2,265 per semester; however, they only receive $1,775 to spend on food. Thus, on-campus students are paying an additional 25 cents per dollar and the actual amount they pay for that drink is over $4. Products under normal market conditions probably would not sell at these prices because there would be a disparity between the prices and the value customers place on the products.
To be fair to Bon Appétit, it is likely that the company must charge high prices in order to compensate for large overhead expenses and rising expenses associated with the sustainable food they provide. Thus, they may not be as greedy as some may think. Nevertheless, students do not perceive the food to be worth what the prices suggest.
Additionally, many of us question whether their business model is conducive to creating the value that college students need. With guaranteed sales, Bon Appétit makes budgeting decisions in an unrealistic environment where they can rely on forced customers to bail them out if they choose to sell premium products from expensive suppliers.
In the real world, if your company chooses to sell expensive products customers do not fully appreciate, it is not the public's obligation to buy your products so you can stay afloat. Traditionally, businesses make a living by meeting customer needs. College students need value, and we are beginning to wonder if we can afford Bon Appétit's chosen products.
In addition to frustrations about price, students like me are upset that the company is exercising a form of price discrimination by adding those fees to meal plans. In reality, on-campus students are paying more per item than off-campus students are. If anything, those paying upfront should receive some sort of discount instead of a fee. Why would I want a meal plan if I could just pay as I go? Am I subsidizing off-campus students by paying elevated prices? Would that be fair?
The questions remain, and students like me are hungry for an explanation. There may be facts that provide insight as to why things should remain the way that they are. For now, however, students want to understand why we are required to pay for products we may not value at elevated prices we cannot afford.
