A regular Sainsbury's shopper who switched to Lidl for a month to cut costs found her food bill went up instead of down. Sophie Harris, Senior Lifestyle Reporter, set out to find the best value supermarket amid rising food prices and rising weekly bills.
Having tried Lidl's own-brand products before and been impressed, she chose the German discounter over Aldi. After downloading the Lidl Plus App, which offered discounts and free grocery items, she expected to save hundreds of pounds a year by switching. But after one month, it was clear she was spending more than she had at Sainsbury's.
Why Lidl is cheap
Lidl keeps prices low by offering a smaller range of products, which makes it easier for shoppers to choose quickly and get round the store faster. Harris had always liked the bakery but had never done a full weekly shop there, so she decided to test both food quality and potential savings.
The Lidl Plus App gave instant discounts and free bakery items such as doughnuts or rolls, with better offers the more she spent in store. But the promise of free items tempted her into Lidl on trips she would not normally have made.
The dangerous middle aisle
While picking up her free products, she would often wander round the store and spot other things she wanted, ending up spending at least a tenner more often than not. The famous central aisles, known as the Middle of Lidl, caught her out on many visits.
The Middle of Lidl changes its stock regularly, selling everything from kitchen gadgets to cookware to home improvement supplies. On one visit, she went in for a simple food shop and walked out having spent £109 after finding a range of kitchen items in those central aisles. They were not things she needed, but she knew the products could sell out fast and might not come back, so she bought them anyway. In the end, she started avoiding those aisles altogether, even though she uses the things she bought every day, because she was spending well over her normal budget.
Real savings available
If you can resist the middle aisle, you really can save money at Lidl, Harris found. She used to pay at least £2.30 for a punnet of grapes, but at Lidl they were around £1.09. Some weeks she could even get them for under a pound thanks to the Lidl Plus App.
Harris has not stopped shopping at Lidl, but she now skips the middle aisles and sticks to the food she actually needs — and she finds the whole trip much more enjoyable.
