Cheaper at the Checkout - Trying Aldi
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German supermarket chain Aldi looks like they are trying to take over the world, and it’s true that they’re not your ordinary supermarket chain. Ginger from Girls Just Wanna Have Funds tried out Aldi recently after hearing from so many people that they’re cheaper than regular supermarkets and figured that her bill for two weeks of groceries would be $75 at Aldi as compared to something like $350 at Safeway or Trader Joes.
Aldi does a few things differently to be able to offer much cheaper prices, some of which I like and some I don’t. For a start, they don’t waste money on making the shop look attractive or with extensive shelving - the products are pretty much offered in the pallets they arrived in, arranged on the floor and with little effort (or expense) needed for re-stocking. I like this - why spend my precious money making the supermarket look great when I’d rather get my groceries cheaper.
Their other strategy is to have a much smaller range of products. You often can’t choose the size of the product you want, or there is only one choice for a particular item. When I lived in Germany, the home of Aldi, I sometimes shopped there but too often realized I couldn’t actually purchase what I was looking for. Perhaps Aldi’s not the place to shop with a list, but if you’re happy to go in and buy whatever they’ve got available and create a menu out of that, then you’re likely to save a lot of money.
This entry was posted on Wednesday, November 19th, 2008 at 4:47 am and is filed under Saving Money. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
November 19th, 2008 at 9:39 am
Aldi is a great grocery store no matter what others say. It has some great food and products. The problem with turning to Aldi is the fact that you sacrifice quality. They don’t provide the same service or appeal as other stores. It is all personal preference.