When I talk with neighbors across Aurora, I hear the same thing: It’s getting too expensive to live. Everything costs more, and families are stretched thin. People are having trouble affording the basics necessities like groceries and housing.
Retail giants blame inflation, labor costs, and supply chain issues. Sometimes that’s real. But there’s another pattern we can’t ignore: Big box retailers use economic uncertainty as cover to raise prices and boost profits.
We saw it during COVID. Prices surged because of supply chain disruptions but never came back down after those disruptions eased. Instead, major grocers reported record profits. A 2024 Federal Trade Commission report confirmed that many retailers used the pandemic to “come out ahead at the expense of the communities they serve.”…