Britain’s biggest supermarket chain has pledged to stop charging more for products that it markets to women.
Tesco said Monday that it has cut the price of basic women’s razors to match the price offered for identical men’s razors.
The company had come under pressure from British lawmaker Paula Sherriff after it was found to charge twice as much for pink disposable twin-blade razors as blue ones. The products are identical except for color and price.
Blue razors were priced at £0.10, while pink one were being offered for £0.20.
Tesco, which runs 3,500 stores across the U.K., has sent a letter to Sherriff saying it has reviewed its products to make sure it’s not overcharging women.
“We are guided by doing what is right for our customers … so we have reduced the cost of our women’s twin blade razors, so that they are the same price per unit as the male equivalent,” a Tesco spokesman said in a statement.
Tesco has defended the pricing by arguing that it sells many more men’s razors, making it easier to keep prices low.
The price change was first reported by The Guardian.
Tesco is not the only company to face criticism over a “pink tax,” where women are charged more for comparable products.
British pharmacy chain Boots was forced to cut prices of some items last year after an online campaign called on the company to stop unfair pricing.
In New York City, a study of 800 products performed by the city government found that women paid more in 42% of cases.
The Fawcett Society in the U.K. said its own investigation across major supermarkets showed women are paying on average 31% more for a basket of comparable products.
