• skisnow@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    4
    ·
    14 days ago

    I love several of their business decisions such as the quarter for a cart, allowing customers to take excess boxes to reduce clean up, and they let their cashiers sit.

    I find this comment hilarious since all the things you’ve described are commonplace in all supermarkets across most of Europe, and you’re talking about them like they’re some innovation of Aldi’s.

    • Knightfox@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      14 days ago

      They’re not so much “innovations” but rather just frugal decisions in my opinion. By doing the quarter for a cart thing they insure people return their carts to the front without an employee. In other stores an employee just goes to collect them from the lot. By allowing people to take the boxes you reduce the number of bags used at checkout and you need less employees to remove the boxes from the shelves.

      These aren’t ground breaking ideas, they are things which make sense in a capitalist world to minimize costs while being efficient. That said they are also contributing factors to why Aldi feels like a discount store in comparison to other stores. As a consumer I don’t mind the extra hurdles going to Aldi evokes, but if I’m going to Aldi I already am taking a step down in “quality” by US terms.

      • skisnow@lemmy.ca
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        13 days ago

        These aren’t ground breaking ideas

        My point is that these weren’t Aldi’s ideas to begin with.

        • TheOakTree@lemmy.zip
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          edit-2
          13 days ago

          I’m struggling to see where the person you replied you ever suggested that it was Aldi’s original idea. It was Aldi’s decision to keep those things, which are common in Europe, in a market where it is not common (US).

          I love several of their business decisions

          Not

          I love Aldi’s idea of [insert list]

          That is the point they are making.

          • skisnow@lemmy.ca
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            2
            ·
            edit-2
            13 days ago

            Sure, and the point I’m making is that it’s amusing to see from the perspective of anyone for whom those things are the standard. I didn’t say they said anything, I said they were talking about it as though it was an innovation.