Anyone want a Lidl in Ledbury? Print
Supermarket Debate
Written by A. Cyclist   
Monday, 15 April 2013 00:12

A cyclist had occasion to go to Hereford last week and took his bike on the train. After his appointment was over, there was enough time to visit Lidl before catching the train back to Ledbury.

All items are those our cyclist would regularly buy there, so he knows what is worth buying in Lidl.

A breakdown of his shopping bill makes interesting reading, especially when compared with the prices of similar items in Ledbury's two supermarkets which, as he is sure you all know, are part of the worst two supermarket chains in the country, according to a recent survey by Which?

 

Other interesting points:

1. Our two supermarkets (in common with most of their competitors) try to get you to stock up with a myriad of '3 for 2' and similar offers. Although Lidl sometimes uses this practice, none of the items our cyclist bought had this price incentive. However, to be as fair as possible in his comparison, prices quoted from Co-op and Tesco were their 'best' - ie. what a single item would have cost pro rata with the offer taken into account.

2. Is the stock control in our two supermarkets so bad that they're continually trying to flog items that are about to go out of date from a 'bargain' counter? Unless closing time is rapidly approaching, the discount is usually derisory - often you would still pay more for the 'reduced' item than you would if you had bought a fresher one in a '3 for 2' offer, let alone if you'd bought it in Lidl. Our cyclist does not recall many instances of 'nearing use by date' price reductions in Lidl (or Aldi for that matter). This does indicate they have a much better turnover of stock - hardly surprising since they're so much cheaper: see below. Items that don't sell at a 'reduced' price will probably be thrown away (but look here to see what some of them got up to in 2007). If they do as they should, the wastage must be considerable - and the cost will undoubtedly be passed on to the customer in a self-perpetuating spiral.

 


Lidl

Co-op

*1

Tesco

*1

Unsalted butter

250g

£1.35

250g

£1.50

£1.50

250g

£1.49

£1.49

(Own - Welsh)


(Lurpak - 3 for 2 price)

(Own - English)

Greek style yoghurt

1000g

£1.58

500g

£1.12

£2.24

500g

£1.00

£2.00

Fruit yoghurt

1000g

£1.59

750g

£1.19

£1.59

750g

£1.00

£1.33

 

(8-pack)

 

(6-pack)

 

(6-pack)

 

Chicken Jalfrezi & rice

450g

£1.89

500g

£2.50

£2.25

550g

£2.33

£1.91


(£5 for 2 price)

(3 for 2 price)

Stuffed chilli peppers

230g

£1.69

120g

£2.59

£4.96

N/A

*2

£4.45

Queen olives (stuffed)

230g

£1.69

165g

£1.99

£2.77

160g

£2.00

£2.88

Potato salad in yoghurt

1000g

£1.75

275g

£1.49

£5.42

300g

£0.64

£2.13


(ordinary potato salad)

(ordinary potato salad)

Cheese coleslaw

450g

£0.99

250g

£1.00

£1.80

335g

£1.21

£1.63


(£2 for 2 price)

('Finest' - no cheese)

Smoked salmon slices

200g

£2.79

100g

£3.00

£6.00

100g

£4.00

£8.00

Ground filter coffee

500g

£3.49

250g

£2.49

£4.98

227g

£2.29

£5.04

Fruit muesli

750g

£1.79

500g

£1.79

£2.69

1000g

£2.89

£2.17



(Own - very bland)

Fruit & nut mix with coconut

200g

£0.99

200g

£2.59

£2.59

300g

£3.00

£2.00

Chocolate digestive biscuits *3

400g

£0.59

500g

£1.99

£1.59

500g

£1.89

£1.51

Chocolate chip cookie biscuits

225g

£0.89

230g

£1.59

£1.56

230g

£1.00

£0.98

Jaffa cakes *4

24

£0.89

24

£1.29

£1.29

24

£0.85

£0.85

Pork fillet

550g

£4.99

1000g

£6.45

£3.55

1980g

£10.00

£2.78

Pork tenderloin with garlic in a pack

(price per kg - loin steaks)

(£10 for 3 * 660g packs)

Pineapple (large)

1

£0.99

0.67

£1.20

£1.80

1

£1.50

£1.50


(about 2/3 size of competitors')


Camembert

250g

£1.35

250g

£2.29

£2.29

250g

£1.75

£1.75



(Own brand)

Carrots (pack)

1000g

£0.79

500g

£0.85

£1.71

1000g

£1.00

£1.00

Soft cheese with herbs

150g

£0.99

200g

£1.97

£1.48

150g

£2.25

£2.25


(Philadelphia)

(Boursin)

Pitted olives

490g

£1.59

165g

£1.99

£5.91

N/A

*2

£5.29

Blueberries

125g

£0.99

150g

£1.75

£1.46

150g

£2.50

£2.08


(£3.50 for 2 price)




£35.65



£61.41



£55.02

*1 Co-op and Tesco prices in this column are what they would be if the weight/quantity was the same as Lidl.

*2 The two items not available from Tesco are priced as they might have been if available, assuming a pro rata price compared with the total of all other items from Co-op.
Tesco averaged at about 90% of Co-op's prices.

*3 Co-op and Tesco - McVities with 25% extra 'free'.
Lidl's own brand is considered by Which? to taste better than McVities.

*4 Only Lidl quotes a weight (300g) - isn't quoting weight mandatory?
Tesco's 'Value' price is listed - the McVities product was £2.19 for 24!


He also treated his bike to a pair of inner tubes for £3.99 - these are 'job lot' stock that is not replenished when all are sold, but they were much cheaper than similar items available locally.

The saving in Lidl over Tesco without taking the tubes into account was £19.37.
The less said about Co-op's prices, the better.

His train fare was £4.10. The worst part of the experience was having to take his full panniers over the bridge at Ledbury station and then go back for his bike because the laden bike was too heavy to carry - but that's another issue....

He wonders why on earth the Ledbury pro-supermarket lobby wants a bigger (better??? - it depends how you define that) Tesco or a Sainsbury when the likes of Lidl and Aldi can wipe the floor with them to such a massive extent on price, and often surpass on quality.

Last Updated on Monday, 13 April 2015 21:33