ALDI is rolling out a drastically different store concept – but can you spot the key features that are missing?
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When you think of the retail giant ALDI, what are the first few things that come to mind? Chances are you would associate their stores with affordable groceries and specials, as these are the features that they are famous for.
But now, ALDI is planning to launch a store that could conceivably come to Australia – only it’s vastly different from what we’re typically accustomed to. And if the plan follows through, Aussie shoppers could have to get used to higher prices as well as the lack of a key feature that won the hearts of its loyal customers in the first place.
Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you “ALDI Local” – a smaller format store that was initially unveiled in 2019 in the South London suburb of Balham. Now, several of the stores have opened across the British capital.
In Australia, ALDI is among the country’s major supermarkets, competing alongside Coles and Woolworths. But in the UK, the giant retailer’s goal is to become one of the biggest players by moving outside of its traditional store format. Within a year, ALDI is expected to possibly overthrow Morrisons’ seat, ranking as Britain’s fourth biggest grocer behind Tesco, Sainsbury’s, and Asda.
ALDI Local. Source: Retail Week
Although ALDI has previously experimented with a smaller store concept in Australia, with the launch of ALDI “Corner Store” in North Sydney last year, there are a handful of details that make ALDI Local significantly different.
When the Balham store opened, an ALDI spokesman revealed that its aim was “to help shoppers distinguish between its smaller city stores in London and the conventional-sized ALDI’s.”
ALDI Local is roughly double the size of a standard convenience store but it’s smaller than an average Aldi, with 300 products pulled out of its shelves due to the lack of shelf space.
This detail is apparent in the ALDI Local located at Balham as the store only had a mere three aisles – a stark difference from the normal ALDI stores that usually have five or more aisles.
The Balham store’s first aisle featured fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat. Meanwhile, at the back was a bakery section. Sounds familiar, eh? But elsewhere, the products offered shifted to ones that can be consumed immediately.
At the front of the store was a “food to go” section that contained heaps of sandwiches, wraps, and soft drinks.
The meat section accommodated the usual range of sausages and steaks, but there were also several stir fry kits that contained ready-prepared marinated chicken strips and chopped veggies. The section also had ready-to-bake chicken and mushroom slices.
Inside an ALDI Local store. Source: iNews, The Sun
Despite the store’s limited space, huge chunks of shelving were dedicated to food designed for entertaining such as ricotta-stuffed cherry tomatoes and Mediterranean-style falafel bites.
Liquor including wine and beer, which is far easier to sell in supermarkets in Britain than in Australia, took up significant space in one aisle.
But several people couldn’t help but notice a few things missing from the ALDI Local store, kicking things off with the lack of cashiers. The ALDI Local store is entirely self-serve checkout, with only a few employees available.
However, the most obvious absence is ALDI’s beloved special buys. This is mainly because there’s not sufficient room for Special Buys. And for the ALDI aficionados who usually flock to the stores for the key feature, the switch just didn’t make any sense at all.
“The store doesn’t sell bulkier items that shoppers would have difficulty transporting without a car,” an ALDI spokesman explained.
There is another feature of the Local store in London that may leave plenty of shoppers enraged – higher prices.
Industry journal The Grocer claimed that prices in the store were around 3 per cent more expensive than an average Aldi, with some items costing even more.
At the time of the survey, a whole chicken retailed for $7.37 at ALDI Local. But a regular ALDI sold $7.01 chickens nearby, a difference of 5 per cent.
Aldi acknowledged a “slight difference in price on certain lines” but reassured that the store is still “notably cheaper than nearby supermarkets.”
QUT retail watcher Professor Gary Mortimer said that overall, it was a good move on ALDI’s part to offer their products in different locations.
Another glimpse inside ALDI Local. Source: CADA Design
“Smaller stores mean expanding to inner city locations where the rents are higher, but the population is denser.”
Professor Mortimer added that an ALDI Local could be beneficial for developers building a unit block, looking for a retail option better suited to younger tenants with larger incomes but who have limited space.
The concept could work in Australia he said, but shoppers would have to brace for the lack of Special Buys in these stores.
“I suspect a learning process will ensue. Consumers will soon understand the difference between the ALDI stores with Special Buys and their convenience business. A bit like Coles and Coles Express.” he said.
ALDI Local coming to Australia is highly likely. The firm is already experimenting in Australia by venturing out of its one size fits all store model.
Last year, the German retailer released its Corner Store concept, a smaller alternative to the average ALDI.
While ALDI Local and ALDI Corner Stores both lean towards grab-and-go food, the Corner Store is noticeably fancier than the former. The entrance to the North Sydney Corner Store is dominated by a Sonoma coffee shop with a lavish selection of danishes.
In addition, the ALDI Corner Store featured an upscale bread selection with twelve different types of sourdough. Meanwhile, a nearby Woolworths only sold nine sourdoughs.
Professor Mortimer shared that the innovation at ALDI was significant, but the retailer was showing signs of mimicking its competitors’ strategies instead of leading the way.
ALDI Corner Store in North Sydney. Source: SmartCompany
Self-serve checkouts are a good example as ALDI introduced the feature into their stores months after Woolworths first began to roll them out.
“While it makes sense to sit back and cherry pick the initiatives that work, the risk is that as you roll out your version, the market leaders have moved onto something else.” Professor Mortimer said.
What are your thoughts about the possible introduction of ALDI Local stores in Australia? Share them with us in the comments!
Get a glimpse of the ALDI Local store at Balham by watching the video below:
Source: KAM
But now, ALDI is planning to launch a store that could conceivably come to Australia – only it’s vastly different from what we’re typically accustomed to. And if the plan follows through, Aussie shoppers could have to get used to higher prices as well as the lack of a key feature that won the hearts of its loyal customers in the first place.
Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you “ALDI Local” – a smaller format store that was initially unveiled in 2019 in the South London suburb of Balham. Now, several of the stores have opened across the British capital.
In Australia, ALDI is among the country’s major supermarkets, competing alongside Coles and Woolworths. But in the UK, the giant retailer’s goal is to become one of the biggest players by moving outside of its traditional store format. Within a year, ALDI is expected to possibly overthrow Morrisons’ seat, ranking as Britain’s fourth biggest grocer behind Tesco, Sainsbury’s, and Asda.
ALDI Local. Source: Retail Week
Although ALDI has previously experimented with a smaller store concept in Australia, with the launch of ALDI “Corner Store” in North Sydney last year, there are a handful of details that make ALDI Local significantly different.
When the Balham store opened, an ALDI spokesman revealed that its aim was “to help shoppers distinguish between its smaller city stores in London and the conventional-sized ALDI’s.”
ALDI Local is roughly double the size of a standard convenience store but it’s smaller than an average Aldi, with 300 products pulled out of its shelves due to the lack of shelf space.
This detail is apparent in the ALDI Local located at Balham as the store only had a mere three aisles – a stark difference from the normal ALDI stores that usually have five or more aisles.
The Balham store’s first aisle featured fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat. Meanwhile, at the back was a bakery section. Sounds familiar, eh? But elsewhere, the products offered shifted to ones that can be consumed immediately.
At the front of the store was a “food to go” section that contained heaps of sandwiches, wraps, and soft drinks.
The meat section accommodated the usual range of sausages and steaks, but there were also several stir fry kits that contained ready-prepared marinated chicken strips and chopped veggies. The section also had ready-to-bake chicken and mushroom slices.
Inside an ALDI Local store. Source: iNews, The Sun
Despite the store’s limited space, huge chunks of shelving were dedicated to food designed for entertaining such as ricotta-stuffed cherry tomatoes and Mediterranean-style falafel bites.
Liquor including wine and beer, which is far easier to sell in supermarkets in Britain than in Australia, took up significant space in one aisle.
But several people couldn’t help but notice a few things missing from the ALDI Local store, kicking things off with the lack of cashiers. The ALDI Local store is entirely self-serve checkout, with only a few employees available.
However, the most obvious absence is ALDI’s beloved special buys. This is mainly because there’s not sufficient room for Special Buys. And for the ALDI aficionados who usually flock to the stores for the key feature, the switch just didn’t make any sense at all.
“The store doesn’t sell bulkier items that shoppers would have difficulty transporting without a car,” an ALDI spokesman explained.
There is another feature of the Local store in London that may leave plenty of shoppers enraged – higher prices.
Industry journal The Grocer claimed that prices in the store were around 3 per cent more expensive than an average Aldi, with some items costing even more.
At the time of the survey, a whole chicken retailed for $7.37 at ALDI Local. But a regular ALDI sold $7.01 chickens nearby, a difference of 5 per cent.
Aldi acknowledged a “slight difference in price on certain lines” but reassured that the store is still “notably cheaper than nearby supermarkets.”
QUT retail watcher Professor Gary Mortimer said that overall, it was a good move on ALDI’s part to offer their products in different locations.
Another glimpse inside ALDI Local. Source: CADA Design
“Smaller stores mean expanding to inner city locations where the rents are higher, but the population is denser.”
Professor Mortimer added that an ALDI Local could be beneficial for developers building a unit block, looking for a retail option better suited to younger tenants with larger incomes but who have limited space.
The concept could work in Australia he said, but shoppers would have to brace for the lack of Special Buys in these stores.
“I suspect a learning process will ensue. Consumers will soon understand the difference between the ALDI stores with Special Buys and their convenience business. A bit like Coles and Coles Express.” he said.
ALDI Local coming to Australia is highly likely. The firm is already experimenting in Australia by venturing out of its one size fits all store model.
Last year, the German retailer released its Corner Store concept, a smaller alternative to the average ALDI.
While ALDI Local and ALDI Corner Stores both lean towards grab-and-go food, the Corner Store is noticeably fancier than the former. The entrance to the North Sydney Corner Store is dominated by a Sonoma coffee shop with a lavish selection of danishes.
In addition, the ALDI Corner Store featured an upscale bread selection with twelve different types of sourdough. Meanwhile, a nearby Woolworths only sold nine sourdoughs.
Professor Mortimer shared that the innovation at ALDI was significant, but the retailer was showing signs of mimicking its competitors’ strategies instead of leading the way.
ALDI Corner Store in North Sydney. Source: SmartCompany
Self-serve checkouts are a good example as ALDI introduced the feature into their stores months after Woolworths first began to roll them out.
“While it makes sense to sit back and cherry pick the initiatives that work, the risk is that as you roll out your version, the market leaders have moved onto something else.” Professor Mortimer said.
What are your thoughts about the possible introduction of ALDI Local stores in Australia? Share them with us in the comments!
Get a glimpse of the ALDI Local store at Balham by watching the video below:
Source: KAM
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