Florida Publix runs a BOGO deal on watermelons, so a woman tries to get 50% off a single watermelon. A manager tells her that’s not how it works

A woman shared a video online about an experience she said she had at a Publix store in Melbourne, Florida, where she tried to get 50% off a single watermelon that was part of a buy-one-get-one-free deal. According to the video, a store manager told her that Florida state rules do not allow customers to get half off a single BOGO item. They have to buy two to get the deal.

The woman, identified as Ashley Chapman, who goes by @ashleyrchapman on TikTok, said in her video that she went to the Publix that morning with another person. She said she picked up one bowl of watermelon, which was listed as a BOGO item, and brought it to the checkout counter.

Chapman said in the video that a bagger pointed out the BOGO deal to her, but she said she only wanted one. When she asked the cashier whether the watermelon would at least be half off since she was only buying one, she said the cashier told her no.

BOGO pricing rules appear to vary by state, and Florida is one where buying two is required to get any discount

After her interaction at the checkout, Chapman said she went to the customer service counter to ask about the pricing. She said a manager there explained the situation to her.

“Not in the state of Florida,” the manager told her, according to Chapman’s account in the video. Chapman said she found that surprising, adding, “I did not know that that was, like, regulated by your state, and I just thought that was very interesting.”

Chapman, who appears to be from South Carolina based on her comments in the video, said she had assumed that BOGO deals worked the same way everywhere. “I just thought if something was buy one get one free and you only bought one, it was half off,” she said. “But apparently in Florida they do things a little bit different.”

She said she ultimately went back and grabbed a second watermelon to take advantage of the deal. “It’s in my lunch bag, so I’m just like carrying watermelon around,” she said in the video.

According to Food Republic, there are varying theories about why some grocery stores allow customers to buy just one BOGO item at a discounted price while others do not. The blog Geek Mamas offered one explanation specifically about Publix, suggesting that the difference has to do with food tax laws in different states. 

“As Publix moved into the northern states, those states had an existing and current food tax. Each item sold has to have a food tax attached to it. Therefore, allowing those states to offer half price on BOGO items,” the blog wrote.

According to a statement attributed to Publix on a public petition, the grocery chain said it originally started advertising BOGO deals differently in certain markets because of state tax laws, and later chose to keep the half-price rule in those areas even after the tax laws changed. 

“We began advertising BOGOs differently in these market areas due to state tax laws. Since then, the laws no longer apply; however, we have elected to leave the BOGO pricing in effect in these areas because our customers have grown accustomed to the way the pricing was established,” the statement said, per the petition.

This means that whether a customer can buy just one BOGO item at half price appears to depend on where the store is located. In some states, according to the sources above, customers may walk up to the register with just one item from a BOGO deal and pay 50% of the listed price. In Florida, based on what the manager told Chapman, that option is apparently not available; customers need to take both items to get any savings.

Chapman’s video drew attention to the fact that many shoppers may not be aware that BOGO deal rules can vary by state. Some viewers who commented on the video said they were also unfamiliar with how the pricing works. 

“Never heard of that at all. First one is full price whether you take the free one or not,” one commenter said. Another viewer suggested taxes played a role, writing, “Has something to do with taxes. We are in Ga and learned this in vaca a few years ago.” 

A third commenter appeared to push back on the premise of Chapman’s ask, writing, “Why would it be half off? It’s buy one (pay full price) get one free.” Similar pricing confusion has led other customers to call restaurants tourist traps for half-price deals.

In her case, Chapman said she was genuinely surprised to learn that the policy she was familiar with in South Carolina did not apply at the Florida Publix she visited. After going back for the second watermelon, she left the store with both, something she said she had not originally planned on doing. Other diners have also faced disappointment with all-you-can-eat food deal promotions.