"Unfortunately, we are unable to offer a money back guarantee or product redemption at this time."

Did he ask for money back?

Sorry GP, but there is nothing helpful about misleading consumers.

I won't buy that fancy stuff anyways. CVS (though they are expensive for most other things) makes a great, inexpensive line of recycled paper products. Scott's Soft & Strong is another high value/low sandpaper choice.

Scott Extra Soft actually. And by 'extra soft' they don't mean 'omg it's made out of puppies and virgin cotton clouds' they mean "it's not sandpapery like the 1000 Sheet rolls we make."

I like Quilted Northern, but toilet paper quality is not top priority in my house so we buy generic brands. Target's store brand is really good.

That said, no excuse for the lack of answers, though I'm not sure what the OP was expecting. To me, it's always been clear that the shrink ray is to simultaneously reduce cost of production and increase the revenue. I'm annoyed by it, but I'm also at peace with it, since haggling usually does nothing. I vote with my dollar instead.

And yeah, we all know some of you make your own toilet paper at home.

I personally like the 1000 sheet rolls of Scott, but then again, I use about 250 of them just for one trip to the john.

@jparadise: Yeap Scott Extra Soft is the best price to performance paper I have found.

It doesn't sound like they are taking Ed's letter seriously.

@allstarecho: I'm not sure why they said that.. in my original email to them, I never asked for money back, I just expressed unhappiness at their shrink ray.

I know this is purely subjective, but Costco's home brand, Kirkland, has been my butt-buddy for the past several years and I couldn't be happier.

I've tried Northern, and don't like it, regardless of its width.

John Wayne toilet paper - it's rough, tough and don't take shit off of anybody.

Actually, I kinda appreciate the shrink-ray hitting TP. Maybe (but probably not) it will start getting people to stop using half a roll every time they poop. The amount of non-recycled material we flush every year is really embarrassing, all in the name of wiping our asses with something soft.

"We would never make this change if our core consumers didn't approve of the product."

"In fact, we've heard from many of our most loyal customers about how important the quality of our bathroom tissue is to them."

Once again, a company is trying to say that based on extensive customer research into what they want, we decided that our customers prefer to pay more for less.

They are dumping tons of manure on this situation in the hopes that something beautiful will grow out of it.

"we've heard from many of our most loyal customers about how important the quality of our bathroom tissue is to them"

size is a huge part of the quality of toilet paper. a HUGE part. The double roll won because you got more toilet paper.

I get the discounted Northern at walgreens for $4.25, it was $4.00 for 12 rolls and have not seen the shrink monster. *knock on wood*

Next thing you know one roll of toilet paper = one trip to the bathroom. Just raise the price and give us a full sized roll!

Considering I sent in a pciture and notes about GP doing this with their commercial TP back on 10/03/08 it seems Consumerist could have possibly had more of an effect if they had "Taken it very seriously" back then.

Now they have been at it nearly a year. I doubt they will retool now. Enjoy needing a skinny backside!

Decreased sheet count + skinnier roll? A double-whammy!

I wonder how Susan G. Komen feels that they are plastered all over the Breast Cancer Pink package of the megaroll pack at Sam's Club that contains the offending minirolls? Cause marketing is not a good thing when the company makes a crucial change to its formula. That affiliation is not so valuable when you hate the product. Bad GP. The new roll looks very sad in the holder - it wobbles back and forth as it spins. I won't be buying Quilted Northern again - I've bought it for over 10 years religiously.

Something like toilet paper should come with some warning about the size change since it is a sunk cost once you buy it. That extra inch of coverage is crucial.

@DjDynasty: You have got lay off the 99 cent burritos!

@Topcat: You end up using more with this size since you have to build your toilet paper coverage up to compensate for its smaller size. No environmental impact savings here, move along.

Improving the product by making less necessary is a better solution than raising the price. Think laundry detergent. Or wait, they did both with that didn't they? Dang.

@EdK: Yuck. I like when people give me more than I ask for, but it's always a bit offensive to be told I can't have something I didn't ask for.

@kexline: It's probably a standard letter sent out and many people do ask for money back.

@DjDynasty: We like the 1000 sheet rolls of Scott too, mainly because they're better for the septic system. After using them solely for years, "quilted"-type toilet paper seems strange and unneccesarily fluffy.

@pecan 3.14159265: We don't have his note (unless I'm missing a link somewhere), so I was assuming he just wrote to them to say "I saw what you did there".

Wow, any time I've written to a company to complain about a decline in availability or quality, I've ended up getting coupons. It's surprising that they didn't give him one.

Bi-O-Kleen sent me a stack of coupons larger than I could use before they expired a year later, so I ended up sharing those with others, a big win for them. And in that case I'd written only to beg them to make their products more easily available in that area because I loved the products for all of my household cleaning.

"Because of today's economy, cost is a factor. We made the decision to slightly reduce the roll to bring you the bathroom tissue you trust and not raise our price to retailers."

Except, of course, selling less tissue for the same price **is** raising prices. :-p I wish the FTC would stop companies from claiming they are "not raising prices" when they engage the grocery shrink ray, because it is patently dishonest to say so.

I buy generic/on sale for

toilet paper
toothpaste
toothbrushes
bodywash
deodorant
moisturizers
shampoo/conditioner

and lots more

it is all mostly the same and price is mostly based on marketing costs.

I always buy from major retailers to minimize the chance of counterfeits so 99 cents stores are out.

Time to move onto a Bidet?

No, seriously, lots of people in the East use them and they actually get you much cleaner than wiping. Of course, then everyon will gripe about using good water again. Oye.

But for the fact of clean, perhaps?

I used Quilted Northern once, it sucked. Kleenex Cottonelle > *

Jules Winnfield: Say "today's economy" again. Say "today's economy" again! I dare you! I double-dare you, motherfucker! Say "today's economy" one more goddamn time!

I suppose in "tomorrow's economy" they'll widen the rolls and add sheets. Suuuuuuureeeee....

I don't use that brand, but another G-P brand: POM. POM used to be POM 400, for 400 sheets per roll. It's more than 400 now and the box is smaller, so I guess that's the same kind of change. Still buy it, still my favorite. Only has to be bought about once a year.

@Ronin-Democrat: I usually get a ton of coupons for deodorant, so the cost really doesn't bother me. I get coupons for toothpaste too, but we buy in bulk and four tubes of toothpaste can last us for more than a year (yes, we brush twice or three times a day, every day, we just don't use more than is needed). Toiletries are the only things that we don't buy generic, actually. What I put in my hair is pretty important. I've had too many bad experiences with really cheap shampoos that smell good, but don't actually keep the oil in my hair balanced.

And how about the more expensive ultra versions of dish detergents which originally publized that you needed less so that the pour hole was smaller then later the pour hole was back in its larger diameter?

"Because of today's economy, cost is a factor. We made the decision to slightly reduce the roll to bring you the bathroom tissue you trust and not raise our price to retailers."

This idea is full of fail. By reducing the contents of the package, you have raised the price to both retailers and consumers. They're paying more per sheet than they were before.

"In fact, we've heard from many of our most loyal customers about how" they wish our TP was narrower so that wiping would be more exciting, with the chance of getting shit on their hands.

I have never, ever bought name-brand TP. Just seems silly. All name-brand paper products are ridiculously overpriced - store brand all the way.

@Topcat: That is so stupid. Maybe I should walk around with a dirty ass or maybe waste some water by showering after each duece?

Unfortunately, we were caught by the few we expected and as long as the rest of you keep buying we will keep right on shrinking. Thanks for reading this form letter.

@allstarecho:

It's just a useless toilet paper of an answer they boilerplate for customer complaining about the issue.

Sometimes those can get quite silly. I contacted the mega-grocers (Loblaw's) about why their new $0.05/bag charge means I won't be shopping there. I told them it was on the basis that for environmental impact, I'd go to the cheap places that give me their used boxes free. And that I enjoyed their stores for the fact that while their prices are, in fact, higher, it was a no hassle experience. With the added fees, I have all the hassle and none of the environmental benefit (still no free boxes there).

Their answer? They told me about how great it was that they were saving the environment by charging money for plastic bags.

I wrote back explaining they need to fire the person answering emails there because they lost a customer due to being too lazy to actually READ the email. Hmmm... no response to that one! :D

Seems someone in management realize that if they are charging for bags, they need to turn the places into discount stores. They've been running ads all month about how they've lowered their prices (And not mentioning it's because customers have run away from their stores to discount places).

@subtlefrog: I thought they were taking it very seriously.

@pecan 3.14159265: We've switched to the Target brand, too. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality.

For some reason, there is no great uproar over this type of practice.

What would happen if the gas companies decided to sell by the ⅞'s of a gallon and keep prices the same, smiling the whole time saying we didn't raise prices (technically true but essentially false)?

@pecan 3.14159265:

My wife (who is in control of the TP brands in our house doesn't like Northern. We use the Kirkland brand from Costco and it works just fine.

@colorisnteverything: Amen. We need to sign onto the Japanese all-in-ones. Built-in bidets, heated seats, tankless models and low-flush options for the pee-only time.

I'd never felt so refreshed...

QUOTE: "We made the decision to slightly reduce the roll to bring you the bathroom tissue you trust and not raise our price to retailers."

This does not justify the fact that you changed the size of the product without adequately notifying the consumer. Additionally, being one of those crazy coupon people, I know that some retailers put the older larger package on clearance to clear the shelf before placing the new product on the shelf, which would have alerted consumers to a change, while the price of the product stayed the same.

Since I'm one of those crazy coupon people, I did notice there was a change in size, especially when you purchase a new package and place it on your storage shelf beside an old package.

As for the cost, well, it seems the cost of the product in the stores is the same price, or higher, like everything else.

Having a stockpile of items, another crazy couponer thang, I have noticed many, MANY companies are following the same trend. The price stays the same, yet a consumer gets less product for the same price as a previous larger product.

Or as with many items, the price is higher, yet the size of the product is smaller, and this has been going on for years. Another example is Breyers who changed the size of their product from 1.75 qts to 1.5 qts, yet the packaging appears the same. Years ago, it was a half gallon size.

Frito-Lay products went from 12oz to 10oz. Hellman's/Best Mayo went from 32oz to 30oz.
Bounty cut their towels from 60 to 52.
While Scott tissue still has their 1000 sheet roll, their product has gotten narrower and shorter while the price has nearly doubled.

Consumers are not stupid, and any company who thinks they can "slide" such acts by consumers shows unethical business practices. Downsizing is nothing but a sneaky price increase.

And companies need to realize that if they change the size of their product, they need to let consumers know. For example in cooking. One recipe I have calls for a 16oz can of Pumpkin, yet the only size available in the store is 13oz. What's next? Only 11 eggs in a carton?

@Blueskylaw:
No, it's not even technically true; rather, it is simply false.

I have also noticed El Monteray Tacquitos have gotten smaller. Until a few weeks ago, we would buy them in a box, with a bag inside (zipper bag) that contained the food. Since the bag had cooking instuctions, we threw away the box. Last week we picked some up, and they had done away with the box, and now just had a colorful bag.

Only problem was, when I took the tacquitos out, I thought "Hey! These look smaller!" I don't have any of the boxed ones left to compare them to. But I know the box version and bag version cost the same.

@jparadise: How were customers mislead? The sheet count is clearly marked and the rolls are in transparent packaging where the size and thickness is apparent.

@pecan 3.14159265: Shrink rays bother me a little, but when I'm shopping I just take my time and read the UNIT PRICES. They never lie. That's usually the only thing I look at unless it's double stuff oreos or something :)

When the shrink rays hit products, the unit price always tells the tale. Shop that way and you'll never be taken by surprise!

@pecan 3.14159265:
If the economy gets bad enough I will:
-Cancel my Netflix
-Switch to 1 meal/day
-Sell plasma/"other bodily fluids"
-Walk, not drive, the 32 miles to work.
However, if I ever become homeless and daily have to fight with a rabid squirrel over a peach pit, I will spend every last panhandled dime first on good toilet paper!