LIDL's Policy, unbelievable!!!!!!!!

bluckaneyr

Although they are obviously quite busy, Aldi and Lidl staff are always cheerful, polite and helpful in their stores here in Ireland.
Using this criterium, their levels of staff morale appear to me to be at least as good, IF NOT BETTER, than that at Tesco.

N9eav

bluckaneyr wrote:

Although they are obviously quite busy, Aldi and Lidl staff are always cheerful, polite and helpful in their stores here in Ireland.
Using this criterium, their levels of staff morale appear to me to be at least as good, IF NOT BETTER, than that at Tesco.

Well they are not so down our way. I always feel rushed at the checkout because there are insufficient staff, they rush all the stuff through, there is no time to pack and everything gets piled back into the trolley.

bluckaneyr

What you describe at the checkout applies equally here in Ireland to all supermarkets except Superquinn (an Irish owned group who have up to now concentrated on customer service rather than price competition).

Here in Ireland checkouts are possibly a little different to what you experience.
But our system could be coming your way soon!

This is because in The Republic, there is a 15 cent environmental tax on each plastic bag, so we usually pack our goods into reusable cloth bags we bring to the store ourselves : otherwise we just pack everythig straight into the trolley.

Or you can always pay 15 cents for each plastic bag!!!

Lidl and Aldi staff seem to have something pleasant to say as I pack away my goods. Could it be company policy. Or just the local store managers' initiatives, I wonder?

Tesco staff stare impatiently. Or talk only among themselves.

bunking_off

N9eav wrote:

As far as comparison is concerned.

LIDLs seem to me to have too few staff to run the store. No security and the staff are too busy to keep an eye out for shoplifters etc. No CCTV. Not very good really

You can't have it both ways. They're cheap for a reason : they keep their overheads to an absolute minimum and that means as few staff as they can possibly get away with - 9 times out of 10 in any business, staff are your highest overhead.

You want full service, go to Tesco, Asda or Sainsbury's, but be prepared to pay their prices. Me? I use a combination...Lidl & Aldi for the weekly bargains and cheap stuff/things like Kartoffelsalat, bratwurst & bier that the Germans do better, Tesco for other stuff. Don't like queuing at Lidl, but I accept that it's a consequence of the low prices.

RussWWFC

LIDL's hitler-esque policies can be summed up by their refund policy - dont quote me on this but I think if irs over £10 they send you a cheque. I certainly wouldnt fancy trying for a refund in there anyway. It seems an awful place to work compared to ASDA which is where I work but I get paid £5.90 PH and if there was a LIDLs near near me that paid £8 an hour and gave me 65 hours every week then I'd be tempted.

Like ta previous poster said - they are cheap on some things - with all the places I shop at all I want to do is get in and out ASAP and get stuff as cheap as I can

bluckaneyr

RussWWFC wrote-
"LIDL's hitler-esque policies"


That "remark" tells us nothing about LIDL.

I don't know the system in your area, but LIDL and ALDI in Ireland give refunds on the production of a receipt, there is no such £10 limit in operation.

Their refund policiies are better than other stores and they give 3 year guarantees on many electircal items that only get 1 year guarantees elsewhere.

On mornings of special offers there are queues but they move quickly.
At other times the queues are no different to those elsewhere.

I can't comment on ASDA as they don't operate here, but TESCO in Ireland can't compete with ALDI or LIDL on price and their service is at best on a par with them and with Dunnes Stores.

N9eav

I don't know if there is a comparison much here in England. If you look for like for like prices, I think it's pretty much the same. I only use Lidl for offers. They do not stock everything I need for a weekly shop.

When their fruit and veg is half price, then it's cheap. Certain items like german salami are great.

Negatives: No shopping baskets, so you have to try and carry everything in your arms!
Their pizzas are always soggy.

bluckaneyr

In the past year or so I think that Aldi have left Lidl behind in terms of the standards of a lot of their electrical and mechanical offers, as well as their food products range.
Meats, cheeses and tinned foods are very good in both and I have no problems with the standards of their fruit and veg - they seem to buy a lot of fresh produce locally now and are consistently cheaper.

I agree that some products are better elsewhere, the bakery depts being a case in point -
Personally speaking, because I am a celiac, I cannot eat food containing gluten and therefore all Aldi / Lidl breads and most processed foods are ruled out.
That is one area where Tesco win out, hands down.
Tesco's range of gluten-free is better than elsewhere, though most "supermarket" gluten-free breads are unappealing after a while.

I bake all my own gluten-free breads now.
Again, when it comes to buying gluten-free flour, Aldi and Lidl don't stock it at all, whereas Tesco and Dunnes both do - and at exactly the same price!! ALWAYS!!!!
HMMMM!!

Lidl and Aldi have no great interest in catering for minorities with special dietary requirements, unfortunately. So I agree, we do need a spread of outlets, therefore.

BWZN93

I personally think Lidl and Aldi are great, as I can stock up on decent basics without paying the price of tesco or sainsburys. A lot of the diary stuff, I actually prefer to Tesco, particularly the yogurts and cheeses. They also have a load of other stuff that I havent seen in Tesco - Aldi had some asian stuff in a couple of weeks ago that Id never even thought of looking for in Tesco - I saw it, bought it, and loved it. Tesco aims to cater for everyone which is why they are so big and have so much choice, even to the point of having about 7 types and brands of chopped tomatoes, wheras Lidl has just the one brand, which I feel is easier!!

As for working there, it appears that shop assistants get it easier, they are the ones usually on the tills etc, while the managers and deputy's etc are the ones in at 7am doing the more heavy work. I must admit, I didnt like the long long days, but a lot of college students were working there, doing 4-6 hour shifts that suited them , so they werent going home exhausted and got paid well for it. Id be a shop assistant there, although Id definately recommend being in good health, as being on your feet and actually working isnt for those who already have a bad back to be honest!

Jo xx

bunking_off

N9eav wrote:

I don't know if there is a comparison much here in England. If you look for like for like prices, I think it's pretty much the same.

This was intended to be a joke, wasn't it? There aren't many things you can do like for like comparisons on, because Lidl inherently tend to sell unbranded/German branded stuff. However;

- on the few things that are like for like, they're often considerably cheaper - e.g. pricing on bulk boxes of weetabix are comparable to Makro/Costco pricing than Tesco
- on non-branded things, they seem to be pretty much always cheaper...beans <10p, beans & sausage <20p, kidney beans 12p (I've seen at 7p at one time), yogurts - cheaper & nicer, beer - comparable but nicer German stuff, ice cream mars...12 for what Tesco charge for 4, cola - they're own brand stuff is 40p/2litre and up to Pepsi/Coke quality, unlike Tescos which tastes like soap.

I do shop at Tesco, but wouldn't buy anything there that Lidl or Aldi sold.

My only complaints - other than the till queues which I accept are a consequence of the low pricing - are that in the case of Lidl (not so much Aldi), the best bargains are gone within 30 mins, and in the case of both, nutritional info tends to be missing from their produce...an absolute pain given both myself & my wife are diabetics.