You may be broke, but Aldi isn’t! As consumers cut back, more of them are shopping at deep discount stores like Aldi. The German-owned grocer usually doesn’t advertise, but the economic slowdown is helping business, and Aldi is investing in a few commercials.
From the WSJ:
Among the beneficiaries of those shifting dollars is Aldi Group, a no-frills, deep-discount grocer that operates more than 900 stores in 29 U.S. states. The chain, based in Germany, used to shun television advertising, but it recently ran a series of national commercials stressing its low prices on private-label products. The campaign’s slogan: “Shop Aldi Smart.”
Last month, a survey by Retail Forward showed that consumers were doing 25% more of their spending at deep discounters like Aldi than they were a year earlier.
Have you started to shop at more stores like Aldi?
Retailers Recalibrate Pitch To Strapped Consumers [WSJ]
(Photo: Morton Fox )
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@Ron-Mexico: Wal-mart generally puts other stores out of business, not the other way around.
Save-a-Lot and Aldi’s both in the Cleveland, OH market take debit card (not credit) and cash. No checks.
You have to bag your own stuff at both
Aldi’s make you deposit a quarter to get a shopping cart which is given back when you return the cart to it’s rightful ‘home’
I go to either one of these stores for most items first, Then down a few blocks a “typical grocery store” for large meat and/or produce-type purchases.
I find that Save-a-Lot’s produce is better than Aldi’s
I shop about 3 times a week because I prefer things fresh.
That and I’m single, food goes bad when I buy in bulk.
I’ve never did the math, but I’d guess I’ve saved at least 25% by going to these types of stores first. Thankfully, these stores are near the typical grocery stores here so gas waste isn’t an issue.
And no, I don’t eat the processed food stuffs save for an occasion hot-pocket purchase
Oh and I find that Milk is ALWAYS cheapest at Dollar
General.
I shop Aldi’s for the staples. The “brand whores” who insist on brand names only should take another look. I’ve seen pallets come in still shrink wrapped, want to guess what was on the pallet packing slip?… “General Mills Cereal Distribution Center”. Take a guess who makes at least some of the private label cereals. Same too with seeing Keebler on a palet packing slip.
The make money by only stocking the 750 most common items people buy in exactly one size, which drops the number of shelves and stockers needed. Our local store runs on 6-7 employees for an entire weeks schedule. I’ve never felt they compromised quality, just the brand glitz.
I loved ALDIs when I was in college. They had boxes of pancake mix that came from some country in South America and sold them each for a quarter. They also had big boxes of dry milk (cows?) for about 50 cents. Then some cheapo brand of syrup in a big bottle for a dollar.
I’d eat pancakes made with rehydrated milk and some sort of sweet syrup for every meal. Each meal cost about a dime. It was great. Saved a lot of money for booze.
Wish we had Aldi here in the NW. We’ve got a chain called Grocery Outlet. Same idea, overstocks and near to expiry date stuff. Still, I got three pints of Haagen Daaz there for $1.49 each (vs. grocery store price of $3.99 each). And, it’s fun to see things like Hellman’s Mayo (it’s supposed to be Best Foods here in the West), Edy’s Grand ice cream, etc. Great prices on imported cheeses, too. Don’t be a snob, be a smarty-pants and save big!
I love our Aldi’s! I shop there for pantry staple items and their dairy products are very cheap. Also, our Aldis takes credit/debt cards and they do advertise.
i work in the town that houses Aldi’s national headquarters (Batavia Il) and live about a mile from the Aldi store closest to their headquarters (Rt. 38, Geneva).
This means _my_ Aldi is the nicest in the US, because whenever Herr Doktor Aldi wants to check out his store, he visits that one. My aldi is … perfect, and the help is super nice.
@B: I’ve been to Aldi’s a few times when I was strapped for cash. Basically they have few shelves, but almost everything’s just right off the forklift with the top boxes open, and all generic and/or about to expire, but extremely cheap the more you’re willing to sacrifice to get what you need. It’s a very different looking store on the inside compared to the typical grocery store because of the piles of goods. They don’t have a lot of selection, but as was said above, for staples their prices are unbeatable. Bring cash and you’ll also be bagging yourself. Some don’t have carts to help save on the prices, etc.
Aldi rocks, they typically have everything you need for a great meal, including fresh veggies at low prices.
I’ve never warmed up to Aldi’s but Trader Joe’s is my favorite grocery store. Overall, they’re about 60% cheaper than the local Dominiks and Jewel plus I think a lot of their private label products are more tasty than major label stuff. Their stuff tends to be generally more healthy too (you still get all the fat and calories but they use less fake stuff and other additives).
@Ash78: If the price of oil keeps going up we’re all going to be eating a lot more canned and processed foods. It’s not cheap to fly asparagus in from Peru.
I haven’t been to an Aldi store for years, when I was in the Netherlands. Low prices and an ever changing selection of non-staple items.
Not in Canada…Pity
I live in the suburbs of Philly and our Aldi is cleaner than any other supermarket I’ve been to. My wife and I have shopped there for 90% of our groceries in the past two years, and we haven’t had anything from there that we wouldn’t have again. Granted, we’re not gourmet chefs or anything close to it and we eat out between seven and 10 times a week, but we can get close to one month of food for ~$120 (not including the quick trips to Wal*Mart/Acme for milk, bread and eggs).
The staff is minimal, but always nice. The customer mix isn’t the greatest, but then again, you ARE shopping with a WIC-heavy crowd. The bags, incidentally, have made my wife and I more slightly more environmentally conscious.
Finally, the creator of the quarter/buggy thing should be lauded as a genius. I haven’t been to a Wal*Mart or Target in years and had a cart as clean and as in good a shape as the ones I routinely get at Aldi.
Gee maybe if I could afford the airfare I might. But Germany I would not consider a discount….
We used to shop at the Aldi’s in Plattsburgh when we’d do the monthly run to Super-Duper WalMart and Sams Club for the month. With the price of gas and ferry, though, we go to Price Chopper instead of crossing Lake Champlain. Works out almost even.
Ahh Aldi. I didn’t even know they existed in the states. I used their chief German competitor Lidl when I lived in Berlin, but they were basically the same. Two very cheap grocery stores, nothing fancy, but nothing so bad you never went back. I’m not sure what I’d do if I saw one around here.
Used to shop at Aldi’s when we were first married and poor; they were great for dry/canned/frozen goods but as other commenters mentioned, the lines are long, product selection is limited and their fruits and veg section is lacking in many ways.
We moved to Chicago, and now shop mostly at the independent ethnic fresh markets in town. You won’t find a lot of processed or frozen foods (or brand names) but the basics are good quality and very inexpensive (milk, eggs, breads, fruit and vegetables).
Unfortunately they’re not common in rural/suburban areas, but if you have one of these markets in your neck of the woods (look for green awnings and a name that includes the words “fresh,” “fruit” or “produce”), be adventurous and give them a try! Some people are scared off by the fact they’re usually staffed and patronized by non-English speakers, but you will likely be pleasantly surprised. Hint: shop early or late at the fresh markets, as they tend to get very crowded with large families on weekends or mid-days.
Oh man,
The funny thing is that I grew up eating alot of Aldi’s food.
I remember going to get chips, soda (brands that I never heard of) and Elio’s Pizza. The pizza was a lot cheaper than it was at ShopRite.
Now that I am an adult, I wouldn’t shop at Aldi’s for food. My younger sister and lot of peope that I know on welfare shop there. Of course, I am not saying that all “public assistance” folks shop there but where I am from they do.
Also, I don’t like Aldis because they have one right in connection with a apartment complex. Thus, gauranteeing that they can just walk off of their porch and be 20 ft from Aldi. Alot of these same folks don’t have a car. So this is cake for them.
I don’t like that.
I also believe Aldi’s and similiar stores sell “hormone qualified foods”. There is no mistake that we see 10 year olds with big breast and butts.
I know a 8 year old that has high cholesterol and high blood pressure from eating food from there. However, this is the only place her family can shop. Maybe offer more vegetables or have a farmer’s market once a month in the parking lot?
Between Tops, Aldi’s, and BJ’s we do pretty good!
I don’t have any Aldi’s near me, but as far as other items, I always go to Marshall’s or Ross first for clothes, Costco and other online sites for everything else.
been doing so for years. Why spend so much more? I don’t understand it. I don’t need the hottet new shoes.. I graduated high school years ago.
I go to Aldi’s once in a while. There are a few things I like – their precooked Italian chicken breasts, their giant bags of stir-fry veggies, and their knock-off Nutella spread.
The problem is that most of the Aldi’s near me are quite a bit of a drive away, and in not-so-great neighborhoods. If I had one next door to me, I’d probably do most of my shopping there, instead of a couple times a year.
Some clarification on the Aldi ownership thing from Wikipedia:
“In the USA, Aldi Nord CEO Theo Albrecht started a family trust that owns the Trader Joe’s chain of specialty grocery stores, which is separate from both Aldi corporations.[citation needed] It is not Theo but his brother Karl Albrecht’s Aldi South that conducts Aldi’s operations in the USA.”
So looks like Trader Joe’s is owned by the brother of the dude who runs Aldi in the US.
Everything I’ve had from there has been really good, but what really amazes me is that the fruit and vegetables were cheap, and excellent. I also liked the fact that the quantities of some things, like strawberries, are smaller, which means I spend less at the outset, and can eat the whole package before any of them go bad. I really don’t need a quart of strawberries, just give me 15 for a dollar, or whatever.
According to the web, the closest one to me is over 30 miles away
I don’t really use a lot of canned stuff, but I’d still check it out if there was one closer.
Currently, I buy meats and stuff I can freeze at the local butcher store and pretty much everything else at Stop & Shop. Their store brand is really good, IMO, so I save quite a bit that way.
And then there’s my monthly trip to the fancy Big Y three towns for a couple gourmet things I like once in a while. Generic stuff tastes better topped with really good Reggiano Parmesan, I’ve found
ugh, that was supposed to be “three towns OVER”
True story: I know someone who drives over 20 miles to shop at Aldi and 20 miles back home. I tried explaining to her that her car gets less than 20 mpg so its costing her over 8 bucks a trip. Still she goes there. I am betting she isn’t saving over 8 bucks more than the Walmart or County Market that are both less than a mile from her house.
@Bladefist: Except when the rich people order water (free) and then go get soda from the soda machine. Then they suck!
@Mr. Guy:
Exit 19 off the NYS Thruway. 9W South
@nsv: Yes there is, basically it’s a no-frills store (no full service bakery or deli) full of Food Lion branded items and national brands at cheaper prices. They do have good prices on their meats, but it’s still not enough for me to pay the fuel to get there and back.
@Sir Winston Thriller:
Sir Winston, do you live on one of the islands? I’ve taken that ferry.
No, South Burlington. We pick up the ferry on Grand Isle.
@Mr. Guy:
There’s also one in Bennington, VT should you be out that way. When I moved there I was shocked to find an Aldi, but when I started to meet my fellow townspeople the shock quickly dissipated.
We’ve had good luck with Aldi’s produce, peanuts (in the jar), and other canned/boxed items. They have 1 pound rolls of ground turkey for $1 which is half of what our other stores sell it for.
We avoid the milk, though. Tried it twice and tasted nasty both times.
I regularly shop at Aldi and another thing I don’t buy the brand name hype.
After reading an article on internet about coca-cola vs sam’s cola, we tried to see if we can identify them by taste. But guess what, we couldn’t.
So instead of spending $1.29 for a coke bottle we buy sam’s cola for $0.67.
I’ve been shopping at Aldi for a while, I’ve never been disappointed. I think the quality of their private label is better and cheaper than a lot of grocery stores. The only thing I’m not crazy about is their half-and-half but the knockoff Coffeemate is awesome, the ground turkey is great, and I’ve always been pretty pleased with the produce and baked goods. Give it a shot, haters!
I’ve had good experience shopping at Aldi, especially with the meager selection and plain layout it cuts down on my shopping time.
I’ve found their vegetables and fruits to be especially fresh, more so than other stores around my area (with the exception of the farmer’s market).
Aldi is great. It’s stores like them that keep the bigger guys honest. They are actually based in Germany and the reason that you don’t recognize a lot of their brands is because they source them in Germany, Holland and Belgium.They only stock about 7,000 items whereas the typical supermarket stocks over 40,000. (One manufaturer/one size for most products). They typically employ no more than 3-4 people on a shift and the phone number is not listed in the book (Managers are expected to work,not yak). Don’t think that the managers are mistreated,though. I know one in my town that says that he makes much more money working as a manager at Aldi than he ever could elsewhere. The clerks and stockers make good money,too (according to a couple that I know). These guys just have a different business model than other chains. They are not scared of WalMart.All of you “brand whores ” (Love that phrase- thanks, Rten) just go on shopping somewhere else- that means shorter lines for me.
Sav-A -Lot is another no frills outlet that I love. I wouldn’t buy some things there,but their cake mixes, sugar, bread and frozen prepared foods are better than most national brands.On “check day ” around here (when EBT money is available for food stamp recipients), you can’t get in Sav-A-Lot to save your life. You see families with twoor three carts of basics and staples loading up for the month.
@Eyebrows McGee: go to another one.
Aldi has not let me down yet. I go regularly as it is. Most of the Private Label food products are generally run-offs from mainline suppliers (Once the ‘name brand’ order has been met for the week, the rest go to generics). Baked goods, dairy, and canned anything are all great values.
I went to Aldi’s website to find a location.The only location by me is in the next town over in the ghetto. Too bad because it looks like an interesting store….but I rather not get mugged.
I never heard of putting a quarter in the cart…
The Aldis around here are very nice. My family shops there regularly, but not exclusively. There are things I will not buy there like Mac N Cheese and Spaghettios (yeah, broke college student), but my family buys our paper products, frozen/canned veggies, milk, eggs, and all our baking supplies there. Their baking stuff is AMAZING. You can’t get better quality for the price. You can literrally cut your bill in half if you buy staples there. Fish there is good, too.
Of course smart shoppers track prices across multiple grocery stores. But Aldi’s is one of my favorites.
Their store brands are very high quality. I was budgeting when we started shopping there, and I was able to see a clear 20% drop in our shopping bill.
I’ve been an Aldi employee for over 10 years, and am surprised at some of the misconceptions about the company I’ve been reading in the posts. I’m no cheerleader for the company, and have plenty of criticisms, but one thing I can’t stand are people who assume that national brands=quality.
First of all, separate the “shopping experience” from the food quality. The food is all first quality product bought directly from the best American manufacturers. No quality shortcuts are taken to reduce the cost. This is all done at the store operations level (no special services). Only a very few products like some candy, chocolates, and coffee are sourced in Europe.
The national brands have to support their huge ad and marketing budgets to keep the consumers brainwashed, so they cut into product quality when times are tough. Don’t believe me? Compare any Kraft product next to any store brand product. 9 out of 10 times the Kraft will be distinctly lower quality. If you feel compelled to buy national brands and “just don’t trust” store brands, then you are a walking example of why the big brands spend millions on advertising.
Some things, like milk, are commodities and exactly the same no matter who makes it. The USDA makes this so. You’d never tell the difference if you did a blind test.
Aldi does not sell manufacturer overstock, short dated product, damaged product, etc. Everything is made especially for us. If you see something close to out of date in the store, it’s because an employee wasn’t paying attention.
The pay and benefits are excellent. That’s why we’ve never been unionized. There’s no point for the employees.
Kraft food?…quality?
thats funny.
Kaft is crappy
ConAgra is crappy
unilever is crappy…
ect…
I don’t really have any major bones to pick with Aldi’s marketing tactics or corporate model, however I do not like their generic brand Chef Boyardee-type canned spaghetti and other faux-Italian food products. The Aldi’s brand is way, way too acidic and makes my stomach hurt like something fierce. As for buying a computer there, I too have a Medion, a bastardized one at this point as it has been rebuilt at least 5 times now, but I bought it at Best Buy in 2003. It’s a media center PC and I love it but I really couldn’t imagine buying it at a store like Aldi’s, not too mention since it was imported Best Buy did the tech support on it, can you imagine having Aldi do your tech support?
I don’t shop at Aldi’s for most things, but I really like their brownies, spaghetti sauce, garlic bread, and ice cream bars.
I threw a huge barbecue party and bought almost everything from Aldi. All compliments and one complaint on the food — Aldi potato and tortilla chips were way too salty for anyone’s taste.
My complaint with the store itself is that they are cash or debit card only. But thats not a big complaint. Forget being priced out of Whole Foods, Im beginning to get priced out of Jewel. For an even better deal than Aldi, check out Asian grocery stores!
It must be because of high real estate prices.
Don’t see much of those chain discount stores here in New York City (the nearest ones are either deep in Long Island or in Central New Jersey).
I would shop Aldi if it was near me, but I would waste more gas getting there than it would be worth. I am a heavy coupon user and do shop between several different stores. I buy generics all the time (except soda and certain kinds of cereal) unless the name brand is cheaper.
The quarter for a cart thing is a great idea…many large supermarkets had a similar setup in the early 90′s (at least in the Philly area), but people complained and they were scrapped. I hate people that leave carts wherever they please, especially when there is a corral right behind them.
I dont know, some of their stuff just dosent look like it would be good for you. not to mention the fact that when I went in there, there were kids playing in the freaking giant cardboard boxes of melons and other assorted fruit. but hey, the off brand names are funny! instead of “i can believe its not butter”, you get “its really not butter!!!”
You know how I save a bit of money on food and gas? I joined the US Army Reserve. I can go to the local Navy base and buy food and gas at 5% over cost plus no tax. That is quite a bit of savings. I am also allowed to join Tricare Reserve Select family plan for $253 a month which is the military health plan which is awsome. It has pharmacy benefits too. I am self employed and would be screwed without this benefit. Don’t get me wrong, it sucks being in Iraq for a year every five years without your family, but the government pays well (again tax free + they pay for all your meals and laundry for one year. No car insurance and all the other costs of living) I can handle the lack of beer, the bombs and bullets for one year to save quite a bit of money! Plus you come back a war vet which brings a ton of VA bennies!@Ash78: