Discounted, or disgruntled?
British grocery-industry magazine The Grocer did some shopping, and they’ve determined that discounters don’t always save you money:
They were billed as the saviours of the economic downturn, packing their shelves with cheap ‘no-frills’ food to help hard-up consumers through the credit crunch.
But research shows that some budget food stores are actually more expensive than the ‘big four’ supermarkets when it comes to groceries.
It found discount chain Aldi charged the most for a basket of basic shopping items, including bread, toilet rolls, washing-up liquid and wine, while Asda worked out the cheapest.
Editor Adam Leyland offered this explanation:
Leyland … said some studies appeared to show the discounters were cheaper because the researchers frequently compared the price of a discount store’s own label to that of a brand at a larger supermarket.
That said, four rolls of toilet paper ranged from 43p or so at the Big Four to more than £1.40 at the discounters.
Side observation: since 1999, Asda, one of the “big four” and not considered a discounter, has been owned by Walmart.
