About six or seven years ago, I heard about Lidl, people were saying how it was a stack them high sell them cheap, totally different from the supermarkets I had been used to. Well I ventured in to have a look. I remember the prices were cheap, tinned food at 5p, 6p. That impressed me, I bought a small selection, mainly because I had never heard of any of the brand names. Over the next few days my thought of saving money by venturing into Lidl and buying loads of their products waned. To be honest none of the tinned foods that I tried really stood up and said “I AM TASTY”, there was nothing wrong with the food they were offering. Its just the overall flavours did not impress me. The displays were poor and the wholesale approach did nothing for me. Add the fact that I had to buy the carrier bags and I vowed never to go there again.

I stuck to that up until recently, when I ventured back in, partly out of curiosity, partly out of people saying the food was good and also by reasoning that if they were still trading then they can’t be all bad. This time I brought carrier bags with me. I also decided to take a better look not only at the prices but the products in general. Although they still have loads of brands that I had never heard of, I did notice more goods with brands that I did know, for example Hovis breads. But I thought I would once again try some tinned foods. I can happily report back the foods were ok, well better than ok, some my children actually preferred, Meatballs, mushy peas, iron brew to name a few.
That’s great news for me as the savings can be very substantial. I now shop there on a regular basis, I do not just shop there though, I tend to buy a lot of the monthly bulk buys in one go, this saves not only a lot of money but also saves time. For me it’s a good way to stock up and save money.

Here are a few examples of what is available as of the day of posting this.

Rice pudding 425g 16p
10 hot dog sausages 400g 25p
Baked beans and sausages 420g 25p
Plum tomatoes 400g 19p
Chopped tomatoes 400g 23p
New potatoes 545g 15p
Garden peas 420g 15p
Mushy peas 410g 15p
Sliced carrots 410g 15p
Corned beef 340g 38p
Meatballs 392g 36p
Spaghetti hoops 410g 8p
Iron Brew 2ltr 45p
Diet cola 2ltr 14p
Diet lemonade 2ltr 14p
Salad cream 500ml 49p

The stores offer fresh and frozen food, along with tinned foods. Alcoholic drinks, cleaning products. In fact they offer a range similar to one you would find in your usual supermarket but much more limited in choice. They do have seasonal ranges barbecues etc. some limited clothing and other selected goods. But in reality, their strong point is the very low prices that they offer on every day foods.

There are three downsides to them as I see it.
First you have to bring your own carrier bags as they charge you for theirs.
Lidl say about charging for carrier bags, they have no hidden charges, well I suppose that is a valid point, I doubt other supermarkets really give them away without them being incorporated into their profit margin somewhere. Even so it does bug me, especially if I forget to bring my own.

Second they only have trolleys, the ones with the usual £1 deposit, they do not have baskets, so if you only want a few items you either have to carry it in your hands or get a trolley.
Lidl say on this that because they only offer trolleys they are keeping their costs down and this saving is passed onto the customer. I am not so sure this is a wise move by Lidl, surely they will lose customers who only want a loaf of bread and a pint of milk, these people are likely to be put off with the hassle of the trolley.

Third the fairly limited range of products. This does not bother me too much as I only go to Lidl to save on the bulkier items, but I have over the years been spoilt by choice. In some ways the limited range suits me, as I don’t have to choose between various brands for each and every item. I have also grown used to their stack them on pallets warehouse style policy.

I decided to have a look a little deeper into Lidl and was quite surprised that they are a well-established company.

They came to the UK in 1994 and now have in excess of 330 stores and are still opening them. Originally from Germany, the Lidl & Schwarz Grocery Wholesale was founded in the 1930s, they diversified into hypermarkets under the trading name "Kaufland" and discount food stores known as "Lidl". Surprisingly the first Lidl did not open until 1973 but by the 1980s Lidl had become a household name throughout Germany.

It was not until the 1990s that they started to open stores in other countries, they can now be found in nearly every European country. They are still continuing with their expansion program and are looking to markets outside of Europe. But already the Schwarz Group is one of the largest grocery retailers in Europe.

Lidl say they take pride in providing top quality products at the lowest possible prices. I know believe them, although they are not normally brands that I have heard of they do offer very good quality products at really low prices.
They also say their network of stores is unmatched in the discount sector, that does not surprise me.

They also have a website that is worth a look at www.lidl.co.uk,

They have a store search, by entering your postcode in their store search, you will find your nearest store.

They also have their weekly specials selection. This does not list their foods but their specials, at the moment its mainly fishing equipment.

Another section is dedicated to career opportunities. They offer a wide range of jobs, from working in a store through to their head office and even international.

The most surprising one is a section asking if you have a property or land for them so they can put a store on it.
Well I suppose that could be one way of summing Lidl up, unique in their approach.

All in all for those wanting to save, this store is worth a look. Especially those with large families.
I can get round the store quickly, get what I want and as long as I remember to take some plastic bags. I also save a fortune.