>Kroger charged much higher prices for substandard goods in poor/minority, transit-dependent communities Kroger isn't a monopoly. If Kroger was truly price gou

>Kroger charged much higher prices for substandard goods in poor/minority, transit-dependent communities Kroger isn't a monopoly. If Kroger was truly price gouging as you're alleging, then any other company can just sweep into that neighborhood and take all of Kroger's business. As Black economist Thomas Sowell notes: "despite higher markups in prices in low-income neighborhoods, there is a lower than average rate of return for businesses there — one of the reasons why businesses tend to avoid such neighborhoods." In other words, the cost of doing business in poor neighborhoods is higher. You can attribute this to higher taxes in urban areas, higher cost of transporting goods to the area (increased traffic leading to longer duration supply routes, higher insurance requirements for transporters), higher cost of securing the business due to higher crime levels.