Lidl: still a 'deep discounter'?

Fire_Fox

blackbelle wrote: »

I am learning that the prices don't look THAT much cheaper than the big supermarkets, when you look at them in isolation, but that when you have a pile of items in your trolley, the savings, especially with the special offers, soon add up!

You have hit the nail on the head. I think you need to look at percentage discounts to realise how much you can save, for example Aldi chestnut mushrooms being 85p to Tesco £1, 15p doesn't sound like much but 15% actually is. Then there are a few major bargains like balsamic vinegar £1 for 500ml. The cheapest I can see in Tesco is £1.70 for 500ml and Asda £1 for just 250ml.

Sorry it's Aldi but the same principle applies for Lidl.

philbostavros

Oh how I miss Neto!!!!!

I miss their "What-you-see-is-what-you-get" approach - even the staff! Some were odd-balls but absolute gems.

I used to spend hours browsing the non-food isles, especially looking at tools. My garage is well equipped with all sorts of items that I only use once in a blue moon, but purchased at a price that made it worthwhile (saving huge amounts of time and angst).

Our local store became a mini-Asda, which I hardly ever visit. I still pop in our local Aldi and Lidl and think that whilst some bargains can be had (food and non-food), it's often a case of swings and roundabouts?

blackbelle_2

philbostavros wrote: »

I still pop in our local Aldi and Lidl and think that whilst some bargains can be had (food and non-food), it's often a case of swings and roundabouts?

I thought so too! But I am changing my mind

I find Lidl is definitely cheaper overall, unless perhaps you were proposing to fill a tesco/sainsbury/asda trolley only with value/basics items, and in that scenario the lidl produce would probably win, hands down, on product quality and taste? Overall, that is: there are many superb individual basics/value items, but I have not been impressed with others.

My new preferred shopping 'system' :cool:
- Nip into M&S to pick up any meat/fish/poultry whoopsies (usually £10-£15 worth, if no whoopsies available then head to local butcher), stash the lot in freezer immediately on getting home
- Pick up any branded toiletries, coffee, dilute squash, breakfast juices (2 for £1) needed from Poundland (usual spend £5)
- Get the rest - fruit, veg, storecupboard items, deli, dairy etc from Lidl - aiming for a max spend of £30 there.

This isn't as time-consuming as it sounds, since they're all physically close to each other, and I am pretty quick in nipping around each :-)

So I have my weekly shopping spend down to £45-£50 by shopping in this way, and we breakfast/snack/lunch/dine/drink pretty well on it each week. I know that I could spend less than this if it were ever necessary, but for now I am happy with this.

I do save a bit of money by making all my own bread, and bakery items in general.

Which reminds me to ask: do Lidl sell strong bread flour, and is it any good?

Edwardia

I've seem bread mixes in there, my local Lidl has quite a selection. Sugar is cheaper there than ASDA too. I don't bake but my mother does.

Fire_Fox

I shop around like you Blackbelle, tho not all on the same day and I do the big supermarkets online. Each visit is fairly quick because I am going in for specific bargains. I buy two or more of almost anything 'longlife' be that cleaning, toiletries or food so I don't have to hit Poundland or Home Bargains too often!

LairyMary

blackbelle wrote: »

Go for it; try it .... shop without your other half if necessary then decant/disguise! Most packaging doesn't say 'Lidl' on it anyhow, so you could always tell him that Mr. T/S/A has introduced a new continental foods shelf

Haha I like your thinking BlackBelle... I'm gonna go for it this week

Fire_Fox wrote: »

Aldi sell fresh spinach cheaper than the supermarket, not sure what you mean by 'stuff like that' tho.

Thanks Fire Fox - I guess I just meant a large variety of fruit and veg rather than just the basics... I just didnt word it very well! Glad they have a good selection

I'll try to remember to post back how I get on!

blackbelle_2

JIreland wrote: »

don't forget to store spring onions in a glass of water on the windowsill NOT in the fridge. On the windowsill they'll keep growing. In the fridge they go soggy

Oh, I meant to come back and say that I tried this, but in the space of less than a day my spring onions had gone completely limp and lifeless

And they had looked in fantastic condition in the store

I think that the secret to the success of this tip must be in using as fresh spring onions as possible, with as much of the root system intact as possible (my lidl spring onions had closely-trimmed roots).

I am guessing that after being in cold storage for a while, the root system probably dies off, and that is the 'point of no return', after which it probably doesn't matter how much water you plunk 'em in - and that at that point, the fridge salad crisper is probably the only option.

ALIBOBSY

mon37 wrote: »

I am glad I've seen this thread. I also think that Lidl is not so cheap as some people think and prices are pretty much the same as in big supermarkets.

£3 difference is still alot on such a small number of items, especially luxury items. I prefer Aldi myself and find then to be cheaper even than lidl, but love the weekend and special offers and stock up.

EG last weekend lovely packs of welsh fresh butter-tasting as good as lurpak (no added colour, just salt to the salted version), just 68p.

Or a few weeks ago when they had their lovely chocolate for just 17p a bar. I bulk buy and then save for months and months.

Ali x

ALIBOBSY

philbostavros wrote: »

Oh how I miss Neto!!!!!

I miss their "What-you-see-is-what-you-get" approach - even the staff! Some were odd-balls but absolute gems.

I used to spend hours browsing the non-food isles, especially looking at tools. My garage is well equipped with all sorts of items that I only use once in a blue moon, but purchased at a price that made it worthwhile (saving huge amounts of time and angst).

Our local store became a mini-Asda, which I hardly ever visit. I still pop in our local Aldi and Lidl and think that whilst some bargains can be had (food and non-food), it's often a case of swings and roundabouts?

We miss netto as well, looking at a nest of tables we got from there that are solid wood and were only £29.99 lol. The gardening stuff was good as well.

We also got a mini Asda, but we find ours is worth popping into on the way past as they seem to have alot of "yellow stickers".

Often get there filtered milk (a la cravendale) 4 pints knocked down to about 50p as they have a sell by date on that day so they have to get rid, but as its filtered stuff it has use by date 7 days later. We freeze and use as is and often it lasts 2 days after the 7 days anyway.

Got 5 bags of leeks last week reduced to 10p a bag-3 or 4 leeks in each bag. I chopped and used some in that weeks meals and the rest was prepped chopped and frozen ready to throw into sauces/stews/soups etc. I also got aload of fancy crimbo cards that had been £2 or £3 a pack for 40p/50p in Jan. They seem to get more knockdowns than the bigger stores, but it might just be ours lol. May be worth a pop in if its not out of your way. Ours is next door to our dentists and on the way to Aldi's or Lidl/poundtsretcher (one to the right one to the left) so can be a short call in on our way elsewhere .

ALIBOBSY

BTW to the poster who asked about flour, yes Lidl sell very good flour including bread flour (not just bread mixes) and in fact is better quality than virtually all the big stores, pretty much all the bread making threads on here mention how good the lidl flour is.

Ali x