Only in Scotland: Aldi beats M&S and Waitrose to be named best supermarket by Which?

[Novice]

Aldi beats M&S and Waitrose to be named best supermarket by consumer magazine Which?

Jun 21 2012
NO-FRILLS supermarket Aldi have been named best supermarket by Which? - nbeating upmarket giants Waitrose and M&S.
The German-owned chain have seen bumper growth in Scotland in the last 12 months and were praised in the annual awards for exceptional value and outstanding product quality.
Aldi’s business model includes a strong commitment to regional suppliers, with a quarter of produce sourced locally in Scotland.
The Which? awards are judged on customer satisfaction, value for money, reliability and quality.
Aldi, which also beat budget supermarket Lidl to win the prestigious award, have 44 stores across Scotland employing 650 staff, and plan to expand further in the coming months.
A spokesman said: “We’ve made a commitment to local sourcing and more than 25 per cent of our product range is now Scottish with that figure set to grow.
“There are more than 200 Scottish products to choose from at our stores.”
Aldi recently launched a Give it Aldi TV advertising campaign, which plays on the Scottish passion for “giving it laldy” and encourages them to “get torn into” great deals at Aldi stores.
In other Which? awards for 2012, car manufacturer Kia, never previously shortlisted for an award, scooped the Best Car Manufacturer.
The Korean motor firm scored highly on reliability and customer satisfaction. High street soap shop Lush also became a first-time winner, scooping the Best Retailer award.
First Direct won Which? Best Financial Services Provider for delivering consistently high levels of customer satisfaction, good products and services, as well as clear information for customers.
Which? chief executive Peter Vicary-Smith said: “The shortlist for the awards 2012 shows that good businesses are giving UK consumers a good deal and put their customers first.
“It is encouraging to see some brands and companies consistently providing high levels of customer satisfaction while also providing great value for money.”
Other winners were O2 for Best Technology Services Provider; Samsung as Best Audio-Visual Brand; and Canon as Best Photographic Brand.


Aldi beats M&S and Waitrose to be named best supermarket by consumer magazine Which? - The Daily Record

[Sarzy]

Crazy Scots!
I love Waitrose the best out of those three.

[Karistiona]

Oi! Aldi is the business, I do all my shopping there It's so much more reasonably priced and the fresh produce is cracking. Oh and their curry sauces are amazing!

[BBDSP]

There is an Aldi about 20 minutes away from where I live in Massachusetts and I have been meaning to go there. I'm just wary because their hours are somewhat limited and I'm afraid to go on a weekend if it will be a mad-house.

[Novice]

Oi! Aldi is the business, I do all my shopping there It's so much more reasonably priced and the fresh produce is cracking. Oh and their curry sauces are amazing!

That's because their fresh produce is delivered daily and they have more stringent rules about their stock (deliveries etc).

[MohandasKGanja]

I shop at Aldi every Friday. Nobody around here touches their prices. Maybe on a few items, but across the board, they are the least expensive.

To give an example, out here, Walmart sells a bag of almonds for $5.99. Aldi sells the same size bag for $3.99. Their dishwasher detergent is a dollar less than Walmart's also. Blocks of cheese for about $1.70 instead of $2.00 to $3.00 at other stores.

There is an Aldi about 20 minutes away from where I live in Massachusetts and I have been meaning to go there. I'm just wary because their hours are somewhat limited and I'm afraid to go on a weekend if it will be a mad-house.

That's an interesting point. The Aldi out here closes at 8 pm on weeknights. As opposed to 11 pm for other stores. I'm always getting stuck late at work on Fridays. I have driven like a madman from work to Aldi at about 7:45 and careened up and down aisles with my cart, loading it up and getting in line before the place closed.

And until recently, it was closed on Sunday's. It kind of reminded me of Chik-Fil-A in that sense.

[Jadestone]

I love Aldi's! We never really have any crowding problems here at the one in Michigan that we go to, and my sister says it's the same in her area of Ohio.

They have gyro kits, which I can't find anywhere else these days, and their chocolate is high quality. They even have crunchy Cheetos knockoffs which are cheaper than Cheetos and something's different in the ingredients so i don't end up with that weird aftertaste that I get with Cheetos.

[BITTER]

I like Aldi...I wish they'd open one up closer to where I live.

[MohandasKGanja]

I like Aldi...I wish they'd open one up closer to where I live.

I don't get why we don't have more of them. It's not like they take up a lot of space.

[BITTER]

I don't get why we don't have more of them. It's not like they take up a lot of space.

In Philly, they keep them out in the 'burbs or near-burbs. In the city, we have Sav-a-Lot. Or dollar stores.

[MohandasKGanja]

In Philly, they keep them out in the 'burbs or near-burbs. In the city, we have Sav-a-Lot. Or dollar stores.

I think they use non-union labor in their stores - which means that their entrance into certain communities would be hotly contested by stores that are union shops.

[McJag]

There is one about 15 minutes away, but I don't know. It seems to me when they first opened there were a lot of odd rules or something. Do they bag your groceries or what is different? I might need to venture in, but I would go past several grocers I am accustomed to already.

[Jadestone]

You have to bring your own bags for groceries. They do have shopping carts that you can borrow for a quarter, so you don't really need bags, if you just want to put the stuff in the car. You get your quarter back when you return the cart.

You can only pay with cash or debit (not credit).

[MohandasKGanja]

There is one about 15 minutes away, but I don't know. It seems to me when they first opened there were a lot of odd rules or something. Do they bag your groceries or what is different? I might need to venture in, but I would go past several grocers I am accustomed to already.

The Aldi here sells paper pags for 5 cents and plastic for a little more. So, you do bag your own groceries. Which is not new to this area because Shopper's Food Warehouse uses the same approach.

To get a cart, you have to slide a quarter into a little slot that captures the quarter. You get your quarter back by returning your cart to the rack and pushing the quarter back out. As a result, Aldi has no courtesy clerks, yet has the most uncluttered parking lot of any grocery store I've seen.

[Novice]

I think they use non-union labor in their stores - which means that their entrance into certain communities would be hotly contested by stores that are union shops.

Here in the UK they pay their staff way more than any other retail store & have a great management training scheme...