Kroger Shifts Weekly Ads Specials from Newspaper to Online

The largest grocery chain in the United States announced that its weekly grocery special ads will be moving from newspaper to online. Kroger said printed copies will still be available in stores.

On Twitter, the company said the reason for the switch was due to “declining newspaper circulation and many of our partners reducing or eliminating physical distribution of their newspapers.”

This change might not seem that significant, but according to CNN, this could “deal a blow to shoppers who plan their store trips based on weekly newspaper ads.” Additionally, many shoppers do not own a smartphone or use the internet due to age or income.

Edgar Dworsky, a consumer advocate and founder of Consumer World, said, “This becomes inconvenient for shoppers who, up until now, could do easy comparison shopping just by flipping the pages of competing stores’ circulars at their kitchen table. It also leaves behind those folks without internet access or smartphones.”

CNN also reported the change affects newspapers that rely on advertisements for declining revenue.