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Shopping at “America’s Best Grocery Store”, ALDI

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Recently I was asked to be a part of a campaign with ALDI Food Market. If you are unfamiliar with the global brand, they are  the nation’s leading low-price grocery store. They take a simple, cost-effective approach to grocery shopping that ultimately saves the customer money, plus their self-checkout machines are amazing, they have the best touch screen cash register for small business, that are very easy to use. By only stocking 1400 of the fasting moving grocery items, they can lease out smaller spaces saving on rent. They also only accept only cash, pin-based debit and EBT cards which cuts back on credit card fees. They only have 3-5 employees working at a store at any time and are only open during select shopping hours that are most popular (think 9am-9pm M-S and 10am-7pm on Sunday). This kind of sounds disastrous but people love this place. On average, ALDI shoppers save over 50% on their grocery bill! Slate Magazine even called them the best grocery store in America, comparing them to Trader Joe’s as their better brother.

If you buy a product and don’t like it, thanks to their “double double guarantee” you can return it and get back your money, too. Some even sell beer and wine. Recently named Retailer of The Year by Private Label, I visited the ALDI just 5 miles north up the road from me in Medford, MA. You can find a store near you at ALDI.us. There are approximately 1300 stores in 32 states in the US, most on the eastern half.

Having never stepped foot in one, I didn’t know what to expect. I read that ALDI and Trader Joe’s are actually owned separately by German brothers! After a disagreement in the 1960’s about the price of cigarettes at a grocery store in Germany, the two went separate ways, one starting TJ’s and the other ALDI. ALDI prices note are cheaper but you can sense the similarities among the private labeling.

When you first approach the door, you will notice that in order to shop with a shopping cart, you need to insert a quarter to get your cart. When you return it at the end of your experience, you get the quarter back. This practice reduces costs to the store.

The first shocker stepping into ALDI is the bare bones shelving where cardboard boxes are used in lieu of shelving. It’s a little odd at first, I admit, but reduces the labor costs of stocking the shelves and you get your items for less. Ninety percent of the items are sold under ALDI’s own private label however they have begun to stock a few name brands due to consumer demand. Private label means items are made at the same manufacturer but with different branding. Trust me, if it looks like your favorite product’s packaging, chances are it was made at the same place with the same ingredients. I spotted two cereals that looked identical to Kashi GoLean and Kashi Crunch for at least $1-2 cheaper than I’m used to seeing it.

They also carry a Fit & Active line, helping make it affordable to eat well. I will caution that like at any grocery store, you still need to read the label. Some items are organic, clean and properly labeled but some are a little misleading. There are plenty of smart options but just make sure you look at the ingredients and nutrition information. Luckily, some of the basic nutrition facts are printed on the front of their boxes.

The day that I went, the meat selection looked like a new shipment was due to be delivered pretty soon so I stuck to staples. I did grab a bag of medium easy peel frozen shrimp for $8.99 which came with 4 servings. I also grabbed a bunch of grapefruits for .29 cents each.

Other steals I grabbed (I threw out the receipt so italic prices are from memory… )

  • Cashews $6.99
  • Pistachios $4.99
  • Organic Balsamic Vinaigrette $1.99
  • Organic Honey $2.99
  • Red and Yellow Peppers under $1.99
  • Onions $3.69
  • Broccoli under $1.99
  • Tomato Sauce $1.69
  • Garlic 3-pack under $1.00
  • Sweet Potatoes $1.69
  • Broccoli Crowns under $2.50
  • Canned Albacore Tuna in Water $1.29
  • Taco Seasoning $0.29

And a few other house hold items like toilet paper and aluminum foil that I needed or that roomie put in my cart like cheese and crackers. They also have special buys each week where prices are reduced even more!

The total was around $42. I used an ALDI gift card that was given to me in consideration for this post. My favorite steals were the bag of sweet potatoes, grapefruits and cans of tuna. That huge bag of spuds was under $3! The tuna tasted great with my lunch the following day and was 79 cents cheaper per can than at Trader Joe’s. By switching to ALDI, I saved 5 dollars just on these three staples I typically buy (ALDI total $8.74, typical supermarket $13). They did a study comparing ALDI price and regular grocery stores and found that people could save at least 50% on their total bill as I mentioned above.

I am always concerned about where my protein comes from so I did a little research on the fish sold at ALDI and found that they only buy and shelve sustainable seafood and opt out of any GMO kinds. For details about their stance, you can read more here.  I made a stir fry this week using the shrimp which tasted great with the broccoli crowns, my amazing ginger sauce and kelp noodles which I ordered online.

I was totally impressed by the deals I found at ALDI. Switching where I buy my staples will be definite saver. I’m excited to go back and check out more of the items. There was a lot to take in. The check out process was quick and easy. The gal helping me was kind. I bagged my own items and brought my own reusable ALDI grocery bag, since they do not have paper or plastic. If you show up without one, you’ll need to buy a new one.

Have you shopped at an ALDI in the US or Europe yet? What did you think? Any favorite buys I should grab next time?

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Comments

  1. Valerie says

    February 19, 2014 at 12:41 pm

    I grew up with Aldi. My parents still go on date nights to Wendy’s and Aldi. it’s the cutest thing EVER! When we lived in Texas (when our kids were little) and we didn’t make a ton of money, we would supplement our trips to the commissary with trips to Aldi. I wish we had one here.

    Reply
  2. Laura says

    February 19, 2014 at 1:04 pm

    The ALDI stores are quite popular here in the UK and I always use them, especially for staple items.

    Like you said, there are loads of different items that look like popular branded items and I’ve tried them as comparison between a better known brand. I didn’t taste any difference between the two.

    I always save quite a lot when I shop there. They do ‘special buys’ here in the UK, where it is different categories of items that they sell, not long after Christmas there were special buy fitness items, like Yoga and Pilates Kits, Kettlebells etc, so I always keep an eye out for those!

    Laura | Health and Fitness Blogger

    Reply
  3. logan mathis @ Flatstomach101 says

    February 19, 2014 at 1:16 pm

    It’s crazy the good things you can find there. My friends and I always go there for our fruits and vegetables. Can’t beat it.

    Reply
  4. Clarinda @ Enjoying the Course says

    February 19, 2014 at 1:36 pm

    Aldi is awesome! I used to shop there a lot, but then I moved to Vegas and there aren’t any stores out here. 🙁

    Reply
  5. Kim @ FITsique says

    February 19, 2014 at 1:43 pm

    I ALWAYS drive by ALdi but it has always kind of intimidated me to stop in! I will have to check it out soon!

    Reply
  6. Liana@RunToMunch says

    February 19, 2014 at 2:51 pm

    I live down the street from the Medford Aldi, I wasn;t that impressed when I walked in before. Seemed like mostly prepackaged goods, but maybe I’ll have to give it another try with their produce section.

    Reply
  7. Kate @ Coffee with Kate says

    February 19, 2014 at 8:33 pm

    I’m from Rochester so Wegmans is our (and my) bread & butter. I’m sure you may have shopped at one out in MA? New one in Chestnut Hill soon:) Anyway, I love Weggies but I agree with Aldi’s prices! Can’t beat some of ’em. Although the shopping experience is a bit less personal (I think), I’ve got to remember to make a trip there every now and then. Just looking at your prices, the nuts stand out to me and are at least $2 cheaper/lb than Wegmans.

    Reply
  8. Livi says

    February 19, 2014 at 11:35 pm

    Aldi is such a great store for good value!

    Reply
  9. Klara says

    February 20, 2014 at 6:43 am

    In Germany everyone buys one at aldi. the brothers have the country in aldi aldi-south and north-divided:-D Twice a week there are specials and the people stand in line before aldi opens. Especially at electonic-sales-

    Reply
  10. Mary Kate B. says

    February 20, 2014 at 11:32 am

    That place seems awesome! Always looking to find a steal like that! Great that they consider sustainability and GMOs when selecting their food.

    Reply
  11. Kathy says

    February 20, 2014 at 3:31 pm

    How funny to read this blogpost 🙂 Here in Germany we have ALDI stores everywhere! This grocery store chain is very common. Interesting to see ALDI from an American point of view. My favorite items are the frozen berries, cashew nuts and the weekly offers (e.g. they would have an Asian week with Asian spices and delicacies; sometimes they also have sports gear for a really low price :)) Btw -- in Germany you usually have to insert 1 Euro into the shopping cart in order to use it 😉

    Reply
  12. Ryah says

    February 20, 2014 at 3:54 pm

    Looks cool. I’m always looking to spend less on groceries. Any idea when an Aldi might come to California?

    Reply
  13. Toni says

    February 24, 2014 at 9:17 am

    I always shop at Aldi in the UK, love it!! The food is sooo much cheaper and I find it tastes nicer, and fruit and veg lasts far longer than other supermarkets produce.

    Reply
  14. Beth says

    February 24, 2014 at 6:59 pm

    I love Aldi! I always get my fruits and vegetable there because they have amazing prices on them and they are always so fresh and last a long time! I always get apples there because they are usually about 2.99, carrots are usually .99 or sometimes 0.49, and berries are often on sale for 0.99. I have been getting mangoes lately for about 0.89 and they are almost four dollars at other grocery stores in my area! I can also always get avocados at great prices. I get their spinach, greek yogurt, and low fat string cheese. I also stock up on their frozen berries and other fruits, as well as their frozen tilapia. I get almonds and cashews there all the time. They also have great deals on spices. Most of their spices are just 0.99!

    Reply
  15. Miss Polkadot says

    February 28, 2014 at 11:28 am

    It’s so fun to see a post about ALDI on an American blog as I’m from Germany where the stores are all around. Another surprise is that we can hardly find any of the items you’ve shown in your newer post about your haul. It’s interesting to see how differently they’re stocked over there.

    Reply
  16. Jenna says

    October 29, 2014 at 9:37 am

    Did you know that trader joes owns aldi?!

    Reply
    • Sebastian says

      November 7, 2014 at 12:43 pm

      “Did you know that trader joes owns aldi?!”

      That’s not true. There are 2 Aldi grocery retail companies around the world.

      Aldi Nord, can be found in north and east Germany. In France, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Denmark, Spain, Portugal, and Poland.

      Aldi Süd, can be found in south and west Germany. In Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia, UK, Ireland, Australia and in the USA.

      Trader Joe’s is owned by Aldi-Nord. Aldi-Nord bought Trader Joe’s already in the 70ies.

      The Aldi stores in the U.S. and the Trader Joe’s stores are strictly separated.

      Aldi Süd is far better than Aldi Nord. It’s astonishing that Trader Joe’s is doing well, because their parent company Aldi Nord is by far not that good.

      Reply
      • Jenna says

        November 11, 2014 at 10:16 am

        Thanks Sebastian, I was misinformed!

        Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Aldi and Me: Confessions of a Bargain Shopper | Groundswell says:
    April 17, 2015 at 4:50 pm

    […] better or worse, Aldi employs fewer workers. The average Aldi has around 3 to 5 employees in store at a time. In short, Aldi redistributes responsibilities we take for granted at other […]

    Reply

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