Good and bad buys from Aldi and Lidl

VfM4meplse

Just popped into Lidl this morning (am away from home) and picked up some strawberries and toiletries. Their generic sanitary products are on offer - 2 boxes of 20s for £3 - but the shelf was bare. Went into Wilko instead and theirs are 2 (again 20s) for £2.75.

Back to Lidl: I picked up a couple of the finest carrot cakes for just £1.25 each (£2 reduced to £1.79, plus 30% off). Will make a frugal but nice Mother's Day tea with the strawberries and pineapple. I don't know if the red tea is any good, but I saw a man with 3 outers of it in his trolley.

mcculloch29

A._Badger wrote: »

You misunderstand. It doesn't 'annoy' me. It intrigues me. It is strange behaviour to be so devoted to a supermarket that the moment someone criticises it, its defenders rush to its defence.




That's a unique justification for the bizarre juxtaposition of compressor oil next to sewing kits, light bulbs and heaven knows what else that I saw in an Aldi recently, I'll give you that.

Those were that week's Specialbuys; items that change each week and usually appear twice yearly. Those looking for them would expect to see each week's items merchandised together.

Alternatively there is often a random selection of former Specialbuys that have been reduced to clear- sometimes by up to 50%. My local Tesco also merchandises reduced to clear items in this way. It's not unique to Aldi by any means.
I see this as an explanation, rather than a 'defence', frankly. All Aldi stores operate on a principle of making full use of the staff at all times. That's why they pay far higher than minimum wage. They haven't got the time to make the products look pretty whilst the stores are open; such tasks are done outside opening hours.

Back on topic - absolutely gorgeous Mother's Day baskets and tin planters of mixed foliage and flower plants for £7 this weekend.

There really is a big range of suitable gifts on Specialbuys. My son is working all weekend and asked if I would choose my own gift - the planter looks lovely.

Doc_N

A._Badger wrote: »

You misunderstand. It doesn't 'annoy' me. It intrigues me. It is strange behaviour to be so devoted to a supermarket that the moment someone criticises it, its defenders rush to its defence.

You're entirely right, of course, to point out that Aldi has its faults. I'd centre on the poor keeping quality of a lot of its fruit and vegetables, and the fact that the onions are often bad.

The speed at which the staff are obliged to push the stuff through the tills to avoid losing pay also annoys me - because it can lead to errors.

But Which? didn't vote it Supermarket of the Year recently for no reason - ahead of Waitrose.

"Aldi's 76% customer score means it narrowly edges out Waitrose (75%), which has been voted the best supermarket every year since our survey started in 2007."

Tesco, by comparison, came 9th out of 10, and the Co-op last.

It's hardly surprising, is it, that such a popular supermarket, is going to attract a lot of defenders. Doesn't that just suggest to you that it's really rather a popular place to shop?

Payless_2

I went right off Lidl recently. I needed a large box to return something to the manufacturers. I saw large crisp boxes ( nearly empty) in Lidl and asked if I could take one. The employee moving stuff around on the shelves looked at me as if I'd asked him for his wallet and just gave me a brusque "No".

I prefer Aldi anyway

A._Badger

Doc_N wrote: »

You're entirely right, of course, to point out that Aldi has its faults. I'd centre on the poor keeping quality of a lot of its fruit and vegetables, and the fact that the onions are often bad.

The speed at which the staff are obliged to push the stuff through the tills to avoid losing pay also annoys me - because it can lead to errors.

But Which? didn't vote it Supermarket of the Year recently for no reason - ahead of Waitrose.

"Aldi's 76% customer score means it narrowly edges out Waitrose (75%), which has been voted the best supermarket every year since our survey started in 2007."

Tesco, by comparison, came 9th out of 10, and the Co-op last.

It's hardly surprising, is it, that such a popular supermarket, is going to attract a lot of defenders. Doesn't that just suggest to you that it's really rather a popular place to shop? [/QUOT:)E]

Why would anyone need to be told that Aldi is popular? Who is disputing its popularity?

What I am pointing to is the curious behaviour of some customers of a supermarket chain who are behaving more like members of a pop star's fan club.

When people start buzzing like angry bees at the slightest criticism, it's a sure sign that rational judgements aren't being made. What is going on here is a little bit more than consumer reaction to a new shop. There's a good thesis to be got out of this one - though whether it belongs to the sociologists, the psychologists or the business studies department remains to be seen.

VfM4meplse

A._Badger wrote: »

What I am pointing to is the curious behaviour of some customers of a supermarket chain who are behaving more like members of a pop star's fan club.

For me its in part the pleasure of seeing it erode Mr T's market share, which is the cherry on an otherwise wholesome cake.

WantToBeSE

I found the first thing that I don't like at Aldi...Their Totrilla wraps are like cardboard, and dry cardboard at that! Going back to Tesco for those!

paulineb_2

A._Badger wrote: »

Disagreeing with someone isn't 'putting down' someone else's opinions. Why do Aldiphiles get so defensive? It smacks of post-purchase justification.

The comment was made 'what's not to love?' about Aldi. The chaotic store layout is one reason. As I said in my comment, some things about Aldi are very good, some aren't. Not being able to see that some aren't is just fan behaviour.

Perhaps you could re consider the way you speak to people on here.
Referring to people as aldiphiles.

Ive already made clear I shop in another shop more than I shop in aldi. I dont like every single product that aldi make, but I like enough to shop there for some things. Im on a low income so every penny counts.

I really have no idea why someone who doesn't like Aldi, would come on a thread where people are discussing products theyve bought in aldi and make comments such as your jumble sale comments, aldiphiles, "fans".

Your comments smack of being rather condescending in my opinion, but thats just my opinion. It's the way you've said things to people, not what you've said.

I'll repeat, my local aldi doesn't look like a jumble sale. Neither does the one in the next town.

But if you feel better to think that every aldi is chaotically laid out even though that's not correct then by all means, crack right on.

~Chameleon~

Perhaps A. Badger is an employee of Tesco :whistle:

paulineb_2

A._Badger wrote: »

Disagreeing with someone isn't 'putting down' someone else's opinions. Why do Aldiphiles get so defensive? It smacks of post-purchase justification.

The comment was made 'what's not to love?' about Aldi. The chaotic store layout is one reason. As I said in my comment, some things about Aldi are very good, some aren't. Not being able to see that some aren't is just fan behaviour.

Ive said on more than one occasion that I certainly dont buy every single product I purchase from aldi.

Why on earth would that be anything like "fan behaviour". I go to my local aldi because its convenient for me, I dont drive and its within walking distance. Home bargains is next door. I dont have tons of spare cash so I shop in aldi. That doesnt make me a "fan" or an "aldiphile", it makes me someone who needs to make certain choices when shopping price wise.

I dont think there was anything defensive in anything I said in my previous post to you, I just thought it odd that someone who has already been on the thread referring to aldi as looking like a jumble sale would repeat the comments when people are on this thread trying to point people in the direction of products they've either liked or disliked.

Maybe if you had been to every aldi in the land and had photographic evidence that every single store had a layout something like a jumble sale then people might take your comments more seriously.