Despite food inflation finally starting to ease, the cost-of-living crisis continues to put a squeeze on household budgets up and down the UK.
Shoppers have made some big changes to their buying habits to make their money go further, and many of these new behaviours could be here to stay.
We spoke to an Aldi insider – Julie Ashfield, Managing Director of Buying at Aldi UK – to find out how Aldi shoppers have become savvier than ever with their spending.
From swapping big brands for own-label products to making the most of food waste initiatives like Too Good To Go, here are four ways consumers are changing the way they shop.
- Swapping big brands for own-label
Shoppers have been turning away from big brands in favour of our own-label alternatives to keep costs low.
According to Kantar, own-brand items now make up over half of grocery sales*. Meanwhile, further analysis of Kantar data has suggested shoppers could save a whopping £45 a month, or £542 a year, by switching from branded items at traditional supermarkets to own-label brands at Aldi.**
Aldi’s exclusive brands, such as Lacura and Mamia, continue to be popular choices amongst shoppers because they’re benchmarked to match or beat leading brands for quality.
We have also won more than 300 awards for quality this year alone, including our Specially Selected line being voted Favourite Premium Supermarket Range by readers of Good Housekeeping Magazine.
- Cutting food waste while saving the pennies
Earlier this year, we rolled out a partnership with the world’s largest surplus food platform, Too Good To Go, in all of our UK stores.
For the first time, Aldi shoppers were able to buy surplus food bags containing a range of grocery products that were approaching their sell-by or use-by dates, at a fraction of their normal price.
The partnership has been a huge success and the response from customers has been amazing, with Too Good To Go bags helping them save more than £1.2 million in total so far this year, while also helping them do their bit for the planet — as we expect to save thousands of tonnes of food waste a year through the bags alone.
To get a Surprise Bag, shoppers can simply download the free Too Good To Go app and search for their nearby Aldi store, before reserving a bag to collect from the store at an allotted time.
- Red sticker items are in demand
Shoppers already go to discounters for the best prices, but by staying on the lookout for price reductions, customers are finding even more bargains.
Known as ‘red sticker’ items, these reductions offer our customers the chance to pick up items for even lower prices while also cutting back on food waste.
While reduction times vary by store, all of Aldi’s UK stores mark down perishable products by 75% on their last day of life, including bread, meat, and produce, while imperfectly packaged items like rice, cereal, and tinned food are discounted by 30%.
In 2023 alone, Aldi customers have saved over £44 million through our ‘red sticker’ deals.
- Shoppers are switching
Economic pressures have prompted customers to increasingly prioritise value, with more and more customers switching from full price, traditional supermarkets to discounters like Aldi.
This was showcased when Aldi overtook Morrisons as the UK’s fourth-largest supermarket in September 2022, while Aldi more recently surpassed 10% market share.
According to Kantar, Aldi is the fastest-growing supermarket, with sales up 17% in the 12 weeks to 3rd September 2023***.
Aldi has been recognised by Which? as the UK’s Cheapest Supermarket for the past 15 consecutive months, with the latest figures showing us to be £14.30 cheaper on a basket of shopping than the most expensive supermarket.****
* Kantar 12 w/e 3rd September
*** Kantar 12 w/e 3rd September
****Which? monthly Supermarket basket comparison, published 6th September 2023
