Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

edition.cnn.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

451–460 of 653 posts

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#451

Post by Cederfjard »

barry-cotter wrote: post #387
sorenjan wrote: post #333

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's one of the biggest differences between the US and Sweden, and probably most of Europe; access to cheap labor. Too cheap, if you ask me. You could never employ somebody as a greeter here, or to pack your groceries, or to pump your gas, or other extremely menial and near useless jobs. Can people really support themselves on those, or are they forced to work multiple jobs? It's actually becoming relevant here, be…

> That's one of the biggest differences between the US and Sweden, and probably most of Europe; access to cheap labor. Too cheap, if you ask me. You could never employ somebody as a greeter here, or to pack your groceries, or to pump your gas, or other extremely menial and near useless jobs. Can people really support themselves on those, or are they forced to work multiple jobs? That’s what the minimum wage is for, t…

We don’t have any minimum wage in Sweden. What we do have however are strong unions and free higher education. Somehow I get the feeling that as a nation, we care a lot more about the little guy and his social mobility than the US does.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#452

Post by tonyedgecombe »

odux wrote: post #291
TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

High standards and tight margins? Sounds like Apple.

Tight margins and Apple don't belong in the same sentence

They do share an intense attention to detail though, Ikea is similar in many ways.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#453

Post by eredengrin »

m0zg wrote: post #121

I find it remarkable how positive the tone is of this article compared to how a decade or two ago US mainstream media was wailing about WalMart killing mom&pop shops and corner grocery stores. I wonder why that is? If anything once this chain expands it'll drive all the remaining small grocers out of business, since it's considerably cheaper than even walmart.

The way Aldi works I wouln't expect it to ever completely take over the market. Its selection is not intended to be big enough to do so. Generally you buy 80% or more of your stuff at Aldi, then go to the grocery store right next door and finish the rest of your list which Aldi doesn't carry. Also, what does a "small grocer" even look like these days? The only grocery stores I see that don't seem to be part of larger chains is ethnic food stores, and Aldi is definitely not in that market.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#454

Post by Entalpi »

ThJ wrote: post #44
Glawen wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My god, aldi/lidl and ikea are the worst shops in europe. I can't imagine a country filled with the same awful shops

The Nordic countries are not big on service, because you're a big boy and can take care of yourself. The reason IKEA came from Sweden is because that's the attitude here. Shop clerks aren't there to be your servants. They are your equals. Foreigners often complain of the awful service they get here, but it's a deliberate part of the working culture.

Hmm.. It is not that we dont care about service. It is more about what kind of service you can get. If you go to IKEA and say ”Hey, I am a student what is the best sofa for my budget?” they will help you find something without upselling you. If they cant help you find something they will usually refer you to OTHER stores. Service is more than just being a slave to the customer.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#455

Post by tonyedgecombe »

demoo wrote: post #413

Got a friend who is overseeing manager of about 5-6 Aldi supermarkets in my area. At the end of every day, every supermarket calls him with the daily results. He writes them down, takes a picture and sends that to his manager at the national HQ. He just uses his phone and the occasional meeting to do business, there is no computer/laptop or system on his end. Aldi is always portrayed as brutally efficient. So I was w…

I've seen plenty of corporates automate systems that don't warrant automation. Somehow development gains a momentum which nobody is able to stop. SAP sites seemed to be the worst for this.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#456

Post by Lukas_Skywalker »

sorenjan wrote: post #342
antnisp wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's so weird is that all those sound rudimentary rather than innovative to my european ears.

When Lidl came to Sweden most people didn't like to shop there because of their short conveyor belts after the cashier [0] relative to the regular Swedish ones [1][2], so you felt stressed when shopping there. There were no room for your groceries. Usually you put your stuff on the belt, the cashier scans it and moves it along, you pay, and then you pack it in your bags. It took them four years, then they changed to…

I know a few stores in Europe that have a wall separating the conveyor belts in two parts [0]. The cashier can basically chose if the product will end up on the left or right end of the belt, giving the customers time to pack their things while already serving the next customer on the other side.

[0] https://static.az-cdn.ch/__ip/r-ymFggeoyzNSXf6FkMQRwePLN0/57...

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#457

Post by mrob »

Skunkleton wrote: post #216
xfitm3 wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do like my plastic bags.

You should stop that.

I assume you're vegan, you don't own a car, you never travel by airplane, you don't use heating or air conditioning, you only take cold showers, you wear your clothes until they're worn out beyond repair, etc. When somebody takes environmentalism that seriously, it might actually make sense to worry about a few grams of plastic.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#458

Post by tonyedgecombe »

londons_explore wrote: post #35

Aldi is famous for paying managers a lot of money. Far more than similar roles at other grocery stores. Not just 10% more, but in many cases 100% more. Perhaps paying extra money for better brains leads to better decisions being made in the long run.

It is unusual for a business that is so cost focused to do that. Normally low margin businesses can't turn off that frugal mentality when it comes to rewarding staff.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#459

Post by ahartmetz »

cagataygurturk wrote: post #425

I am surprised that noone mentioned about the bottle collectors phenomenon in Germany. [1] Basicly you pay a deposit (.25 eur for plastic ones, 0.08 for glass.) for each beverage you buy and then sell those bottles back in supermarkets. This is maybe the easiest and most efficient way to force people to recycle. Are you lazy to do that or you don‘t have a place when you finish your beer walking in the street?[2] Then…

The drugs thing is only Berlin, at least in Germany. Drinking everywhere (though not at all times) is normal in all of Germany AFAICT. It's legal and nobody cares if you still behave.

Re: Aldi, a brutally efficient grocery chain, is upending America's supermarkets

#460

Post by Symbiote »

mthwl wrote: post #47

Just a quick alternative viewpoint: as a parent, I’ve been turned off by Aldi in the past. Often with a toddler and/or car seat in hand, unlocking a cart (for example) is not just an inconvenience, it’s a dealbreaker. I’m into the pursuit of efficiency and low prices, but there are some real world benefits of “full service” grocery stores. One being an nicer experience for the disabled (in my case, due to being a par…

Unless there's less reliability with a quarter (which is a bit thin) compared to a 1€ or £1, which are nicely chunky, I'm surprised that's a problem.

As soon as they can reach, unlocking the cart is the child's job anyway.

Post reply on HN