UK: Tesco vs Aldi and Lidl
Tim Froggatt, a retail marketing lecturer at Anglia Ruskin University, has seen his personal shares in Tesco fall, but has remained a loyal customer.
He said: “It was the recession and declining consumer confidence and spending power that made people confront their shopping habits. The consumer was pushed to shopping at a lower price point but has come to like it.”
“There was a stigma because Aldi and Lidl used to be in lower socio-economic shopping districts, but they’re moving to nicer stores in nicer areas.”
Mr Froggatt believes that Aldi’s and Lidl’s faster checkout system is one reason why they’re more “in tune” with consumers.
Tesco is trying to revive trading by taking measures such as introducing short-term money-off vouchers.
Eric Levy, lecturer in marketing at the Judge Business School in Cambridge, puts some of the change in shopping habits down to geography. He said: “Shoppers are more willing to try different things and are taking smaller trips.
“They’ve become more confident with Lidl and Aldi and are more comfortable with them now. First, people became more price-conscious and these shops provide quality which is good enough. People are more willing to trade selection for convenience.”
But why else are more people turning to Aldi and Lidl?
“They are now more respectable places to go and people feel comfortable with going,” he said.
Paul Beresford, managing director at Cambridge Market Research, says that some Aldi shoppers still shop at Tesco, but generally people are looking to spend and waste less. He said: “Aldi and Lidl have put a lot of effort into ensuring the quality of their products. They’re putting a lot of effort into building quality credentials. Aldi and Lidl are also bringing new values into the marketplace and attracting a new generation of savvy shoppers.”
He added:“Tesco is so big, so there is more to lose and it’s more visible. They’re still an efficient organisation – they will come back.”
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Source: cambridge-news.co.uk
