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discount stores?

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discount stores?

Postby scullion » Tue Nov 17, 2020 12:38 pm

i am always confused as to why lidl and aldi are called discount stores.
i don't see their method of trading as any different from 'ordinary' supermarkets and it seems i'm not alone - even the last head of tesco says -
“Actually, given their pricing is not a discount price, it feels like an inaccurate description.”
( another reason he prefers not to call them discount stores, he says, is because it gives them free advertising).
does anyone know why they are called discounters other than as a derogatory term?

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Earthmaiden » Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:00 pm

I don't know the true reason but would guess it was because when they first opened here they sold unfamiliar brands for cheaper prices than the familiar, they piled the stock in boxes to avoid paying shelf stackers and had the appearance of a discount store rather than the more polished supermarkets people were used to. Such stores in Britain were usually known as discount stores. It's all a bit different now they're selling recognisable labels and have poshed up their shops.
Last edited by Earthmaiden on Tue Nov 17, 2020 2:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby cherrytree » Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:06 pm

Because of the ingrained snobbery of the British nation. Surely most of us have met people who wouldn’t set foot in either Lidl or Aldi just because it’s considered to be for ‘other people’.
When Aldi first came round here it was a very different shop from what it is now. You could only pay in cash , the staff had to learn the cost of everything in their heads and the stock was very limited.
Now it is a very different proposition. The range of merchandise is huge although there is limited choice in some things. Do we really need over 20 varieties of toothpaste for example? You’ll only get 2 at the most in Aldi or Lidl.
On the other hand many of their products do well in those Christmas tasting articles. Free range turkeys have done better than Waitrose in Which. I would only buy Aldi Italian olive oil. I also went to a brilliant wine tasting given by Lidl’s Master of Wine at our local wine society.
It’s all those journalists that can’t be bothered to use anything but the ‘discounters’ cliche!

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Stokey Sue » Tue Nov 17, 2020 1:11 pm

I think Netto arrived first, and did in fact discount branded products? Only a very limited range though

The name has perhaps stuck as the prices do tend to be lower than the fairly uniform pricing of the big home grown chains

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Suelle » Tue Nov 17, 2020 3:07 pm

I think originally, the big supermarket chains liked the term 'discount' supermarkets because it gave the impression that shoppers wouldn't get the same quality of food that they'd get if they shopped with the mainstream stores.

Time has disproved that, in many cases, but whatever you call them, it doesn't alter the fact that they are considerably cheaper than the main chains - Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda, Morrison's et al.
Traditional home baking, and more:
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Re: discount stores?

Postby scullion » Tue Nov 17, 2020 4:50 pm

the term, i think, originally stemmed from chain shops that bought branded items in bulk and then sold them at prices which undercut the other shops - which would describe places like tesco etc better than lidl and aldi, which mainly sold/sell own brand goods.
i agree, snobbery and lazy journalism - a bit like some comics suggesting the cornish are ill educated - they should do their homework!

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Re: discount stores?

Postby halfateabag » Tue Nov 17, 2020 10:44 pm

There was a programme on TV a few days back about the rise of Lidl. It was QI.

About 15 years ago whilst working in a call centre, I can remember one young lad saying that L. & A. were for uni. peeps and he would not be seen dead in either ! I just love them ! The big 5 needed a shake up.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby cherrytree » Wed Nov 18, 2020 12:04 am

What’s QI? The tv programme?

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Re: discount stores?

Postby cherrytree » Wed Nov 18, 2020 12:04 am

What’s QI? The tv programme?

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Pampy » Wed Nov 18, 2020 12:54 am

Quite interesting?

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Re: discount stores?

Postby karadekoolaid » Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:22 am

Quizzical Intuition.
:lol: :lol:

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Re: discount stores?

Postby halfateabag » Wed Nov 18, 2020 8:31 am

CT. QI = Quite Interesting......Yes, the same name as the TV programme.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby cherrytree » Wed Nov 18, 2020 11:05 am

Please can we use proper words on here? It’s such an interesting board and although a minor issue, using pointless abbreviations is unnecessary.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Uschi » Wed Nov 18, 2020 12:22 pm

I remember Aldi from quite young. My mother's family lived in East Germany where there were many shortages. Not of food as such, they always had enough to eat, but anything the slightest bit out of the ordinary ... nope.

So around this time we'd be bulk buying hazelnuts and almonds, whole, ground, chopped, coffee, marzipan, baking aromas, chocolate, couverture, gianduja nougat and whatever else you might need for your Christmas baking.

In summer when we went over there the car was so packed I sometimes sat on pallets of tinned fruit with a cushion on top.

We could only afford this, because Aldi's prices and the quality were so good.

I bought most of my baking stuff there, too, for this season. Magic1 Magic1 Magic1

2 kg of butter, 5 kg of plain flour ... that should see me through the weekend.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Amyw » Wed Nov 18, 2020 1:24 pm

cherrytree wrote:Please can we use proper words on here? It’s such an interesting board and although a minor issue, using pointless abbreviations is unnecessary.



I agree , I’m not a massive stickler for good grammar /spelling etc , but some of the abbreviations aren’t common place and are difficult to understand

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Re: discount stores?

Postby Pampy » Wed Nov 18, 2020 1:57 pm

I agree too!

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Re: discount stores?

Postby slimpersoninside » Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:04 pm

I much prefered both stores when they sold unfamiliar items and brands, usually foreign. They had by far the best Christmas biscuits, stollen etc!

We don't often use them, snobbery alert!! around here it's a clientele thing. Of the 2 we have an Aldi close by but it's a bit of a drive to a Lidl. Before the Aldi arrived here we went to another of their stores and the quality of the goods was poor, the pre-packed cold meats looked like road kill. I do however know where to shop should I ever need a Mig welder or a diving suit ;) .

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Re: discount stores?

Postby jeral » Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:16 pm

Originally, places like Netto were almost bare sheds with simple strip lighting and their food was much cheaper, e.g. many basic staple items cost a half or even a third.

Supermarkets tried to fight back with value ranges in plain wrappers. Not successfully, i'm guessing because they were actually inferior, people like pictures, and snob value rejection applied.

Prices in Aldi and Lidl aren't that much cheaper now, although given how their market share has grown I imagine they like the free marketing of being described as discounters.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby cherrytree » Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:36 pm

I love our Aldi. Run to military precision, its stock is beautifully presented, tidy and clean. It was the first of the supermarket chains round here (not that there are many) to have hand sanitisers and there was a stern member of staff to ensure it was used. There is still a store announcement with a very posh southern accent telling us how to conduct ourselves.
Also there is no clientele issue here. I’ve met our GP, the consultant gynaecologist and all the other sections of our very nice and wide community.
Apart from a dismal Coop about 3 miles away I have to travel about 15 miles for either Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury’s or Booths so as long as I have all that choice I’m not complaining.

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Re: discount stores?

Postby KeenCook2 » Wed Nov 18, 2020 2:49 pm

cherrytree wrote:Apart from a dismal Coop about 3 miles away I have to travel about 15 miles for either Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury’s or Booths so as long as I have all that choice I’m not complaining.


I hope that's 15 miles in the same direction :lol:

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