Saving Money at Aldi Supermarkets

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A trip to Aldi is like the Hunger Games. It is the survival of the fittest.

Such as my first experience. Tentatively I offloaded my goods onto the long conveyer belt and then delicately pirouetted my trolley into place besides the register. "Not that way. Narrow end in" snapped the check-out lad.

Then he began shooting items at me like one of those automatic ball machines that tennis pros use. I struggled to catch my groceries and place them in the boxes I had strategically placed at the bottom of the trolley. "Pack later" he barked as he shot the eggs at me.

The long queue of customers shuffled their feet and collectively looked at the ceiling. You could almost read their thoughts. "Novice, greenhorn, Aldi virgin."

I felt I had probably grown a tail between my legs as I backed out. Never again would I set foot in an Aldi supermarket.

Famous last words. One retrenchment in the family later and cutting down on shopping bills became a matter of survival. I learnt to love Aldi.

It was a love that dawned slowly, as love sometimes does. But has become so passionate I now look forward to my weekly shop.

The first flush of romance arose when I noticed that my shopping bills were at least a third to a half off what I normally spent. My heart beat faster, when I realised I didn't have to go out every second day to top up on supplies thus saving yet more money.

You see a lot of staples at Aldi are in respectable lots. There is no buying one onion for example; you buy a bag; or a tray of chicken fillets rather than a solitary breast. The freezer became my new best friend.

Love finally conquered all objections when I realised that each week the shopping bill came down $5 or $10 dollars on the previous week's total, because of the quantities of food still at home in the pantry.

Talking to my friends, I found a closet full of Aldi shoppers who all had tips on the best items to purchase. Pretty much all are sold on the Moser Roth chocolate ( European quality), the creamy yoghurts, pureed apple in little containers, the amazing skincare range, Melting Moment biscuits, the premium grade mince and curly fries. One young mum even keeps her own Aldi's blog where she reviews their products.



Aldi is also fantastic for Easter and Christmas shopping, particularly their European chocolate range.

The company is also moving along with the health conscious times. Aldi now stocks an ever increasing range of affordable organics and has embraced the use of the Heart Tick foundation approval ratings. Items sporting the tick include fruity filled bars and baked rather than fried potato wedges and most of their bread range is low in salt.

Once you get accustomed to the brands, there are also some great gourmet finds - restaurant quality potato gratin from the freezer department, smoked salmon, coffee ice-cream, pilsner beer, some excellent cheeses and frozen German strudels that bake up like professionally-made pastries from a bakery.

Sure shopping at Aldi has its problems, amongst them having to insert $2 into the shopping trolleys (although this is starting to happen everywhere), packing your own groceries and checkout staff who get to sit down on the job while you do all the work.

But there are other compensations besides saving money. Less range means that the whole shopping experience is simplified. A quick whisk around and you are in and out. And while there can be queues, the no packing at the counter rule means that these queues move quickly. Well at least if there is no greenhorn to hold them up.

So that you don't become one here are some tips to help you bravely venture into your first Aldi store.

BYOB which means bring your own bags or boxes in your boot to put your items in when you take your trolley out to the car.

Buy a trolley token for your key ring. Saves having to fish around for a $2 coin every time.



Aldi occasionally sell enormous sturdy bags that snap onto the side of the trolley. These then unclip and you can put your shopping straight in your boot without having to do any packing.

Beware the man trap in the middle of the store. This is an ever changing array of amazing goods such as screwdriver sets, ski gear, barbecues and computers. This is where Aldi can get people to part with their money.

At the checkout place your heaviest items on the checkout first and that way the eggs and bread will end up on the top of your trolley.

While queues might seem long, remember there is no packing and items have multiple bar codes which means they can literally be whizzed through. Stand in line and count your savings.

For your nearest Aldi click here .

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