DESPERATE shoppers are scouring M&S for this year’s sell-out Easter Eggs – with punters listing them for double the price on eBay.
The M&S Collection Extra Thick Pistachio Milk Chocolate Egg is sold out in branches across the UK, as is the retailer’s Outrageously Chocolatey Custard Cream Biscuity Egg.
One shopper said of the £20 pistachio egg on reddit.com: “I am desperately trying to find the pistachio Easter egg in Marks & Spencer’s, but every store I have gone into has an empty shelf.
“Has anybody had any luck getting one of these?”;
Another added: “No luck whatsoever. I've had family & friends checking in different M&S nearby and still nothing. Elusive. Does it even exist?”;
A third added: “I've been trying forever! And today, literally an hour ago they were in stock in my local store; by the time my husband got there though they'd gone to low stock, and then I refreshed to no stock. In the 10 minutes it took him to get there they'd gone.”;
An employee of the store posted: “In our store we put them out 2 at a time throughout the day to stop one person buying the whole shelf.”;
The retailer’s smaller Pistachio Rolled Eggs have also proved stonkingly popular and hard to get hold of.
The same stock issues have hit the £12 Custard Cream eggs, with one customer saying on Ocado.com: “Never available. Why sell something that is impossible to buy?!”;
Another canny shopper advised searchers to try M&S shops at petrol stations, where people are less likely to look.
The Easter treats have also sold on eBay for well above the original selling prices.
One auction for the Pistachio egg in late March drew seven bids and sold for £28.19, against its original selling price of £20.
Meanwhile the £12 Custard Cream egg has sold for £19.
As Easter approaches sellers are hoping for even more, with some currently listing them for around £40 for the Pistachio and £35 for the Custard Cream, more than double the original price.
Pistachio flavouring is currently a big trend on TikTok and Instagram, and is also behind the mania for the current sell-out popularity of Dubai-style chocolate.
M&S’ Pistachio and Milk Chocolate Egg is made with Belgian 40 per cent milk chocolate, with a layer of smooth pistachio truffle as well as whole and chopped roasted pistachios.
The Custard Cream Egg has also gone viral on TikTok, as influencers hailed its “luxurious”; chocolate shell studded with crunchy biscuit pieces and filled with white chocolate and custard truffle.
M&S said: “Our Collection Extra Thick Pistachio Milk Chocolate Egg and Outrageously Chocolatey Custard Cream Biscuity Egg have been massive hits with customers this Easter, flying off the shelves and gaining viral status on Social Media!
“If you can’t get your hands on one, look out for the equally delicious M&S Extremely Chocolatey Biscuity Easter Egg – we’d recommend trying, especially for those looking to try supersized biscuity favourites!
“As well as the delicious Collection Extra Thick Dark Chocolate and Blond Egg. Customers can also check availability in their local store on the M&S Food Digital Catalogue.”;
One of our reporters, Lynsey, recently tried and reviewed the M&S Food Collection Extra Thick Dark Chocolate and Blond Egg.
In other news, Asda recently slashed the price of its small Cadbury chocolate eggs to just 98p as it looks to fight off competition from rivals.
Britain's third largest supermarket was originally charging £1.48 for the treat, but has cut the price by 50p as part of its new Rollback price campaign.
Where to buy cheap Easter chocolate
Asda is not the only supermarket offering customers the chance to nab cheap Easter chocolate.
Until Tuesday April 1, shoppers can snap up three mini egg bags for £3 atIceland.
Included in the deal are a selection of sweet favourites, such as the Smarties Milk Chocolate Easter Mini Eggs Sharing Bag and crunchy M&M's Crispy Milk Chocolate Mini Eggs Bag.
These are all available as part of Iceland's 3 for £3 offer.
Elsewhere, Morrisonsis offering largeCadburyEaster eggs for £3 each as part of a 3 for £9 deal, but you’ll need a More Card to unlock the offer.
It is also worth noting that when attempting to snag a good deal it is important to compare with other sites.
Websites like Trolley and Price Spy let you compare prices on thousands of products to see which retailer is selling them cheapest.
You can use the Google Shopping/Product tab to quickly scan the internet too.
How to save money on chocolate
We all love a bit of chocolate from now and then, but you don't have to break the bank buying your favourite bar.
Consumer reporter Sam Walker reveals how to cut costs…
Go own brand –if you're not too fussed about flavour and just want to supplant your chocolate cravings, you'll save by going for the supermarket's own brand bars.
Shop around – if you've spotted your favourite variety at the supermarket, make sure you check if it's cheaper elsewhere.
Websites like Trolley.co.uk let you compare prices on products across all the major chains to see if you're getting the best deal.
Look out for yellow stickers – supermarket staff put yellow, and sometimes orange and red, stickers on to products to show they've been reduced.
They usually do this if the product is coming to the end of its best-before date or the packaging is slightly damaged.
Buy bigger bars – most of the time, but not always, chocolate is cheaper per 100g the larger the bar.
So if you've got the appetite, and you were going to buy a hefty amount of chocolate anyway, you might as well go bigger.
