Geographic Pricing

OK here is one that all Military Service Personnel have seen; and that is Geographic Pricing. Have you ever been in a Store in one area and gone to the same store in another area; only to find the same like item to be higher or lower in price? Well if you have ever been in the Military and done some traveling you have noticed Geographic Pricing in the AAFES's or Post Exchange on the various Base's through-out the World.

As a Young Marine stationed in North Carolina I would go shopping and buy what i needed and thought I had done good; but then when I would deploy I would go to another base and see the higher prices and know that I really did good. As I made my way through my Career and moved all over the place with my Family; I started to see something going own in the Military Stores that where located in certain areas. If that base was in a High cost of living area then the price's where higher at the Base stores; and if the base was in a Lower cost of living area then the price's where lower. This always puzzled me and could not figure this out; we had to pay more for the items that we bought due to the area (if in a high cost of living area), but our base pay did not go up to match if we lived in the Barracks.

So shouldn't the Base Exchanges base their Pricing on the Demographics of their Customer, instead of Geographic? If their is a higher level of Young Enlisted; instead of Higher Ranking, then this should be reflected in the Exchange Price Sitting.