Pricing Power Podcast with Fexingo: How Businesses Set Prices, Raise Margins, and Win Customers

In this episode of Pricing Power, Lucas and Luna dissect Zara's pricing strategy — how the fast-fashion giant uses speed, scarcity, and vertical integration to command full price on 85% of its inventory. They walk through the Inditex supply chain, the two-week design-to-shelf cycle, and why Zara marks down less than half the industry average. A concrete look at how a retailer turns inventory veloc...

Lucas and Luna dive into the economics of pricing a commercial jetliner, using Boeing's 737 MAX as the case study. With a list price of $121.6 million but typical discounts of 50-60%, how does Boeing actually set a price that works for airlines, lessors, and its own profit margins? The hosts break down the three-tier pricing strategy—list price, effective price, and aftermarket bundles—and reveal...

Episode 105 of Pricing Power digs into Porsche's pricing strategy for the 911, the iconic sports car that has generated decades of profit. Lucas and Luna break down the specific tactics Porsche uses to command a premium: limiting supply to create scarcity, offering a vast menu of options that can double the base price, and carefully managing model-year transitions to maintain dealership margins. T...

In this episode of Pricing Power Podcast, Lucas and Luna dive into how Airbnb transformed short-term rental pricing with its smart pricing tool. They break down the algorithm behind Airbnb's suggested nightly rates — how it factors in local demand, seasonality, and booking windows to nudge hosts toward revenue-maximizing prices. The hosts discuss the tension between hosts' emotional attachment to...

In this episode of Pricing Power, Lucas and Luna unpack the controversial world of concert ticket pricing. Using the 2026 Taylor Swift 'Eternity Tour' as a central case, they explain how Ticketmaster's dynamic pricing model sets face-value prices based on real-time demand, why a $500 floor seat can suddenly cost $2,000, and what artists actually earn from these surcharges. They compare this to the...

Episode 102 of Pricing Power Podcast explores how the automotive industry is adopting dynamic pricing — a strategy long used by airlines and hotels — to boost margins and manage inventory. Lucas and Luna break down Tesla's several price cuts in 2023 and 2024, Ford's experiment with dealer pricing flexibility on the F-150 Lightning, and the broader shift away from haggle-based pricing. They examine...

This episode digs into a single pricing decision that shaped a global brand: why The Economist charges readers over $200 a year for a weekly newspaper in the age of free online news. Lucas walks through the famous 2009 Harvard Business School case that revealed the magazine's surprisingly simple pricing architecture — three tiers, a decoy, and a psychological trick that made the digital-only optio...

In this milestone 100th episode of Pricing Power, Lucas and Luna dive deep into Apple's iPhone pricing strategy — specifically how the company uses a 'good, better, best' tiering system to capture consumer surplus at every price point. They dissect Apple's cost structure, the role of storage and features as price differentiators, how the iPhone's average selling price has climbed above $900, and w...

Every night, thousands of Hilton hotels around the world adjust room prices in real time. This episode unpacks the science of hotel revenue management. Lucas and Luna walk through how a midweek business traveler in Chicago might see a $189 rate while a leisure traveler booking the same room for a Saturday night in July sees $349. They explain the algorithms, the role of competitive pricing, and th...

In this episode of Pricing Power, Lucas and Luna unpack the pricing machine behind Procter & Gamble's $80 billion empire. They focus on one specific case: P&G's 2019 decision to raise prices on Pampers diapers and Bounty paper towels by roughly 5 percent, and how the company used the 'everyday low price' strategy combined with targeted promotions to avoid customer backlash. Lucas explains the conc...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna examine Adobe's 2013 decision to abandon perpetual software licenses for a subscription model. They explore how the company navigated customer backlash, transformed its revenue structure, and turned a risky bet into a multi-billion-dollar annuity. Key numbers include Adobe's shift from 80 percent perpetual revenue to over 90 percent subscription, a 400 percent incre...

Ferrari doesn't just sell cars — it sells the right to buy them. In this episode, Lucas and Luna examine how Ferrari uses deliberate undersupply, personalization revenue, and a carefully managed brand hierarchy to generate profit margins that would make luxury conglomerates jealous. They walk through Ferrari's unit economics: roughly 14,000 cars sold annually versus customer demand of over 100,000...

In this episode of Pricing Power Podcast, Lucas and Luna explore how pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline sets prices for life-saving drugs. Using the example of the shingles vaccine Shingrix, they break down the pricing strategy that balances high R&D costs, tiered pricing across countries, patent cliffs, and public perception. Lucas explains the 'value-based pricing' approach used in pharma, whe...

In 2012, a two-minute YouTube video for a startup called Dollar Shave Club went viral, but the real business lesson was in the pricing. Lucas and Luna unpack how founder Michael Dubin used a subscription model to undercut Gillette's razors — $1, $6, or $9 per month — and created a $1 billion exit to Unilever. They discuss the economics of razors as 'loss leaders' turned recurring revenue, the psyc...

How did Spotify convince a generation to pay for music again after years of piracy? In this episode, Lucas and Luna break down Spotify's pricing strategy and its three-part flywheel: the free tier as a conversion funnel, the $9.99 subscription benchmark that became the industry standard, and the bundle pricing that locks in users across music, podcasts, and audiobooks. They trace the decision poin...

This episode of Pricing Power Podcast dives into Netflix's pricing strategy from its DVD-by-mail origins to the ad-supported tier of 2026. Lucas walks through the key inflection points: the 2007 streaming launch at $8.99, the 2011 Qwikster debacle that cost 800,000 subscribers, the 2019 price increase that funded original content like Stranger Things, and the 2022 ad-tier rollout at $6.99 that rev...

In episode 91 of Pricing Power Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine Nintendo's masterful use of nostalgia-based pricing. They look at how the company keeps first-party Switch titles like Zelda and Mario at $60 for years, then introduces a $350 'Switch 2' that is basically the same hardware with a bigger screen. Lucas breaks down the psychology: Nintendo doesn't compete on specs or price cuts; it sells...

IKEA makes about $45 billion a year selling flat-packed furniture that customers haul home themselves — and that self-service model is central to its pricing strategy. In this episode, Lucas and Luna walk through how IKEA turns customer labor into a cost advantage, why its supply chain is engineered for price stability, and how the company has resisted the temptation to raise prices even as lumber...

Why does Costco still sell a hot dog and soda for $1.50 in 2026, when inflation has pushed fast-food combo meals past $10? In this episode, Lucas and Luna unpack the pricing philosophy behind Costco's most famous loss leader. They dig into the math: how Costco uses the hot dog to drive membership renewal, what the $1.50 price signals about trust and consistency, and why former CEO Jim Sinegal once...

Lucas and Luna dive into McDonald's pricing strategy, focusing on how the fast-food giant uses its value menu to drive traffic, manage margins, and adapt to inflation. They explore the history of the Dollar Menu, the economics of a $1 item, and how McDonald's balances franchisee profitability with customer perception. Specific examples include the 2018 McPick 2 for $5, the 2022 price increases, an...

In Episode 87 of Pricing Power Podcast, Lucas and Luna examine how Patagonia built pricing power by aligning premium prices with environmental purpose. They break down the 'buy less but buy better' paradox, the economics of the Worn Wear program, and how Patagonia's 1 percent for the Planet commitment actually supports its price premium. Specific numbers include the company's estimated $1.5 billio...

Episode 86 of Pricing Power Podcast dives into how Trader Joe's turned private-label pricing into a cult-followed strategy. Lucas and Luna break down the Chain of Command: how the grocer keeps prices 20-30% below competitors by owning 80% of its shelves under store brands like Trader Joe's and Trader Ming's. They explore the cost-side secret—direct sourcing, no slotting fees, lean store operations...

In this episode of Pricing Power, Lucas and Luna unpack the economics behind the five-dollar latte. They trace Starbucks' pricing evolution from Howard Schultz's third-place vision through the 2024-2025 cost crunch, showing how the company balances premium positioning with customer pushback. Key numbers include the 37 percent gross margin on a latte versus the seven percent on a drip coffee, the r...

Southwest Airlines has posted 52 consecutive years of profitability in an industry where most carriers lose money. This episode unpacks the specific pricing philosophy behind that record: no change fees, one fare class, free bags, and a point-to-point route network that turns aircraft faster than any competitor. Lucas and Luna walk through the unit economics of a Southwest flight, the revenue mana...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Leica Camera AG pulled off one of the most remarkable turnarounds in consumer electronics. After nearly collapsing in the early 2000s under pressure from digital photography, Leica bet on a niche strategy: ultra-premium pricing, a revived M-series rangefinder, and a legendary brand story. They trace Leica's journey from near-bankruptcy in 2003 to a 2025...