Skip Navigation
Megan McArdle

Megan McArdle - Megan McArdle is a senior editor for The Atlantic who writes about business and economics. She has worked at three start-ups, a consulting firm, an investment bank, a disaster recovery firm at Ground Zero, and The Economist. More

Megan was born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and yes, she does enjoy her lattes, as well as the occasional extra-dry skim-milk cappuccino. Her checkered work history includes three start-ups, four years as a technology project manager for a boutique consulting firm, a summer as an associate at an investment bank, and a year spent as sort of an executive copy girl for one of the disaster-recovery firms at Ground Zero … all before the age of 30.

While working at Ground Zero, Megan started Live From the WTC, a blog focused on economics, business, and cooking. She may or may not have been the first major economics blogger, depending on whether we are allowed to throw outlying variables such as Brad Delong out of the set. From there it was but a few steps down the slippery slope to freelance journalism. She has worked in various capacities for The Economist, where she wrote about economics and oversaw the founding of Free Exchange, the magazine's economics blog. She has also maintained her own blog, Asymmetrical Information, which moved to The Atlantic, along with its owner, in August 2007.

Megan holds a bachelor's degree in English literature from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. After a lifetime as a New Yorker, she now resides in northwest Washington, D.C., where she is still trying to figure out what one does with an apartment larger than 400 square feet.

Niche marketing

By Megan McArdle
Feb 7 2009, 1:52 PM ET Comment

I'm in the market for a new crockpot, and was looking at this Hamilton Beach model, which is supposed to be the best one out there besides the super-pricey All-Clad.  I was a little shocked at its price, however:  $159.00 seems like a lot for a crock-pot made by Hamilton Beach, which specializes in low-cost, few-frills consumer appliances. 

And indeed, Consumer Reports informs me that it should be around $50.  What gives?




The answer is in the comments section.

SELLER Eleven Adar is SEVERELY inflating the price!!!,
February 4, 2009
By Shanlyn858 (Cape Cod, MA USA) - See all my reviews
Buyers, make sure you are an informed consumer when purchasing items. Amazon cannot regulate the price that its sellers are listing for products. The seller Eleven Adar has a trend of severely inflating prices on items that are out of stock on Amazon. Take a look at their negative comments!!! They have done this numerous times in their history as a seller. 

I was actively looking to purchase the Hamilton Beach Set n' Forget Slow cooker, model number 33967. The manufacturer lists this item for $59.99. Eleven Adar jack their price to $199.99 when they were the only seller with the item in stock. I went to Sears last night and bought it for $60!! 

I am appalled that Amazon cannot or will not regulate the sellers. I wanted to pass this on to other buyers to alert them, so they won't be taken advantage of, just so a seller can make more $$. I consider this an insult and the markings of a shady business. Please beware and DO NOT purchase from Eleven Adar or any other merchant that does this. 

The Slow Cooker is amazing. The construction is sturdy and appears that it will wear well.

As a business model it's clever, though economically and morally, it's pure parasitism.  But how well can this really work?  Who out there is so desperate to buy a single type of crockpot from Amazon that they are willing to pay almost quadruple the price it would cost them at Best Buy?

I suspect that this business model, like many others, is going to be torpedoed by the recession.  No one buys something for $159 without comparison shopping any more.
Presented by

More at The Atlantic

Mutts Mobilize in Midtown Against Mitt Mutts Against Mitt
Our Aging Prison Population: Should Criminals Die Free? Should Aging Prisoners Die Free?
'Plug In Better': A Manifesto How to Plug In Better
In Minnesota, A School District Overturns Its Policy of Silence In Minnesota Schools, Silence Leads to Bullying
The fEARLESSness of Jeremy Lin The Fearlessness of Jeremy Lin

Join the Discussion

After you comment, click Post. If you’re not already logged in you will be asked to log in or register.
blog comments powered by Disqus
Special Report
The Next Global Economies Reuters The Next Global Economies
Lessons from the BRICs — and a look at which developing countries are on the rise. Read more ›
View All Correspondents

The Biggest Story in Photos

World Press Photo Contest 2012

Feb 15, 2012

Subscribe Now

SAVE 59%! 10 issues JUST $2.45 PER COPY

Facebook

Newsletters

Sign up to receive our free newsletters

(sample)

(sample)

(sample)

(sample)

Megan McArdle
from the Magazine

Why Companies Fail

GM’s stock price has sunk by a third since its IPO. Why is corporate turnaround so difficult…

The Graduates

Busted banking careers, crashed consultants, and shrunken incomes: the author attends her 10-year…

Romney’s Business

The Republican contender touts his business experience—but does it really matter?