从美国“一美元商店”的高人气获得启发，欧元区的消费品生产商、零售商和餐厅发现了这一价格点的魅力，纷纷向想要省钱的购物者推出价格为一欧元的商品。跟在美国一样，在不景气的经济环境中，一欧元这个价格点的吸引力源自一个简单易懂的价格，它排挤掉了0.99美元的价格标签。

 

Taking a page from the popularity of dollar stores in the U.S., consumer-goods manufacturers, retailers and restaurants throughout the euro zone have discovered the power of the round price point and are introducing one-euro products aimed at budget-conscious shoppers。

从美国“一美元商店”的高人气获得启发，欧元区的消费品生产商、零售商和餐厅发现了这一价格点的魅力，纷纷向想要省钱的购物者推出价格为一欧元的商品。

 

Unilever, Danone SA, Starbucks Corp. and McDonald's Corp. in recent months have pushed one-euro products to light a fire under a consumer market in deep recession. The recession in Italy, for example, has pushed the number of Italians living below the poverty line up 14% in the past two years, spurring families to cut back on basic staples such as food。

联合利华(Unilever)、达能集团(Danone SA)、星巴克(Starbucks Corp。)和麦当劳(McDonald’s Corp。)最近几个月都力推一欧元商品，刺激处于深度衰退之中的消费者市场。比如，过去两年中，意大利的经济衰退促使生活在贫困线以下的意大利人增加了14%，刺激意大利家庭缩减在食品等基本商品上的支出。

 

'Poverty is returning to Europe,' says Jan Zijderveld, head of Europe for packaged-goods maker Unilever. 'You see 120 million people in that low-income segment. We need to get our brands to consumers who are having a hard time making ends meet.'

包装商品生产商联合利华的欧洲负责人齐德维尔德(Jan Zijderveld)说，贫困正重返欧洲。你看到有1.2亿人属于低收入群体。我们要让我们的品牌为消费者接受，他们如今生计艰难。

 

As a result, the one-euro price, about $1.30, is emerging as an important tool in responding to the euro zone's crisis. Manufacturers are shrinking existing products to fit into the price, while restaurants and supermarkets are discounting items to grab the attention of consumers -- all in an effort to prop up the profitability of their European businesses。

因此，一欧元的价格(约合1.30美元)成了响应欧元区危机的一个重要工具。生产商们正缩减现有产品的规格以符合这个价格，餐厅和超市则将商品打折以吸引消费者的注意――这一切都是为了支撑其欧洲业务的赢利能力。

 

'One euro is a magic price point in Europe right now,' says Lloyd Burdett, head of global clients for Futures Co., a consumer-insights consulting firm. 'There is a feeling that the stuff will arrive at that price point anyway and their margins were going to get squeezed.'

洞察消费者需求的咨询公司Futures Co。的全球客户主管伯德特(Lloyd Burdett)说，在欧洲，一欧元现在是一个有魔力的价格点。给人的感觉是，商品无论如何都会达到这个价格点，其利润空间将遭到挤压。

 

The dollar-store concept gained a foothold in Europe with the U.K.'s Poundland Ltd. chain. Poundland was founded in 1990, but it exploded in the past decade, with 450 stores today that sell pregnancy tests, light bulbs, toilet paper and other items to Britons of all income levels. The retailer is adding 60 stores a year offering thousands of products at the 'round pound' price point。

一美元商店的概念在欧洲立足与英国的Poundland Ltd。连锁有关。Poundland创建于1990年，但在过去10年中飞速发展，如今拥有450家门店，向所有收入水平的英国人出售验孕棒、灯泡、厕纸以及其他商品。这家零售商每年新增60家门店，提供成千上万种价格为整整一英镑的产品。

 

After Britain, the concept found its way to the euro zone via Germany, where several chains specialize in one-euro products. A leader is Germany's TEDi GmbH, which started in 2004 and has opened about 150 stores a year that mostly carry one-euro products, such as beauty supplies, stationery and games. TEDi now has more than 1,300 outlets in Germany and began expanding into Austria and Slovenia。

继英国之后，“一元店”的概念通过德国进入了欧元区，德国有几家连锁店专门销售一欧元商品。其中一家领先者为德国的TEDi GmbH。该公司创建于2004年，每年开设约150家门店，主要销售一欧元商品，如美容产品、文具及游戏。TEDi如今在德国有1,300多家门店，并开始向奥地利和斯洛文尼亚扩张。

 

Just as in the U.S., the lure of the one-euro price point in a dismal economic environment stems from a simple, easy-to-understand price that supplanted the 99-cent price tag。

跟在美国一样，在不景气的经济环境中，一欧元这个价格点的吸引力源自一个简单易懂的价格，它排挤掉了0.99美元的价格标签。

 

'The one-euro price has an immediate impact,' says Massimo Bellandi, who has a stand selling one-euro toiletries, household items and stationery at an open market in the Italian town of Marina di Pietrasanta. 'It lights a fire in our customers.' On a recent Saturday morning, large, handmade yellow posters emblazoned with 'Everything at One Euro' hung over a stand piled high with products such as toilet paper, Nivea hand cream and Timotei shampoo, a Unilever brand. His sales of one-euro items have risen about 20% in the last couple of years。

贝兰迪(Massimo Bellandi)在意大利Marina di Pietrasanta镇的一个露天市场经营一个摊位，出售价格为一欧元的化妆用品、家居用品和文具。他说，一欧元这个价格能够产生即时的影响。它点燃了顾客的热情。不久前一个周六的上午，写着“所有商品均为一欧元”的手工制作大幅海报挂在摊位上方，摊位上堆满了厕纸、妮维雅(Nivea)护手霜和联合利华出品的Timotei洗发水等商品。过去几年里，他的一欧元商品销售额增加了约20%。

 

The boom has help wipe away the stigma of one-euro stores, as consumers -- rich and poor -- find virtue in landing a bargain. In response, consumer-goods makers who had shunned discount stores in Europe increasingly are making less-expensive products for such outlets. Consumer-goods makers also have jumped on the trend as a way to fight the rise of private labels and maintain shopper loyalty。

一欧元店的繁荣帮助消除了其带来的耻辱感，因为消费者(无论穷富)都发现了购买廉价商品的好处。受此影响，此前避开欧洲折扣店的消费品制造商现在越来越多地为这种商店制造价格便宜的产品。消费品制造商迎合这一趋势也是为了应对私人品牌的崛起以及保持顾客忠诚度。

 

The push fits into a broader trend of shrinking package sizes in Europe. Unilever has launched a series of small packages, including some priced at one-euro, use expertise gained in developing markets。

这一趋势也与欧洲更广泛的缩小包装尺寸的趋势相吻合。联合利华已推出一系列小包装产品，其中一些产品定价在一欧元，这一举措利用了该公司在发展中国家市场取得的经验。

 

Smaller packages are a tried-and-true formula by consumer-goods companies to generate higher profits from cash-strapped consumers. Manufacturers spend less on packaging, while the unit price of the item is normally higher than for large packs。

推出小包装产品是消费品公司从囊中羞涩的消费者获得更高利润的一个可靠方法。制造商们得以减少包装支出，同时小包装产品的单价通常要高于大包装产品。

 

'It's easier to downsize a pack than demand price increases from the consumer,' says Tom Vierhile, of consulting firm Datamonitor. 'Consumers are more sensitive to the final price they pay than the size of the box.'

咨询公司Datamonitor的沃海勒(Tom Vierhile)说，缩小包装尺寸要比提高产品售价容易的多，与包装尺寸相比，消费者对他们最终支付的价格更为敏感。

 

Silvana Cocci, a 62-year-old grandmother from the central Italian town of Prato, is drawn by the one-euro products at discount shops. With an elderly mother to support, Ms. Cocci has grown more worried about her budget in the past couple of years and has switched to one-euro products for items that she considered generic, such as hand soap。

来自意大利中部城市普拉托的现年62岁的科奇(Silvana Cocci)被折扣店里的一欧元产品所吸引。由于要赡养年迈的母亲，过去几年科奇对自己的预算状况越发感到担忧，在肥皂等她称为一般性商品方面，她已经转为购买一欧元产品。

 

'It's not like we can't afford things, but you just don't know what will happen next,' she says。

她说，并不是说我们买不起贵一些的产品，但你不知道接下来将发生什么。

 

In Spain, Unilever has introduced a five-wash package of its Surf detergent priced at 1 euro. In Italy the company is promoting a range of one-euro Cornetto ice creams this summer, with the price splashed on the cone。

在西班牙，联合利华已经推出售价一欧元的Surf洗涤产品五件套装。在意大利，今年夏季该公司正在推销一系列散装出售的售价一欧元的可爱多(Cornetto)冰激凌。

 

French dairy group Danone, which has been hit hard by the downturn in Europe, is recommending that retailers sell its four-pack of Danette, a puddinglike dessert, for 1 euro, rather than the usual price of 1.39 euros. It produced new packages emblazoned with 'Prix Choc' on the front。

法国乳品集团达能对四个装的布丁甜点Danette给出的建议零售价是1欧元，原先售价是1.39欧元。该公司为这个产品换了新包装，在前面印上了“Prix Choc”。达能因欧洲的衰退而遭受了严重打击。

 

Restaurants and cafes also are getting in on the trend. Starbucks this spring rolled out a line of 'petite' cookies, croissants, and pastries for 1 euro each. And in Spain, Italy and Germany, McDonald's is offering a changing selection of products for 1 euro. At the moment, it is selling beer and Coke at 1 euro each in Spain and salads and milkshakes for the same price in Italy。

餐馆和咖啡馆也加入这一潮流。星巴克在今年春季推出了“小”曲奇、牛角面包和甜点，售价均为一欧元。在西班牙、意大利和德国，麦当劳推出了会经常调整的一欧元产品系列。目前，麦当劳在西班牙出售均为一欧元的啤酒和可乐，在意大利出售同样价格的沙拉和奶昔。

 

The push is paying off. In 2008, Spanish restaurant chain 100 Montaditos introduced a Euromania deal on Wednesdays that helped triple sales through 2011. The menu items -- a mix of mini bread rolls topped with Spanish ham, sauces or other ingredients -- don't change, but on those days virtually every item costs 1 euro. Last summer, as consumption collapsed amid Spain's second recession in five years, the company began offering Euromania on Sundays as well。

此举取得了成功。2008年，西班牙餐饮连锁店100 Montaditos开始在每周三提供Euromania餐，到2011年该公司销售额增长了两倍，这在一定程度上也是受到这个计划的提振。Euromania餐的菜单包括几款上面撒着西班牙火腿和调味汁等作料的迷你面包卷，这个菜单不会改动，但在周三实际上每款产品的售价都在一欧元。去年夏季，在西班牙出现的五年来第二次衰退导致消费受到冲击之际，该公司开始在每周日也提供Euromania餐。

 

'Euromania on Wednesdays has been the engine of the company,' spokeswoman Anne Corcuera said. The number of 100 Montaditos outlets in Spain increased to 250 last year from 112 in 2007. The company plans to add 100 restaurants in Spain, while expanding in Portugal, Italy and the U.K。

该公司发言人科奎拉(Anne Corcuera)说，每周三的Euromania餐一直是公司的增长引擎。去年100 Montaditos在西班牙的餐馆数量从2007年的112家增至250家。该公司计划在西班牙增开100家餐馆，同时在葡萄牙、意大利和英国进行扩张。