Americans embrace Aldi as German discounter becomes fastest-growing supermarket in US
Aldi becomes fastest-growing supermarket in US, transforming the grocery landscape with its unique offerings.
It's like poetry.
There's a great song about Walmart, you know.
A store you can quickly get in and out of with a variety of everyday items at a reasonable price that seems to pay its employees well. What's not too love?
Also, several in my area have implemented self checkouts that don't removed you out for every single item. I can scan everything from my cart and bag it up later at a counter or my car if the weather's nice.
Also lets cashiers sit down.
I wish more of mine had the self-checkouts. The ones that don't, it's a minimum 10 minute wait in line to check out. Never more than one cashier during the hours I go.
Then speak to someone about it.
Rumor has it they’re pulling all of the self checkouts out due to theft.
All of the ones near/by me have had them removed and regular registers put back in.
When they initially put in the self checkouts the delay for scanning was set to similar to a manned checkout, and as someone who spent my formative years cashiering at a grocery store, I greatly appreciated being able to quickly scan through my stuff. They upped the delay between scans after a few weeks, so now its like 10 seconds before you can scan another of the same item, so I've just gotten creative in alternating items to scan faster
Fun Fact: Around 30 years ago, Walmart tried to get into the German market and got completely obliterated.
Then the German discounters counterattacked and the rest is history.
Fun Fact2: This is just Aldi Süd(South). Aldi Nord(North) is also active in the US as Trader Joe.
Add on fun fact: Aldi South and North are were owned separately by 2 brothers from Germany.
Edit: updated to past tense. Thank you kind stranger below to note that the 2 brothers are no longer alive
were. They're both dead by now. It's now owned by their children.
Listened to ‘No Such Thing as a Fish’ segment about them just recently. Original Aldi in general was founded on being frugal, but one of the brothers was so stingy that he didn't want to sell cigarettes, considering that they would get stolen. They parted ways over that, which led to the two separate chains.
Gutes Video
Fun fact: Aldi are basically the only supermarket chain where they don't force their staff to stand up, and provide all cashiers with chairs
We need to bring back right to sit laws in the US. They were passed in most states in the early 20th century, but most have been repealed with time and the general decline of labor rights. Those laws also were sexist and only applied to women. But we could absolutely use gender-neutral right to sit laws.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right_to_sit_in_the_United_States
That's so weird. I simply see no reason why all the other US-chains force their employees to stand behind the counter.
Cruelty is the point. Once again.
Boomers think that workers being miserable is good customer service.
the whole point of having minimum wage staff is for boomers to torture people, Karen cant wank unless she yells at an overworked single mother who has not sat down in 7 hours.
they're really efficient and cheap in my experience. they sell no-bullshit products. they don't spend much money on advertisement so they don't have to add that money to their expenses and therefore prices.
supermarkets make most money with highly-processed foods. every processing step adds another middleman that wants a slice of the price and that already increases the price, so you pay $5 instead of $2 for the raw products, and then the supermarket thinks "well, let's add a 10% profit margin" and makes that price $5.50 instead of $2.20, thereby further increasing the difference in prices. aldi mostly sells basic products that are not so heavily processed (at least where i live) so there's not much extra costs there.
They also let the cashier sit down...
I have worked for two producers here in the UK that supply Aldi. Basically Aldi want to match the leading brand and be cheaper.
Neither of the companies i worked were the leading brand but the Aldi product we made (for both companies) match it.
As a norm I buy from Aldi knowing they always try to get the leading brand matching quality for less.
surely a fine indicator of things in the US
shopped at Aldi all my life. honestly, their product quality rivals local specialty stores. they lack variety, but the quality for the price is amazing.
I didn't know what aldi was until I was like 26 and somebody showed me the unbelievably cheap wine. and the cart system.. Aldi is a place of comfort and solace compared to the shit I've seen in other supermarkets
no longer have aldi, but winco is pretty sick
Cheapest eggs I’ve seen. Not everything is great quality. But, for certain items I’ll make the extra stop.
Paid $1.65 for eggs there the other day. Half the cheapest regular grocery store price in my area. Meats at Aldi aren’t so great. Cuts are tougher, and I’ve found that the per-pound cost is about the same as the lower prices at regular stores. Aldi’s stuff isn’t trimmed as well, and once you get the fat trimmed you wind up about the same $/lb. Chicken is still a decent deal there.
In Australia the eye fillet at aldi is at least the quality of regular supermarkets, but about 2/3 the price.
Seen as having bad standards compared to other EU chains, but a shining star by comparison to basically every chain in the USA
I don't know that I would agree with that, what's your metric for standards which sets Aldi above every other chain in the USA?
Aldi's great, don't get me wrong, I love several of their business decisions such as the quarter for a cart, allowing customers to take excess boxes to reduce clean up, and they let their cashiers sit. That said, they are an overstock/discount/outlet style store and don't reliably have the exact product you might want. If you're looking for good prices they will generally have something you want, but it might be a different brand or style. In my mind it's like a Ross, Marshals, or TJ Maxx but for groceries. Another plus is that Aldi has interesting items not typically seen at other stores such as German or European items.
Other people in these comments mentioned that their Aldi looks nice while having good prices, but the 4 Aldi's near me look like they are still in the 1990s. Other USA brands more reliably have staple items but might be more expensive. Publix, Harris Teeter, Kroger, Whole Foods, and Fresh Market are definitely nicer than Aldi in quality. Food Lion and similar stores are comparable quality and maybe just slightly more expensive, and then the Aldi clones are there too (Lidl, Trader Joes, etc).
I love several of their business decisions such as the quarter for a cart, allowing customers to take excess boxes to reduce clean up, and they let their cashiers sit.
I find this comment hilarious since all the things you’ve described are commonplace in all supermarkets across most of Europe, and you’re talking about them like they’re some innovation of Aldi’s.
actually from what i understand aldi isn’t an overstock kinda place: their brands are all in-house brands, but they go to big manufacturers and say you can whitelabel your product for us and get exclusive access to our shelves or we will go to your competitor
it’s often the same brand products that are 2x the price everywhere else but without the marketing and mark up that comes with
in australia i’ve never really had an issue with aldi not having stock of anything - unless you’re looking for brand name things, but that’s not really what aldi is about
ALDI ist the reference for discounter in germoney, and i'm pretty sure it's the darling of the middleclass. LIDL is not doing a good job and lost marketshare (They deserve this because of their App shit). We don't really have other european discounters, no one could survive the ALDI/LIDL Grinder here yet. So i can't really compare to other EU discounter chains.
I'm aware, I'm also EU... Well UK, but we're EU in my heart, fuck Brexit.
UK does have two more, but their market share is less, Iceland (very close 3rd place) and Farmfoods (almost dead)
(They deserve this because of their App shit).
Completely agreed and turned me off to LIDL.
Best kettle cooked potato chip on the market, less than $2. Their peanut butter is better than Jif, Skippy, or Peter Pan, and it's only about $3. Mayo is exactly the same as Hellman's, at less than $4. Great French Bread Pizzas for $3, and you don't have to add more cheese and pepperoni when you get home.
Lots of great chocolates, cheese, snacks, etc. I know someone who has a charcuterie catering biz, and she sources EVERYTHING at Aldi, including the serving trays and utensils.
There's the occasional dud, but almost everything is first rate, and much cheaper.
Yeah I get almost everything from Aldi because the quality is consistently comparable to name-brand while being significantly cheaper. Its also nice that the stores are so small so you can focus more on shopping and less on getting through the store itself
There's a few items where I do prefer from other stores (particularly meats and fresh fruits/veggies as the Aldi ones tend to go off faster and are lower quality) but generally I'll hit Aldi, then my local grocery store for the last couple of items from my list, thereby keeping me well-within my grocery budget and getting the best of both worlds. Plus I can usually get it all done within about an hour thanks to only needing to hit a couple of isles in the big grocery store
Tell me about these french bread pizzas and kettle chips.
I frequent aldi for essentials, but havent had these, but can look out for them. I frequently get their big thin crust pizzas.
The Kettle-cooked chips come in plain, BBQ, and jalapeno, and all three are exceptional.
The French bread pizzas are in the frozen section, 2 to a package. I always keep a couple on the freezer for a quick meal or snack if I get home late at night after work. I give them about 60 seconds in the microwave to thaw them out, then a few minutes on the air fryer to melt everything, cook the pepps, and crisp us the crust. Perfect pizza, and its only about $3.
How "buy European" is this? Doesn't Aldi have completely separate, American, supply chains for the vast majority of the products...?
They have to otherwise they would be impossibly expensive, importation of goods is not cheap. Their strategy is to sell as many of their own branded products as possible making them as close to premium quality as possible without compromising price. (Unlike a certain grocery chain in Canada that I could mention)
The USDA and FDA regulations make it basically a requirement for food to be processed in the US, hence why there's so many massive food processing facilities in the US. Based on the recalls they've been caught up in, Aldi works with the same white label processors as other grocery chains and quite clearly works with them to set the taste, quality & ingredient expectations and of course the price.
There is a noticeably less sugar in Aldi's goods than most other brands, but I also see far more packaging errors in Aldi's goods than other budget brands, for example. Their packaging is also heavier into recyclable materials and uses less plastic
It's EU in their values, of having good pay and not expecting staff to do bullshit like unpaid overtime
Fair enough. Bit shocking as a European that a discounter that's known to put enormous pressure on staff, is regarded as very good practice on the other side of the pond... Sure Aldi pays their staff well but they also time and micromanage cashierd for how many seconds it takes per scanned product for example
When you see it as black and white than Aldi equals any other US business - but i'd argue it's a more gradual thing and there is an actual difference. First because the top company is European a larger part ends up in European hands and also it could mean difference in policies.
it's entirely american aside from the name/ownership.
Trader Joe's is Aldi Nord. Aldi is Aldi Sud. Same business model where they direct person from a supplier than put it under their own label.
Eat your heart out Walmart :D
It's trying!
Walmart and the Walmart family is a scourge on mankind, making billions off of workers and recommending their employees get food stamps.
Their downfall cannot come sooner.
Literally been there since the 90s.
I feel like I went to aldi in the 80's but I honestly can't remember for sure but yeah its been a huge light for non wealthy americans.
Build one in my town plz
I keep hearing people say I should go to aldis but every one I've been to had limited inventory, wilted produce and rotten meat. The only people I know who consistently go there are the type of folks who only care about how cheap something is no matter how terrible the quality.
But at least they treat their employees like people.
I've never had an issue with the meat, I will admit on weekends the produce is pretty picked over if you show up right after a rush on the weekend.
But as Joni Mitchell once sang "I don't care about spots on my apples, leave me the birds and the bees"
Wait, they sell birds and bees!? I need this! Pop was going to explain it to me, but he had to make a longer trip to a different store for his smokes. Guess he's still looking for them...
Any Aldi Ive gone to in Australia is the same quality as any other supermarket. Albeit with rip-off names of most things, but 90% of the time they’re literally from the same factory as the original.
I worked at a food manufacturer that supplied to Aldi. Literally our same product, just an Aldi created label with their branding.
In Australia as well, there's only 4 or 5 items I can't get a much cheaper alternate that's of equivalent quality from the larger supermarkets. So we shop at ALDI every couple of days, and visit the others once every couple of weeks.
Yeah exactly lol
I have one Aldi I usually go and another 2 relatively close and one never had any issues with the meat or produce. The only thing is that there is a super market that gets very fresh produce so I prefer to get it from there, but there's nothing wrong with Aldi, and the quality seems to be the same as three Walmart or the Kroger that are any a mile away
I agree with the limited inventory, it's rare to complete a grocery trip at an Aldi, I have to go to another super market after but the low prices and experience makes it good enough to make it my primary market
Okay, I was starting to think it was just me. Maybe it's just the locations I've been to, but I had the same experience. Totally not seeing the hype.
I'm in a semi rural area and you can tell our store is the end of their supply line. Produce is always horrid and worse than walmarts Even their canned goods are of a noticably lower quality than the store brand at kroger or Walmart. I'll stop by there for a handful of specific things every now and then, but only for snacky things like Knoopers.
Admittedly though, the Aldi by my parents's house in Houston has much higher quality produce, so that seems to be very location dependent.
That's because of America. The ALDIs in Europe are the exact same, sometimes even superior, in quality to big box grocers when it comes to meat and produce (better salmon than Sainsbury's ime).
Most likely reason ALDI never caught on in the states if you ask me.
please come to Seattle
The Aldis around here look upscale, but they sell mostly store brands. So, a discount grocery store for people who don't want to feel poor? I can't tell if the quality is better than any other discount grocer. I do like their peanut butter cereal.
they save tons of money on staff and reduced employee workloads, so they can afford not to stock the worst quality food
The Aldi's here is just a slightly larger Trader Joe's, the selection is so much smaller than regular grocery stores. I don't necessarily need 6 brands of Mac n Cheese, but I would like at least one option. I don't have time to grocery shop twice in a week, so I just go to Kroger instead.
The Aldis around here look upscale, but they sell mostly store brands.
That’s how they can offer lower prices.
So, a discount grocery store for people who don't want to feel poor?
A grocery store for people who are tired of being raked over the advertising coals and realize that Aldi O’s are just as good as Cheerios.
I can't tell if the quality is better than any other discount grocer.
Much better than most.
They have an amazing dark chocolate selection for cheap
Lived in multiple countries and had an Aldi close in them all. The quality and variety does differ. In particular the quality of the meat and fresh produce and I agree state to state can provide a disparity. I suppose that can be hard to imagine if you are used to a consistent Aldi.
There are quite a few staples that I liked they were very cheap in comparison to the bigger stores. In particular the chocolate, kettle crisps, cheese twists etc.
I also found it helpful for stocking up when budgeting. Each Jan I would go buy the giant soap powder, dishwasher tabs, hand wash, toothpaste kitchen roll, olive oil, anything that could be stored in the garage. This stopped me visiting the other stores so much and spending on junk.
And soon, this too will become unaffordable. Tax, the super rich. After a couple hundred years I don't think the trickle down economy experimental has worked. Not there, not anywhere.
So "affordability" isn't a Democrat hoax? Well I'll be...
Sounds like a good deal. We don't have any Aldi's where I live in the US but Winco is the locally comparable grocer. Totally on their A-game. Like the difference in prices between Winco and any competing grocery store is startling and they treat their employees drastically better.
Seattle?
I went in and shot that in Aldi for the first time this past week. Unfortunately didn't have a quarter for the cart so I couldn't use it. Which isn't a huge deal had I known about it. But there was also six people online in one person working so there's no way I could even get some change to be able to put a quarter in so I instead I had to grab a box and carry everything around. Which isn't a huge deal but it made it very inconvenient and I did purchase less things because of that fact. I did enjoy their selection even though that particular store I was in was fairly small. It did have most of the things that I needed. And there were a number of things there that I looked at but didn't need. Overall I would probably use an Aldi to supplement my shopping at a large grocery store.
Oh and I'm also going to 3D print one of those Aldi tokens so that way I have it on my keychain whenever I'm in another state that actually has them.
I've never had to pay for a cart when in lived near one. Someone usually just gave me one as I walked past and I kept the chain going.
This is the way
Growth is stupid way of comparing…
Growth is only relevant for stock hodlers
(Not real numbers)
AkA 0.1% -> 1.5% 🥳1500% growth
50% -> 75% 😒 only 50% growth
Yes, and in a saturated market like supermarket retail, “fastest growing” is mathematically guaranteed to be a company without so much penetration.
Also the article is a blatant advertorial for Aldi cooked up as a way of advertising on Reddit/Lemmy without having to pay. Don’t upvote it.
"Last year, its stores attracted 924 million visits, making it the third-most visited supermarket in America after Kroger and Publix." Later on the article says there are 1 billion visits annually, so it seems that Aldi had 10% of footfall, which is pretty impressive penetration.
"Aldi gets almost as much penetration as your mom."
Aldi doesn't have anything on Grocery Outlet Bargain Market.
Where are they?
Great now do Canada. Fuck you Galen.
Hell yeah GO ALDI
The more money they make the closer they get to changing to become just like Walmart. Money > everything.
I dunno. The Aldis I've been to in the last 20 years or so seem the same as they did back then.
Although the cashier uses barcodes instead of superhuman typing on a keypad and somehow remembering the price of every single item in the store. Always thought that was suss.
I'm from Germany and Aldi hasn't changed for as long as I can remember which is about 30 years. They got a bit cleaner and nicer if anything.