Bob's Surplus started up in CT in the 1970's and they were famous for selling their branded tee-shirts for $1. Me and my friends joked if we were ever down on our luck we could have a complete wardrobe by going to Bob's and spending $7 on a different shirt for every day of the week, since the shirts were different colors.
It reminds me of when I was going to college and my mom gave me four new sets of jeans as a gift, but they were the wrong size. I brought them back to Bob's and when I was doing the exchange the teller said "Ok, Mr. Lee, here's your $20". I said, waaah? She said they were now on sale and they honored the sale price. I said to myself oh-boy I scored! Back then $20 was several nights of drinking money! Of course that's what it ended up being spent on. Sorry, Mom, I thought about giving you back the money, but after thinking about it some more I considered it part of the gift!
According to the link below a six pack of beer cost $3.42 in 1980 which is when I started college. I definitely remember buying cases of beer for $10 or less on sale. There would be a big debate of quality vs quantity though. I remember buying lots of Canadian beer such as Molson or Labatt's for $11.99 a case. The liquor store on the edge of campus always had stuff in that price range. I remember one of the neighborhood dive bars sold mugs of beer for $0.50 in the late 70s and nicer joints selling pitchers of beer for $3.
The price of beer could double in coming years. Though such a price surge would be unprecedented, beer prices have fluctuated over the last 60 years.
www.usatoday.com