ALDI The Best Grocery Store On Earth - Unhinged Case Studies

[@the_fat_electrician]

This is completely unhinged i apologize

[@MetalMania613]

I need it in my body, tell me about it

[@AjGalloway95]

THATS WHAT WE HERE FOR CHUBELECTRONGUY

[@DrTank-s7y]

Love the video

[@Nolvit]

Btw there a Christian store as well

[@MetalMania613]

Also, I fucking love ALDI’s

[@milesswancy6894]

Trucker here. You should see how they treat us at their distribution center, lazer lines help you back onto the dock. They have snacks and treat you like a person in the office. They have overnight parking out front and SHOWERS! They straight up handed me a list of restaurants nearby!!!

[@ricardoospina5970]

Sign of a good company is when they treat the people they don't have to treat well, well.

[@FredRated1967]

Now that's customer service, both on the retail and vender side.

[@blackdogrmh]

Came here to comment about this too.

[@PootieTang101]

Never hauled for them but that sounds nice. I don't miss Capstone though

[@SierraKilo76]

That's interesting. I used to drive trucks here in Germany. Aldi was (and maybe still is) one of the worst places to deliver. I know drivers who straight up refuse to make deliveries there.

[@patrickoviatt2432]

For a LOT of people, being able to get in, get what you want, and get out with no bullshit IS excellent customer service.

[@asymsolutions]

YES! There is only one aldi in my area, and it's near my work, however that is a 45 minute commute. So I haven't gone there, expecting it to be the usual hannafords/market basket. Guess I'll give it a shot for my meal prep shit. If that works and they carry Goya I'll be sold. But seriously Goya is the shit, Mojo & naraja marinating your chicken for an hour, and then grilled/smoked with Adobo tossed on it makes meal prepping easy. Chop it up and throw it in some steamed veggies/rice with the left over marinade dripped through and you have a high protein, low fat, mid calorie meal that is smells good and tastes the same. 2 hours gets me 2 meals a day for 5 days, so i cheat on the weekends. Sorry for the rant, but that stuff is a must have.

[@TheBigM145]

Agreed!

[@willisswenson3843]

But!!! They still put the milk and eggs in the very back of the store.

[@napalmx2]

It top notch customer service.

[@TheBigM145]

You're not wrong@@willisswenson3843, but it is 500% easier to beeline for them without getting caught up with too much other crap. And the bread is right by the milk and eggs soooo....

[@Esdesu]

As an ALDI cashier, my arms hurt, im constantly multitasking between chores, cleaning, and checking people out (as well as being customer service) and i gotta say, i love my job. 99% of people who shop here are so happy.

[@BurgundyBrundley]

when a business treats their employees like people it really comes full circle in the attitude that people bring to the store and it's the best thing since sliced bread...thank you for your service

[@noahfleenor]

The first time I entered and Aldi was when I visited my brother in the navy in Virginia i walked in said and I quote WTF is this place I absolutely love Aldi I however live in Wyoming so we have Trader Joe’s both are wonderful

[@hujiosnurgio2940]

Thank you🫡

[@rosestrohm7986]

I worked at kroger and I bet its even less multitasking over at aldi. I had to bag groceries, work all the stupid anti-theft alarms that constantly went off for no reason, push carts in, clean the bathrooms, clean spills, put groceries back, and my work was never good enough for them apparently

[@mattbrown5511]

I loved shopping at an Aldi in South Bend, IN. The store was always clean and organized. I could get in, grab a month's worth of staple food, and be checked out in under 30 minutes. The employees were awesome, and the duty manager fixed whatever issue one may find without any hassle. Now I live in a small southern town without an Aldi. Big sadness.

[@THATONEFRIEND42]

"Just because you're making money and working doesn't mean you have to be uncomfortable for no fucking reason" [The United States Military will remember that]

[@TheFatFiles]

Lol

[@konradviii5663]

No they won't

[@Jeff.78]

Take your hands outta your pockets there high speed...

[@KatanaKamisama]

Lets stand at attention. Why tho? "It builds character"

[@nlomano444]

"you're going to stand here, at this podium, for the next 5 hours and write in a book 'ALL CONDITIONS NORMAL' every 15 minutes, and not see another human being during this time." -"may i have a chair?" "no"

[@Critter145]

I grew up in northern Indiana. ALDI was seen as the “poor” grocery store. As an adult I now recognize ALDI for what it is. GENIUS.

[@JGComments]

Aldi is for people who want to spend money on FOOD, not a shopping “experience” lol.

[@N0b0dy2000]

Was the case for my Grandma back in the day here in Germany as well. She got ridiculed in her neighborhood for being poor cause she was going to ALDI.

[@Critter145]

@@N0b0dy2000 I get the mockery bc I used to think that way, but here’s the thing: the fact that we have food on the table at all is a blessing and a miracle.

[@mattbrown5511]

And f-n practical. I now live in the Deep South with no Aldi in sight. I miss that store.

[@Bike_Lion]

@@mattbrown5511 - They'll probably set up a store near where you live soon. They've been rapidly expanding the past several years, including in the South.

[@jpgtr84]

I was a manager for Aldi for 3 years and let me tell you, this is better than any training video or mandatory e-learning video I had to suffer through. Some of the newer stores have bakeries too, which is pretty cool.

[@tiagodecastro2929]

My buddy's mom worked for a large chain that went extinct (I forget which), lost her job, then went through a few different stores until she settled at Aldi and apparently has never been happier at a job. Glad for her. Maybe I should start going there

[@DragonKnightJin]

@@tiagodecastro2929 As someone born and raised in the Netherlands, where Aldi is ALSO a well-known name, I think I know why that is. Because they use the *European* standard rather than the US one for their employees. As in: Cashiers aren't expected to stand for their entire shift, they have decent pay, and (probably) get decent benefits on TOP of all that. The stuff like Walmart and such? We don't really have that here. We have supermarkets/grocery stores. They sell groceries. Most of them have in-house bakeries for break, and a fresh meat section where they make their sandwich meats and stuff. There's a solid selection of brands available, even at the Aldi. But where at some stores there's 15+ types of brands for a single kind of product, Aldi will have like... 3 options to pick from, if they're feeling fancy. It's amazing. And as said in the video: It doesn't try to wring your wallet dry of every last cent. They respect your wallet and keep things reasonably priced.

[@LunchboxISU]

​@DragonKnightJin I wanted to bark back from your opening few comments, telling you to take your metric system and go home, but you drove a solid closing - which I 💯 agree with. Well said 👏

[@Drunkpyro777]

Believe or not, but my uncle was one of the main designers of the stores and also was in senior management of the entire company. He opened the market into texas which they are still developing.

[@Drunkpyro777]

@jpgtr84, could have been your boss as some point....

[@becklyn3]

Born and raised on aldi. My mom literally had the entire store memorized. She could write down her list every week, write the price down from memory and bring that exact amount of cash to pay for it because it was before they took debit/credit cards. I was impressed as a 5 year old and not gonna lie still am proud of her to this day for how she managed know exactly what she was gonna spend down to the penny.

[@saintjimmy720]

As an Aldi employee all of this info is absolutely on point and its hilarious to hear someone minimize our whole shtick to less than 14 minutes 😆

[@scikid21]

Amen to that

[@SteveInLava]

As a publix bagger, when the cashier I work with asks, "Did you find everything you were looking for?" to the customer, I would wait for the moment to interject with, "That question is asked so that you second-guess yourself."

[@Maedhros0Bajar]

Honestly, most grocery stores in Flanders, Belgium are like that. Well, some do ask whether you have coupons or a card. But if you simply tell them (before they can speak), no coupons, no card. They'll get you finished ASAP.

[@michaelheinen563]

So true! Our aldi is huge and we still only have 8 aisles! Lol

[@BatMan-hf3gt]

Yeah I'm with ya. Spent 12 years in st.louis mo area

[@kolakommando]

About 30 years ago my city got an Aldi store and they didn't use barcodes, all the staff had to know all the prices and they would throw your goods through the checkout at light speed whilst typing the prices in with one hand. A friend of mine was also an Aldi manager and she said the only difference between her and other staff (other than pay) was that she had the keys and counted the money, other than that they all did the same jobs, restocking, unloading deliveries, working the checkouts. The only negative about Aldi is you go in for bread and leave with a set of water skies and a mig welder

[@marvindebot3264]

And then need to pick up a ski boat and 6 lengths of RHS steel on the way home :D

[@williambrown319]

Hey don't diss the center aisles. There lots of treasures and treats there

[@Myxril]

The Aisle(s) of Wonder always gets its prey. You thought you were cutting through the aisle to go look at some lettuce, but what actually happened is now you're having a cookout because you've loaded a grill into your cart.

[@Starphoenix]

I mean, you obviously needed that mig welder...

[@momzwrite]

My wife goes with me to Aldi JUST to keep me from going into that center aisle😂

[@harbl99]

"Founded in Germany in 1946." This is part of the reason that Aldi still takes deliveries exclusively by airdrop. ("Ist nicht broke, don't gefixen it, ja?")

[@TheFatFiles]

Lol

[@texasranger24]

Brutal german eficciency meets extreme logistics streamlining and a desire for "Preis-Leistungs-Verhältnis" meaning value or price to performance ratio.

[@logicplague]

I don't speak a word of German, but I understood that lol.

[@carfactor4518]

Yes

[@jacebongsbaker]

@@TheFatFiles hey would you ever consider meeting your fans?

[@RP-sb8qf]

My dad was an Aldi store manger when he was 19 back in the 80’s. I’m sure that’s gotta make him one of the youngest Aldi manger’s ever. He told me he was back in the office one day and a limo pulled up, one of the workers came back to grab him and he was greeted by a guy in a black trench coat and black gloves. Karl Albrecht just happened to stop in to his store in the Chicago suburbs. He told him he had a nice store and asked him if he was he was being paid well, my dad in the moment said yes but he tells me he was too scared to say no. He showed Karl around the store and he was very impressed at the way my dad kept it. I guess he just happened to be visiting all the stores in the area that day. Random story that I always thought was cool.

[@billyshane3804]

I was brutally and callously assaulted by Walmart thugs demanding drugs and cash in the ALDI carpark

[@chasedooley6237]

I’m a truck driver for Tyson Foods, second largest meat company in the world. Aldi is one of our customers, along with all the other supermarket and grocery store chains. They get same quality of meat as all the others: harvested from the same animals, processed in the same facilities. Difference is in the composition and what cuts they order, and that we slap their label on it. Love shopping at Aldi, though delivering to their warehouses suck (they’re slow to unload).

[@bunnieskitties293]

I was a receiver for Home Depot for a couple years. I was always shocked at how often I heard that our store was every trucker's favorite for the simple fact we were ready to unload them as soon as they handed me paperwork. I just wanted to know what the fuck all the other home depot receivers were doing if they wernt unloading trucks.

[@chasedooley6237]

@@bunnieskitties293 I average 4 hours to unload at many of my customers. Sometimes upwards of 8 hours. I don’t get paid to sit in a dock door. So I love it when I can get in and out of there in a reasonable amount of time

[@dueinuremom5082]

I fucking love Tyson. It’s crack in the shape of fried chicken.

[@burtonholmes2096]

I used to drive for Tyson. Who isn't slow to unload. But worse than that, I never picked up a load in Robard Ky that wasn't at least 8hrs. late getting loaded.

[@chasedooley6237]

@@burtonholmes2096 Oh god. Robards, not my favorite but I haven’t had a late one out of there before. I usually always get stuck at one of the south plants, like Vienna GA. I forget which plant I was at before… supposed to be preloaded, get there, and they’re so behind they are live-loading everyone and I was the twelve truck in line. 12 hours later I got my call. That sucked.

[@DaChris00]

Brother, you were spitting straight facts with that “sitting is unprofessional” crap. I’ve never been told to stand all day at work by a man who didn’t have an office chair.

[@ColonelSandersLite]

Yeah, pretty much. Always bothered me too. It doesn't make any sense. It's just incredibly obvious that the worker that stands all day is going to be more fatigued than the worker that's allowed to sit to do the same job and that fatigue leads to a loss of productivity.

[@passager01]

Standing all day is not good for the legs blood vessels .

[@grayMan-556]

I have worked in construction and I couldn’t imagine trying to pull wires through an attic and hearing the guy making up the electrical panel just going off about random shit. I would be laughing and wiping insulation out of my eyes.

[@TheFatFiles]

LOL

[@Vodkanipples]

Best comment ever.

[@Joe_Dirt82]

I'm just surprised his room is clean. Sparkys are terrified of brooms.

[@TheAzrael918]

​@Joe_Dirt82 hey, you want power, or not?

[@tzook4080]

In the construction welding industry- we call the IBEW guys, "I block every walkway.".. But we love them. No sparky, no weldy.

[@jenniferri7735]

i didn’t discover aldi until i moved to north carolina and it changed my whole dang life. i’m a single person who eats pretty basic stuff, so i can buy groceries for the whole month for less than $100. it is glorious. and fun fact: i currently work at a high-end grocery store and i tell customers there all the time that i shop at aldi (but only when one of the bosses isn’t nearby).

[@cynsi7604]

Hey 🙋🏻‍♀️ from Burke & Mecklenburg Counties. Now after seeing your icon/avatar pic I need to go listen to “Vincent”. 😊 ✌🏻

[@Chronoscvb158]

Fayetteville here. I love shipping at Aldi cause I absolutely hate grocery shopping. I'm with The Fat Electrician. I wanna get in, get my shit, and get out so I can get back to the important stuff. Best fucking store ever

[@cam7982]

I just spend almost 15 minutes watching the Fat Electron Guy ranting about a grocery store that we done even have in Canada...and I loved every second of it. God Damn is Nick a good story teller...

[@Jeff.78]

Send Timmy south, please, and will send Aldi north. Fair deal, eh?

[@patjames9441]

We don't have Aldi in Canada because that would be unfair to the the big five already here. Just like when a telecom company from the US wanted to set up shop in Canada and the government said no.

[@CarelessVagabond]

I know right? Haha! I live in Alaska and have never heard of Aldi. This guy could hype the holocaust if he wanted. It's crazy to me how good he is.

[@FM4AMGV]

@@patjames9441 As someone who is a supplier to one of those telecom companies, they are a disorganized shit show that wouldn't exist without government protection.

[@johnqpublic407]

Thank the Weston's for that...

[@jon82987]

My mom was the secretary to the man, Phil Neally, who met with the Albrecht guys and founded the US branch of Aldi and opened the first stores for the first 14 years that they opened here. Carl Albrecht even came to my parents wedding. He apparently even clicked his heals and saluted my dad in the receiving line. Anyways, sadly, we lost Phil Neally a couple years ago. That man was pivotal to getting Aldi here in America and making it was it is today. Me and my sister used to call him “Grandpa Phil” and he used to get us gifts for every holiday and birthday. He even gave us a guided tour through the warehouse and drive through freezer sections. I miss that man. Edit: showed this to my mom. She’s surprised that nobody mentioned that one of the Albrechts even got kidnapped after WW2.

[@thecursed01]

Drive through freezer? F it. My lottery winning fantasy of a walk in freezer just got upgraded

[@marcstark8747]

The kidnappers wanted 7 Million for a ransom and to this day, that was the biggest ransom that actually got paid in germany. The kidnapped brother tried to deduct those 7 Million from taxes because they were ''business expenses'' :D

[@PaganSamurai]

On the note of "Aldi doesn't have a customer service desk," I can't think of the last time I've ever seen someone NEED a customer service desk at an Aldi.

[@starr_helix6770]

That’ll be coz all the Karens are somewhere else 😉👍

[@swayback7375]

Where else will the poors get our lotto and cigs tho? Try thinking of others sometime xD

[@julietmike1018]

Because none of the assholes who make problems for everyone else were able to make it past the quarter slot on the carts. Lol

[@rylandvance5304]

They make the process of returns simple. Cashiers are usually able to complete a return or replacement super fast and it usually doesn't take manager input.

[@RainbowSushiii]

except for germany, all the karens are at aldi in germany​@@starr_helix6770

[@TexasTrosper]

Once I went to Aldi to buy $100 worth of food to donate. I bought so much food, but only spent $70. I really like the availability of German foods.

[@Full_Send_Gaming]

“Can German engineering win a world war? No but it can make a damn good grocery store” 😂😂😂

[@i_am_that_guy2203]

Yet... 👀👀

[@danielcurtis1434]

A god damn good grocery store!!!

[@ripn929707]

Their engineering didnt lose the war, the method out, syphilis riddled dictator calling the shots did. Who invades Russia in the winter? A megalomaniacal tweaker does, that's who.😂

[@JohnSmith-NZ]

Third time's the charm

[@thunderball1398]

New plans congcering the world with aldis😉

[@Ihasanart]

This is 100% accurate for Aldi stores here in Aus as well. You guys ever get that Aldi cashier who before you've even started putting your groceries on the checkout belt just goes "Hey man just leave it in the trolley, I got it from here" and 100% accurately punches in the barcodes faster than a US congressman sells shares before wallstreet drama hits the news?

[@woodsy900]

omg its both scary and impressive

[@ianjardine7324]

That's what happens when you actually treat your employees well instead of trying to baffle them with fake corporate culture BS. Aldi and Lidl expect their employees to work as hard as necessary and not a millimeter more while paying them well and treating them as the valuable commodity they are. This results in hardworking dedicated staff who only ever leave if offered far better options and often regard their time working there as a fond memory. In many ways they value their employees more than their customers because let's face it finding people to buy quality products at knockdown prices is a helluva lot easier than finding hardworking loyal workers.

[@projectdeveloper9311]

Being faster than a congressman selling shares is phisically impossible, and you can't prove me wrong. Seriously, those guys would beat Flash if that was a competition

[@toakongu1]

I've had carts full of products and the cashier just punches those codes in by looking at the product. No looking through a barcode or anything, purely from memory

[@ericsfishingadventures4433]

Have no idea if you mean Austria, Australia, straia, or Austin TX but I wasn't aware they had aldis abroad I'm sure they're all better than Austin TX though!

[@steinblitz1506]

As a German, I'm glad they've decided to come to the US were I live now. They even look the same in certain aldi stores, same floor tiles as the German stores. Very nostalgic

[@romad357]

Based on their hiring policies, you should be ashamed of them.

[@walkingcontradiction223]

​@@romad357Lol.

[@Max-jt8gq]

​@@romad357why?

[@jonasduell9953]

@@romad357 can you elaborate? I'd love to know.

[@toomanymarys7355]

​@@jonasduell9953thry just got exposed for discriminating by race as a part of policy

[@gabebenson6105]

You go into Walmart to buy two things. It takes over an hour and you leave with over a dozen items. You go into Aldi to pick up your groceries. You buy over 60 items and it took you all of 15 minutes. These are literal times from actually occurrences in my life, it is no joke just how good Aldi is.

[@kugelblitz1557]

I went into Walmart to buy CD-Rs. Got a pack of 100, took me a good ten minutes to find it though. Went to checkout, paid in cash, machine didn't spit back out my change, stood for forty five minutes before the cashier came back with my $20 and cash to put in the machine. The poor dude who worked with her kept coming up to me and saying "she should be back soon" while I stood there trying to stay out of peoples' way. Don't pay for $22 stuff with two 20s, even if you need to break it up into smaller change anyway.

[@corymoon2439]

Walmart: Has practiced 10,000 kicks Aldi's: Practiced one kick 10,000 times

[@Tufted1]

I watched this video with my wife on Saturday and we went for the first time the next day and wow was she impressed. We spent about thirty minutes even with my 7 year old son who usually makes grocery shopping take three times as long. There were only a couple things we didn't buy there that we had to get from another store but the check out was just like you said, groceries were off the belt in less then a minute and we only spent $81 when we usually spend between $150 to $200. My wife almost cried when she saw what the total was. Because of you we will most likely make this our regular grocery store from now on.

[@drago6576]

We always go to aldi first. We are generally one of the first people in line. Why? Discount stuff. If aldi has things going near date they will often put a red discount sticker on it. Imagine $1 off some Flatbread that's already cheaper than the grocery store. Or 50% off a pound of burger meat. Yup, it happens and I keep my freezer stocked. I know the store manager at the location we frequent as we are in there first thing every $groceryShoppingDay. I've asked about products with them and they take the feedback seriously. A couple of times they will tell me "oh we got something like we had last year that you liked". Their return policy if you don't like the product is astounding. The one thing to be aware of is seasonal items are there and gone quickly. So enjoy it while it is there. During the beginning of the pandemic I did the shopping for my household as well as 2 households of family who were at risk. Shared grocery lists that I organized by aldi aisle when I went in. 3 households shopping done, delivered, and watching TV in under 2 hours. (Aldi first, then box store for what we couldn't get at Aldi, assorted pharmacies for prescriptions, delivery, home.) I am a fan of Aldi and efficiency as you can tell. 😂

[@rachelcunningham1191]

​@@drago6576very impressive sir!! 👏

[@rexmann1984]

Another cool thing the tile in their stores is nearly indestructible. I know I've layed a few of them.

[@MP-qn1jw]

"....regular grocery store..." Along with the other one that carries the products you are willing to make a second trip for...lol.

[@Keltair13]

Did the same today with my son. Couldn't believe how little I paid. Effin' beef jerky for 2 bucks a bag and it's some of the best I've had (Simms brand).

[@podunkest]

The lack of taking phone calls is also a HUGE IQ test and a Karen filter, too. Keeps even more rifraff out of our Aldis lol.

[@Blasted2Oblivion]

Working at a dollar tree, I can tell you that a large amount of time I could be working is instead wasted on customer calls asking stupid questions. It is remarkably frustrating.

[@Eylerion]

@@Blasted2Oblivion I felt that when I worked for Dollar General

[@sarahnevra241]

7 months later... I just wanted to tell you that your video single-handedly convinced me to see if there was an Aldi near me. Turns out there is, and shopping there for 90% of my grocery needs has cut my grocery budget by a solid 20-30% every month AND massively cut my gas needs since it turned out to be surprisingly close. Thank you for your enthusiasm on this.

[@yourewrongabouteverything]

How does the e coli taste?

[@JamaniusFreebone]

I am a store assistant manager at Aldi in Lawton Ok. I also happen to be a huge fan of your channel since the beginning. Imagine my shock when I’m sitting in my vehicle on break at Aldi, scrolling my subs, and see a video by Fat Electrician about Aldi. I was like wtf is going on, thought I’d crossed into some weird parallel universe for just a second. 😂. Great video man

[@christopherschofield6730]

Bro, can you tell someone up in corporate to open stores in Maine?

[@Rixoli]

Genuine curiosity, have you ever worked other stores in retail? Would you say you've been more comfortable working there compared to previous jobs? I never gave it a second thought the few times I've shopped at Aldi but employees at Trader Joes genuinely seemed pretty upbeat and happy at their job. I never felt like I was getting a fake smile.

[@TheFirstCurse1]

Is "Ok." an acronym or abbreviation? Because otherwise saying "I'm a manager at the Detroit Aldi okay?" is so cringey.

[@oOSpecialProskillsOo]

as a german, i apreciate your unhinged loveletter to our style of grocery shopping. Most of our stores are layed out in this way. Some stores have taken the self checkout to the next level. some REWE locations just give you a little handheld scanner when you enter the store, you scan all items that you put in your cart and when you are done you just hold the scanner up to the register, tap your card and boom, you are done. no need ot touch your groceries in your cart, you just walk out and load them in the car.

[@texasranger24]

Also, Aldi doesn't care if they sell you stuff for cheap. Aldi is not a grocery store. That is not where their money comes from. Aldi is a financial company. They deal in short term investments from 3-6 month. Their grocery items are just a way to get precisely that - money for 3-6 months. They don't pay their suppliers up front, because they argue the store can't immediately sell all of it. But if they only pay after 6 months, but sold most goods in one, they have money to speculate with. Just like McDonals doesn't sell burgers. They are a real estate business renting out physical store locations and their name as a franchise.

[@khnelli4918]

It also helps that the Competition in Germany is extremely high, and also very streamlined. They had to perfect it, or they would fail just like Walmart did.

[@XJapanGonnaGiveItToYa-cd4xj]

I'm a German American and I love Aldi because its one of the only places in America I can get some German food. And yes the speed of shopping speaks to me on a personal level

[@undeadorcjerk]

God I would love to have that little scanner here in the US.

[@jlco]

@@undeadorcjerk unfortunately in most major US cities people would just steal the scanner...

[@stevetomato1188]

The chained shopping carts also lowers the amount of carts stolen which helps lower prices even farther due to not having to replace them as much.

[@MP-qn1jw]

Do you drive a Prius too?

[@mowgli2071]

Nope. The chained shopping carts _increases_ the theft. Because now all you need is a quarter. Go there at 10pm (they close at 8pm) and see if you can't still unchain a cart with a quarter.

[@FuzzySixx]

Ruing Bubbles' job I see.

[@jeffsadon552]

The real reason is to save on labor cost (it only takes a quarter for people return the cart 🛒)

[@bryan314]

@@jeffsadon552it has been my experience that people will hand off carts in the parking lot, some don’t even want your quarter “nah, someone gave me this one, keep it going.” Or maybe it’s a St Louis thing.

[@dedhampster4730]

I have some good things to add about Aldi. 1.) They are honest. My neice had a melt down in the store and I hurried with my groceries and hurried her out to the car. I forgot my cash back of $100. I came back a hour later expecting to be mocked and treated like a criminal. Nope! The casheir had given my cash to the manager in the office and he had already pulled the security footage to validate me. 2.) A few years ago they slightly rearranged their isles to allow you to easier make a second pass at the previous sections. But they didn't fundamentally change their layout. So now I can more easily change my selection from my list to better fit what is on sale or modify my selections if they are out of what I wanted. 3.) They allow me to eat a little more high end with their offer of fancier cheeses, olives, cured meats and nice produce because they keep prices very low on staples like flour, sugar, eggs, bread, standard produce etc. I only with they carried more bulk pricing for things like rice and dried beans.

[@MartinBorn]

@the_fat_electrician german electrician here 🙂 I remember that when I was a kid in Germany, Aldi didn't even had barcode scanners because it was not fast enough. The cashiers had 3-4 digit codes memorized for all items in the store and would just punch them in a keypad at the speed of light. They even had competitions and the fastest ones would show their skills on TV in some game shows.

[@danielrunyon8534]

We had the same thing in Kentucky. My math brain was like😮

[@GregoryGreg87]

That's awesome 🤯

[@nodarikvatchantiradze7277]

"If it's free, it's because you are the product." Line got me 😃

[@cabledad65]

The business model of Social Media and most of the "free" services on the internet. The petabytes of data companies like Google have on their users, is invaluable to marketing companies.

[@wtcb7892]

Pure Truth😂

[@devinlambert523]

Goosebumps

[@CatLemur-d1v]

it actually makes a lot of sense to not have a customer service desk or a dedicated phone line because that means that karens no longer have a way to make a completely unreasonable complaint.

[@turokrambo5617]

This is FACTS. I work at Wal-Mart.

[@johnhatheway9918]

LOL I went in and bought some rotten lettuce. When I realized, I walked back in, told the guy while he was checking someone else out, put it on the counter, grabbed another off the shelf, and walked out.

[@Zamotak]

Or run there mouth saying whatever they want so they can think they did something and than hang up before you can say anything all the while Knowing that your to busy to really look into who said it. I've noticed that as a manager at a couple different stores.

[@thewrathofbibby3381]

The brothers even split the world in half. Aldi Nord operates in Belgium, The Netherlands, France, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal and Spain, while Aldi Süd operates in Australia, Austria, China, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States.

[@kevinwalker6840]

We have both in the US. Though they may have split it North and south.

[@karxpoland5958]

Well, germans failed to split the world twice using violence, they succeeded using capitalism

[@DebasedAnon]

Actually in Austria and Slovenia its rebranded as "Hofer" because that was a preestablished Austrian store brand Aldi bought when they expanded into the area and they decided to keep the name and used it in the neighbouring Slovenia as well.

[@mljs9245]

@@kevinwalker6840 We have an Aldi and a Trader Joe’s within 5 miles of each other.

[@kevinwalker6840]

@@mljs9245 Well that answers that question. I guess they are competing with each other in the US

[@zdayzllc]

As a former logistics engineer, Aldi was the gold standard. there is a number, called cost per line item, that Aldi is the king of. For example, Big Box Pharmacy on your local corner, strives to make the cost per line item less than $0.25, which is great, except that line item may in fact be a bar of soap, or maybe a case of doodads. Aldi's cost per line item, when i was in the industry, was $0.08, which doesn't seem like a big deal until you look at the line item, a pallet of bananas or a cart of milk, Aldi not only takes their buying power to account for low prices, but they also do not incur much of a price per line item which mean you, the consumer, don't pay the price per line item

[@MP-qn1jw]

*If they actually have what I want. wow.

[@noahfyan9617]

​@MP-qn1jw damn you just really hate aldi going into every comment and trashing it, they have everything you need not everything your insect brain wants

[@pitecusH]

@@MP-qn1jw In Europe they usually have one "name brand" and one "Aldi brand" of everything. To top that, the "Aldi brand" is generally speaking of good quality, so you would have to be extremely loyal to "name brand" to pick their offering over Aldi's. You're sacrficing very little quality but you save a ton of money by picking their brand.

[@MP-qn1jw]

@@pitecusH Thanks for your reply. It's not necessarily brand loyalty, or quality, as much as it is taste. My taste buds are said to be shit, but I like what I like. Bailey's Irish cream, for instance, has many copies. Only one tastes the same, Kirkland which is a house brand for a warehouse club. I will drink Kirkland's & Bailey's Irish Whiskey because to me they both taste the same (delicious), but no others. Several bartenders have lost the bet when they challenged my ability to distinguish Bailey's from other generic or "house" brands. I am not saying no house brands are good, rather one house brand can not possibly match my choice of taste for all products. Aldi simply does not have the selection to complete my shopping list. It is much simpler & cheaper to fill my list at one store. The items may cost more, but there is a overwhelming value to me in one stop full service food shopping. Aldi is anything but. Just walking in to my grocery of choice, I save $0.25. Fuel & travel time = -$ too. I think it's great people like Aldi. Competition is good. However, it is uncalled for Napoleon to bash normal grocery stores as if it is a big conspiracy to rob customers of their hard earned money. The guy that posted this video is a POS for the way he bashes all other stores not labeled Aldi, and infers that shopping anywhere else is stupid. Well, IMO he is stupid & very Napoleon like (short & angry). Opinions are like butt holes, everyone has one and they all smell bad. Cheers!!

[@conlanchastain3708]

As someone who got a college degree in psychology I find grocery stores to be fascinating for all of the reasons you explained in the first 7+ minutes. A supermarket grocery store is every (social) psychologists’ dream playground for people watching. Every single aspect of it is both marvelous and horrible at the same time

[@bigtasty302]

It's interesting that you say a supermarket is every psychologists’ dream playground, because here in Germany there is small town called Haßloch which, until recently, functioned as a testing ground for new products. Apparently the citizens of Haßloch come closest to the average German. New products were therefore tested there and if sales were successful, they were introduced throughout the entire country. Very interesting in my eyes but grocery stores stopped using the town as a test site, my guess is because the overall demographic of Germany changed so much in the last few years, that the town is not representative enough for the entire nation anymore.

[@BandAid350z]

Large chain grocery stores (Walmart, CostCo, etc) make me have contempt for the average person. It’s like watching slightly more capable cattle wander through pens. Randomly stopping with no regard for others. Just abandoning their cart in the middle of aisles. Fighting for 10 minutes for the very closest parking spot, when they could have just parked near the back of the row and saved 9 minutes. It’s kinda of depressing for me to people watch at these stores. It really is a psychologists dream and all our nightmare.

[@kyledavis5912]

Nailed it. My fiance is a psychiatrist and she can not stand to be in large stores because of the wandering herds phenomenon. To add to your comment about abandoned carts. It never fails that I may need to get one thing from an isle, I know extaly where it is, I need 5 seconds to swing by and grab it but as soon as I round the corner there is a cluster of confused cart jokey's directly at the epicenter of where I need to go. Im usually a patient person but also agree with TFE. If I don't need to go get something else also giving them time to move, I 'll park my shopping cart at the very end of the next isle over off to the side and proceed on foot moving much faster to get what I need and back to my cart. Hopefully not having blocked anyone else from what they needed. Rarely ever happened but I quickly apologized and gth outta their way in turn. You aren't alone in what you said, nor is TFE on his not even slightly unhinged take on grocery stores.

[@praetorian3902]

Me : It doesn't work on me. Electrician : You're thinking it doesn't work on you.

[@TheFatFiles]

See ik

[@ComotoseOnAnime]

It in fact doesn't work on me because I know all their tricks, plan my entire trip through the store accordingly and set aside a certain amount of money for unexpected purchases that I forgot I needed. Once I hit that, needed or not it's waiting for the next grocery run. Having a plan and a budget goes a long way with dealing with their bullshit. That and always buying store brand if at all possible. That cereal aisle? That's nice, give me offbrand cheerios, offbrand frosted shredded wheat, offbrand peanut butter whatever cereal, the rest can go punch sand.

[@callumtennant3270]

I work in a factorised bakery with the plants and one of our plants exclusively make scottish plain loafs. The exact same loafs from the exact same batches are put into 4 different stores own brand wrappers and the company branded wrapper at the exact same time, and aldi definitely got it right getting one of each item

[@enoughothis]

"If it's free that's because you're the product." This wisdom is magnificent.

[@waltewhitesPhD]

Thats how social media works. Ditch it for a better life.

[@joshuayarrington9684]

Please do videos on the following: -The Woobie -Jim Corbett the Modern Dragonslayer -The F-15 EX Eagle 2 -The F-18 Super Hornet -The Story of John Paul Jones -The time the US Postmaster tried to deliver mail by Missile. -The SS Warrimoo and its incredible time hack. -The great escape of Gene Hambleton. -The Nutty Bet of Bill Williams. -The standoff between Steve Anthony and Hollywood. -The Story of the Lost Confederate Statue "Dutchy". -The time Idaho Fish & Game air dropped beavers away from McCall ID. -The real life story of Michel Dowling from "Blizzard" -The Xp5 seaplane -The Romeo Spies of Germany -The time two sister repelled the British from MA.

[@praetorian3902]

And maybe an episode on modern logistics (on land).

[@johngillespie3409]

And Witold Pilecki 🇵🇱

[@curtwatkins9520]

Ya. The woobie for sure.

[@joshuayarrington9684]

@@johngillespie3409 who or what is that?

[@mightymikethebear]

@@joshuayarrington9684 Ask any service member - especially Army and Marines - who spent more time in the field than in the barracks.

[@rylandvance5304]

Recently started working at an ALDI while I'm in between jobs and looking for something within my trade. Have to say, I've been pleasantly surprised. They do expect a lot of work out of you and its usually constantly being on the go or having to handle multiple things at once, but they have the store down to a science. And it is very true, they want you in, grab your shit, and then get you out as quick as possible. The majority of the products are made in the same places as the name brand stuff with different labels. The cashier sitting down thing too. When they explained that, it was basically "ALDI did a study to see if cashiers rang up stuff faster sitting or standing, and sitting won". I can only imagine two German guys as the test crew for that and one just winks at the other like 'remember, go slower while standing'.

[@ileana8360]

Sorry, but this "wink, wink" wouldn't fly with a German 😂

[@Liam_Patton]

Yeah, hell no. German people would rather suffer than skew a test. Huge german family, german blood in my veins, german relatives, friends, german german german. We'd rather mash our fingers with a hammer than put out fraudulent data to make our lives easier. I'm not sayin it's right, just pointing out that the krauts really are like that.

[@NickDavis-w4s]

2 things to add! 1: Pharmacies are in the front of stores "for convenience" but on the other side of the store so you have to walk across the general merchandise side, where all of the products are marked up the most, and where most of a stores net profit comes from (stores will do their best to keep you on this side). 2: Candy is by the checkout line because psychologically speaking, you just completed a 2 hour task and you deserve a treat, and stores are going to hit you when you're the most mentally exhausted.

[@SirKyloPodcast]

I worked in an Aldi Distribution Warehouse. My job was picking orders that get sent to the stores. They had amazing benefits and I worked there through college. Now I'm an engineer and I stay in contact with my former supervisors

[@phillipmargrave]

I’m glad you had a good experience at Aldi. I work at a Lidl Distribution Warehouse and it’s not good.

[@dbeerewout]

@@phillipmargrave every company has his rotten apple workplaces sadly

[@ScreebOnARoomba]

An Aldi opened up in my area a few years back and I've been going there for groceries ever since. One thing I appreciate that wasn't mentioned in the video is the fact that they don't play music in their stores. It may seem like a small thing, but it honestly makes for a better experience imo. I don't have to listen to music I honestly don't care for while buying groceries.

[@burnerheinz]

If i wanted music I'd bring my own.

[@MP-qn1jw]

First good argument yet. No music. While I like music, what's played in most stores is irritating. Still not enough to get me to shop there. Cheers! Oh wait, no booze at Aldi. Nevermind.

[@bickyboo7789]

The same music playing over and over again can drive some of the employees nuts too. I dont like 90% of the music that plays at my work, and if I have an earbud in i don't to hear some shitty song competing with my music/podcast.

[@DroneStrike1776]

Aldi just announced last week that they will not be hiring straight White people. I'm not White, but this is still wrong. The job listing clearly explains that Aldi “will prioritize individuals coming from the following communities: Refugee, Neurodivergent, Single Parent, Blind or Low Vision, Deaf or Hard of Hearing, Black, Hispanic, Asian, Military Veterans, the Elderly, the LGBTQ, and Justice Impacted individuals.”

[@jameswatts3266]

​@@MP-qn1jwThere is booze at Aldi's, there's a whole wine rack at the both I went to.

[@MrDixon-]

When I went to Aldi in Germany, not only were the cashiers amazingly quick, but the customers had been trained from youth to get their stuff packed and out of the way for the next person. It was a beautiful thing not to ever wait.

[@MP-qn1jw]

What do they do to seniors who can't pack & need help taking their groceries to their car? FUCK ALDI.

[@PPfilmemacher]

@@MP-qn1jw if someone is to slow and to weak even just for packing their own groceries as well as not being capable anymore of carrying their purchased items across ALDI’s small parking lot to their car. Then its them already not legally allowed anymore to sit behind a steering wheel driving a car!

[@BolofromAvlis]

Well here in the states you can also order Aldi delivery, though you do lose out on some of the great prices, though it's still better than Walmart delivery. I'm disabled without a car and I'd say their delivery is pretty decent.@@MP-qn1jw

[@MP-qn1jw]

@@PPfilmemacher Wow, really? Do you use one bag for each item? Just because someone is not capable of lifting 10lbs, does not DISqualify them from driving. Driving has nothing to do with physical strength. What about someone in a wheelchair? How about a disabled 28 year old vet with one arm? Clearly YOU do not have the braincells to legally drive.

[@ls200076]

​@@MP-qn1jw Company chill

[@valderhide1674]

5:50, Being a cashier myself right now in small town. You would be AMAZED at how often people here forget shit and I have to see them 3,4,5 time a day

[@AYVYN]

All of my college roommates loved Aldi in 2022, and I still love it now. It’s a private company too, so no random people can just purchase half the shares to own it.

[@Rick2010100]

The Aldi companies are owned by three foundations (Marcus, Lucas and Jacobus foundation) The the family members shares on the foundations can not be transferred or sold, only inherited. Currently the foundations want to reunite Aldi North and South to just Aldi again.

[@bi1615]

Nice fun fact: I know Aldi in Germany since before the invention of bar codes: At that time the cashiers had to learn the price of all products by heart. There were no price tags on the product itself. So they typed in the price in the cashier mashine just by looking at your items at the beld. As a result, it often took even less time time than with todays bar codes.

[@ileana8360]

Good old times.

[@ropeburn6684]

They didn't type in the prices, but 3-digit codes. The cashiers knew every product's code by heart, that way prices could change without it changing anything for the cashier. That's why they were so fast.

[@ileana8360]

@@ropeburn6684 still great job to know the item no by heart. do you remember how they sometimes shouted out to the other cashier asking a number for a new or saisonal item in orde to lose no time looking it up? happened rarely, but it was fun. cashier 1: "Helga, Avocado?" cashier 2: "346"

[@lrt14174]

It wasn't the prices. They were typing in a three digit code. And boy were they fast. ALDI was the last supermarket to switch to barcodes and accept card payments.

[@melissaphillabaum2734]

I was an assistant manager at Aldi for 12 years and we DID type in the prices. The only thing that had code numbers were the produce. Fun fact: you had to run a test cart before your first shift of the week to ensure you were ringing any prices changes correctly. If you didn't, you couldn't work until you did.

[@ShadowStrike28]

The fact that Adli does not have a store brand is upsetting. I mean, c'mon, what would you call a can of mixed snack nuts under the Aldi name? Yeah, you even tossed that tidbit in here. NICE! As far as the "did you find everything you were looking for?", next time trip their asses up by responding "Why, what are you hiding?!".

[@Jeff.78]

If they had a garden center, you could compare "Aldi's Hoes."

[@chrismaverick9828]

I've always hated the expectation of having to say that. As a long-time retailer I've always tried to vary it in some way as I cannot stand the micro-management that happens at the checkout. Having a specific spiel to ramble on on whenever you answer the phone, being required to say "have a nice day, Merry Christmas, etc" The latest one for us is the requirement that we say "My pleasure" in numerous instances that are entirely forced. I've already told my boss I won't do it as I won't lie to my customers nor act like I live on Sesame Street. The best thing I can do is provide excellent knowledge and helpful service. Customers appreciate that, not someone trying to con them into the latest credit card or 1% bonus plan.

[@chenlee9835]

Would mixed nuts called Aldi’s Nuts sell well?

[@SleepingNeutron]

When asked at Publix, since I shop without my wife, I generally respond with “I’m sure I’ll find out when I get home and am reminded about something.”

[@hellhound1389]

I'm an asshole because I have told them no and said something off the top of my head. I've tried it at Walmart, Kroger, and Meijer resulting in a sarcastic I'm sorry. But I tried that at my local mom and pop. They sent a runner to find it and they actually brought it up. I never go anywhere else now

[@cglasford1]

In Germany they have multiple of these types of stores and its awesome. Lidle and Penny are competitors of Aldi and all there are great. They have larger grocery stores that are more like ours, Rewe, Kaufland and Real but the Aldis and things are the ones you find in the neighborhoods. Love it!

[@chasemishio1781]

As someone who is a grocery store zombie, I 100% agree. One minute I'm rushing around getting what I needed, the next thing I know I've been standing in front of the cereal aisle for 15 minutes zoned out and ultimately pick Cinnamon Toast Crunch like the last 3 times

[@Nverinder716]

I've seen all the Fat Files videos to this point because the algorithm made sure I saw them, but THIS video earned a sub. ALDI saved our household when I lost my job 7 years ago and I regret NOTHING. If they can run knock off Peter Pan peanut butter, knock off Heineken, and knock off Kraft Mac when I'm broke, jobless, and depressed, and not only feed my family but make me feel like within the context of groceries, nothing's changed, they get the big win. Making sure wifey is sharing this to all her ALDI nerd FB pages tonight!

[@CharlesBarnette-tj2vs]

Same. Aldi saved us when money was tight (just just opened in town when I lost my job). Grown to love Aldi so much. Now, working and making g $120k yr, I still shop at Aldi.

[@oliviavanbrink]

You might want to check out his other channel The Fat Electrician, same storytelling style but with more US gov/military history oriented topics

[@Nverinder716]

@@oliviavanbrink I binged that entire channel over a year ago. That’s why the algorithm had been strongly suggesting this new channel.

[@DB-jk8vs]

They don't use hangers & racks but bins because of the "lizard brain". The boxes are you reducing their "waste output" The cashier sits because it maximizes the "pull rate" which is how much they bring across the scanner. They then scuddle back to the shelves & bins to do restocking, cleaning etc. They pay 14Euros😢€/hour for regular employees & pay their "apprentices" higher than most other companies in Germany. They can pay soo well because a literal skeleton crew is more than enough for the entire store all day long.

[@Nverinder716]

@@DB-jk8vs why are you saying all this like it’s negative? Did you watch the video?

[@JR81920]

"If it's free, it's because you're the product" is the absolute best phrasing I've ever heard

[@Mizzle420420]

For real that is the best way to word it I've ever heard. I've been trying to get my brother to understand this for years. He's worse than my grandma when it comes to scams and clicking on popups & youtube ads for free shit and free lessons on how to make a million dollars a year. It really boggles my mind how people fall for shit like that constantly and never learn from getting scammed over and over. His new favorite is temu which is the fuckin worst blatant mind game, everything's free, buy 3 get 7 free, data stealing, invite all your contacts for a free gift bullshit I've ever seen. They really took it to the next level it's like a digital drug for people that are gullible like that.

[@Artanthos]

ALDI kicks ass! First time I shopped at one it blew me away. Only time in my life I was telling other people about how kick ass a grocery store was. This video isn't unhinged, it's on point! (they have a really kickass cheese section, don't sleep on it)

[@seaton1754]

As a german, this is actually really interesting to hear. I never knew there was such a big difference in groceries stores in the US. Here in germany, as you might be able to guess, Aldi is also quite popular. But we have other popular chains as well, as they all work with a very similar concept. Efficiency is key. I could never imagine shopping at a store like you described in the first half of the video.

[@dbackscott]

I’ve never had the pleasure of visiting Germany - my only foray into Europe was a visit in Southern Ireland (beautiful, by the way). Here in the U.S. many of our grocery stores are absolutely enormous. Our favorite chain of stores here in Florida is Publix, where they operate a pretty good deli (with some of the best sub sandwiches around), a seafood counter with freshly made sushi, a pharmacy, and a full bakery. Many even have dedicated seating areas with tables for eating your lunch. The craziest grocery stores are Super Walmarts, which are really more like a general store and a grocery store added together. You can buy groceries, clothes, tools, furniture, computers and electronics, gardening supplies, paint, tires and batteries for your car, pillows and bedding, fabrics and craft supplies, pet supplies, and sports and camping gear in the same store. Some of them even sell guns and ammunition! Many of them also have a few extra (small) shops up front, which might consist of banks, hair salons, mobile phone sellers, optometrists, fast food restaurants, etc. It can actually be quite overwhelming if you’re not used to it.

[@Marshmelow22]

​@dbackscott my grandfather had a saying if you can't find it in walmart you don't need it

[@josephritchhart998]

We have good Grocery Stores too, they are just good for opposite reasons as Aldi. At Woodman's you can find just about anything from just about any country, and it's cheaper then Walmart. If you want to make some obscure dish you heard about on youtube/tiktok, they are what you want. Three cheese aisles. And an in house liquor store that often had some very high end stuff. Mine has Octomore right now.

[@johnpeters211]

That pretzel vending machine at German Aldi was like mana from heaven. My boys still talk about it. I will say that Globus was also my favorite. Frikadellen or leberkase mit brotchen for like 2 euro? Yes sir!

[@rajnerpiljic9389]

@@johnpeters211 unfortunately, I have to inform you, that Aldi in Germany has no longer those pretzel vending machines. They have been to slow. Now you have a kind of quick release bakery wall where you can grab your pretzel or bread or whatever you need and move on your way. sorry

[@zy2zy4zy]

Worked there for 3 years. The benefits are great and the pay is more than comfortable. The retirement savings account options are amazing. I'm only 27 and I pulled all that money out and took the 30% tax on it to buy a house. Aldi's is a great place. BTW, I left for a much higher paying job. I DID NOT quit because I hated it.

[@christielou]

I worked at a grocery store for 9 years. They not only do studies on packaging and where in the store to place items but also which level of shelf to put it on. Also, returning the carts cuts costs on cart maintenance and replacement. A full size shopping cart is about $250 each.

[@bmac7643]

Yesterday at the store I work at, I had a lady with a full sized cart with a $2500+ order She tried to do this through self checkout by the way

[@outlawgaming9592]

Standing in a daze over what flavor Cheerios is me every monday

[@ga_patriot279]

Fed a family of 7 for a decade on $150/week food budget. Aldi is a dream come true. My kids prefer Aldi brands to “Name Brand” foods. They won’t eat sandwiches at my Mother’s house cause she has the wrong bread.😂😂

[@MitchellBirt]

I've been to a local ALDI location a lot as a kid shopping with my mom, and I was always astonished with how quickly we would be in and out of the front door with a full cart of groceries compared to someplace like Kroger's or K-Mart. 20 years later, and not only is that same ALDI location still open, they're in the process of constructing another one close nearby to handle all the business they've been getting. 10/10, best grocery store.

[@ranger178]

the Aldi that was close to where I live was closed because it was too old or small to put a new one on other side of town. but i hardly shopped there anymore it was not worth going in there to just get a few items then have to run to another store to get all the stuff they don't sell.

[@hellhound1389]

When I was a kid and my mother was forced to go to Aldi it was an all day event. We would have to walk around boxes of groceries sitting waiting to be stocked. Searching for groceries that weren't expired or gone bad. Then finding things that weren't freezer burnt. After all that we would wait in line forever because there was only one line open even though they had 3 lines they only ever used just the one. Luckily we eventually no longer had to use the church card because my father won his lawsuit with veterans and got his benefits and we could afford to go somewhere else. About a year ago that Aldi closed. They couldn't compete with both the big box stores and the small local groceries

[@XJapanGonnaGiveItToYa-cd4xj]

My Kmart in the early 2000s if you went in after like 7pm didn't even have cash registers open you had to check out at customer service lol But its a shame because Kmart was really affordable right on up to the end.

[@nwredneckturner1508]

I found TFE's main channel not long ago, and as someone interested in history (and especially military history) thought I had hit the jackpot. With his combination of facts, humor and engaging personality I quickly blew through every video on his channel. And then I found the Fat Files. Sir, if you do a video on 'The history of mud', I will watch it!! And now I have many hours of the Unsubscribed podcast to go watch. Thank you Nick for being a real one!!

[@RedDeadTrooper]

You say that like this man wouldn't make a fifteen-minute video on 'General Winter' and 'General Mud'.

[@SovereignwindVODs]

I've watched the couple other video's he has on the Fat Files and didn't even realize it was a different channel. YT algorithm doing good work sending these videos my way, and Nick doing good work keeping thumbnails consistent so we know it's him even if it's a different channel name. This man is legitimately one of the most entertaining people on the platform, little contest.

[@RobinYuktonis]

Growing up in Germany, i never appreciated how quick and painless a trip to Aldi was until my dad got orders to move to Florida and I stepped inside my first Wall Mart. Needless to say that was one hell of a culture shock... lol

[@collinmckinney7208]

The zombies pushing carts is the perfect reference for Costco. Ever been to one on the weekend? better watch your ankles cause they are in damage there

[@ogey_elise]

the true genius of Aldi is-- 1: the way that the aisles are streamlined so you can get all of your stuff in one pass, but might also see some cool stuff on the way 2: the fact that they don't overstock multiple brands and therefore have less operating overhead, which means lower prices

[@alexh3974]

Also at times they not even have shelves. They just load a straight up pallet of drinks from thr back and not give a fuck. No fancy stuff. It's on same pallet it got slipped on

[@noerazz7515]

on top of that, they buy more of a single product which means that they get the best prices on those products. in short, whatever aldi is selling can't actually be sold at the same price at other stores without them losing money since they have to pay more

[@shawnstoner8958]

I used to plan my grocery shopping like a military black op, in and out ASAP. Now the stores all “reorganize” damn near every week and f’d that all up 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️

[@foremanhaste5464]

I do the same thing. Only thing that slows me down is that they have too much crap to remember which aisle each item is on.

[@mariotrujillo8860]

As my friends, family and co-worker have said "Get in line; not to check-out but to hate what ever higher-up manager decided it's shuffle time".

[@loribernardisunwell9663]

They did that to get you to spend more money looking for what you actually want...

[@hellhound1389]

I have my local mom and pop memorized. The last time it changed was 5 years ago when they added a huge wine and beer section but they don't care about the games other stores play. Their corporate belief is quality and service and that's what you get

[@pastor2345]

As someone who's lived in Michigan my whole life, I can attest to the Aldi superiority (and calling it Aldis). Going there was always faster and cheaper than anywhere else and the staff didn't look like they hated their lives. Finally got one near where my parents live and it's the primary place they go for groceries now, and they're strewn throughout where I go to college too. Straight up German engineering on par with the MP5SD.

[@patriotcraftsboy1046]

Michigan was the first time I ever heard of Aldi. And Meijer which as you know is basically a nicer Walmart

[@That_5.0_Ranger]

Oklahoma knows it as Aldis too.

[@jasonandrew5707]

umm... what is mp5sd

[@skeletonnoise6178]

​@@patriotcraftsboy1046Well ya you dokt forget your shit at Walmart

[@Real_Mick3y6]

So many people call it Aldi's, despite literally no s anywhere

[@gimpy454]

You forgot about the Aldi Isle of shame! At least that's what we call it. It's the one side of one half of one aisle generally speaking that has all kinds of miscellaneous crap that nobody knows they need until they're walking by it and it's super cheap! My favorite part of going to an Aldi

[@kitkat5339]

I prefer to call it the “aisle of weirdness”. It’s my favorite part of every Aldi visit.

[@marshmama2141]

Caw caw

[@colbywood1785]

I'm fucking here for this. Anything the fluffy zap zap guy does is amazing

[@dreamboards1056]

"zap zap guy" 😀 We call em "sparky" where I'm from.

[@paulfry3221]

You mean the Rotund Powerman?

[@colbywood1785]

@@paulfry3221 yeah, the voluptuous volt-man

[@lowellarnett3172]

well done!

[@gerryrandolph]

I’m the guy who’s been living under a rock, never knew Trader Joe’s and Aldi were the same store. Keep the videos coming, love them

[@wesley8599]

Here I am under the same rock painted Texan, realizing HEB is just a less corporatized Walmart. I don't want to dodge the pharmacy line to get my toothpaste/contact solution. Still love ya HEB

[@tipfertool5457]

I don't think many would.

[@bnotapplicable7000]

Facts, that blew my mind!

[@wumpusthehunted5962]

In practice, they are different. Aldi mostly carries staples and provides carts while Trader Joe's has far more prepared foods and prefers hand baskets. Also Aldi started in cheaper places and grew out to wealthier ares (but probably still in cheap places) while Trader Joes started in expensive ares and I can't tell if they are moving to cheaper locations. You'd go to them for different reasons (and unfortunately for me, they are in opposite directions).

[@Saanonymous80]

I didn't know, either. I always thought Trader Joe's was a competition store for Whole Foods. But I don't do a lot of shopping, either. I just stop on my way home from work and grab what I need from the local Hannaford

[@phishingtube]

Aldi has saved my family so much money and time over the years. We try our hardest to stay away from the big stores. They never ever end well. Always put in a bad mood. With Aldi. I can drive, get our groceries, stock our kitchen for a week and half in less then hour. A true blessing.

[@RexiChan19]

Your description of the people overwhelmed by other grocery stores is so accurate to what happens to me. I have to make a list with pictures to make sure I get what I went in for and not get distracted by all the other stuff. It's a struggle. Maybe I really should go check out Aldi...

[@MP-qn1jw]

How do you even go outside without a panic attack?

[@tompatchak8706]

Sometimes my wife wants me to pick up the groceries she likes and she has to send me pictures because I wanna make sure I get the right stuff the first time so I don’t have to go back

[@danielsjohnson]

My advice is don't go there hungry and bring a list. You're already making a list so that's good.

[@RexiChan19]

@@danielsjohnson haha yes, I make sure to do both most of the time

[@30AndHatingIt]

THIS. My ex would make a list or ask me to go get stuff, then when I come back I find out that I’m actually an a**hole and/or mentally deficient and/or bad person because I got the wrong thing. Because there’s 7 different versions of each product, sometimes without any change in label appearance, and even when you read the labels there’s fine print somewhere else on them or she actually wanted the one with the different count or segregated packaging within. Literally got to the point where I had to send pictures of the items in my hand in order to get confirmation before leaving. Meanwhile I’m just grabbing whatever the hell looks edible. Like I said… that’s an ex. And that’s one of the major reasons why.

[@DCYote1]

I love Aldi. They also sell stuff from Germany that you can't find in the US without going to a "specialty" market that charges a premium for imported products.

[@DonnieX6]

German here: just out of curiosity, what German products do you get at your Aldi over there? For us here we also get some Trader Joe's products, most are nuts, canned and dried fruit (I guess probably all grown in California). Greetings from Berlin!

[@DCYote1]

My two favorites that stand out are Ritter Sport chocolate, and a pre packaged Kasespetzle mix. Last Christmas I found Stollen there as well, which was nice to get "authentic" from Germany. Just little things that remind me of my time there.

[@DonnieX6]

@@DCYote1 Thanks, and yeah, Ritter Sport is nice, and I loved to eat Käsespätzle when I still ate cheese and eggs, with a lot of nicely caramelized onions on it! :)

[@AaronJohnson1]

ALDI in Australia is freaking awesome. Our two other major supermarket chains are run by boards and CEOs who are all marketing people. ALDI picked a career logistics dude to run the joint and it shows. And the weekly "special buys" are fantastic. Go and get some bread and milk and sure, whilst I'm at it I'll grab an off-brand trumpet and a MIG welder.

[@recumbentkoala]

I have retired to Indonesia from Melbourne. One of the things I miss is Aldi. In the couple of years in the lead up to the big move, in late 2021, I was able to pick up so many things among the centre aisle bargains in preparation. About the only thing I regret is the 4.5" reflector telescope. The viewing is not good due to the high humidity, and the mosquitoes are excessively friendly. But the 75" 4K TV on the wall in front of me cost under A$1K at Aldi, and the nearest equivalent would have been closer to A$2K elsewhere. I have so many other things, too numerous to list. I just checked my shipping container manifest, and there were 233 Aldi purchases.

[@andrewdacunha5695]

Some might say the greatest form of customer service is streamlining the customer experience

[@NEO-RC]

I had never been to Aldi prior to watching this video. I just got home from shopping at Aldi for the first time and you’re absolutely right. YOU just got them a new customer. This has to be the single best advertisement… Ever, and it’s 100% true

[@ja_u]

Hahaha that’s great Glückwunsch :)

[@DJKoren04]

You ABSOLUTELY nailed this!! I’m a manager for a chain we have primarily on the west coast called smart & final (rooting from the founders last names). i have worked for the company for a decade and was initially shocked at how accurate and intuitive your analysis of the situation is. then, you mentioned you did it for five years as well. yea.. he gets it. that makes sense. i am a firm believer that every citizen shall be required to straight out of high school 1. spend two years in the military or 2. work at a grocery store. America would be happier, more efficient and productive. Plus, the world would really see what letting freedom ring looks like😂

[@DesertFernweh]

Work in a Grocery store or an inbound Call Center.

[@aDrummerThatisBored]

Expand it to retail in general. The amount of people who lack patience is astounding. And for some areas respect.

[@colinklang]

There's a ton of people who haven't worked in the service industry, and it shows. Working in fast food taught me many life lessons.

[@DJKoren04]

@@aDrummerThatisBoredyou’re right. i thought about it, but went with ‘grocery store’ as it is the theme of this episode. thank you😂

[@Kirky64]

I've spent 5 years in the military, 2 years at a grocery store, 3 months in a call center (miserable), and 5 years at a Best Buy. I now work IT for a big company for the past almost 7 years and I would say the retail/grocery/military really puts everything is perspective on how shitty people are that have done none of it.

[@morefiction3264]

Hey. Thanks for dispelling the impression I had of Aldi from back in the late 80s early 90s. You saved our family a ton of money this week.

[@WhyFacetattoos]

I have a 5 and 3 yo my wife only shops there. It's like Josh Allen and Patrick mahomes had a baby and that baby grew up to be the cashier at Aldi who can throw all your groceries through the register in an 80th of a second for such a staggeringly low price you have to double take at it. I live in the Midwest Nebraska near Iowa they shit all over Hy-Vee if you have wasteful little kids or are a guy who eats lunches for work etc.

[@sheilajones9333]

Also, they don't sell food with food dyes! Their fruit loops is colored with paprika, turmeric, and beta carotene! Amazing!

[@mew90p]

I live in Maine and made the pilgrimage to Maryland. I went to Aldi and was not disappointed. I bought a bag as a souvenir, and I will never forget the utilitarian joys of my shopping trip.

[@LuxFerre4242]

I appreciate this video on multiple fronts. I do all my shopping at Lidl (which is basically identical to Aldi) because it's fast and cheap. I worked retail for ~15 years and my goal was always "get the customer what they want and out the door asap", and I promise you that's what 99% of them want.

[@JamesDavis-mm2mi]

I love lidl too. We have both where i live. But choose aldi because its closer and theres more of them around. But all my lidls are self scan and what i cant find at aldi i usually can find at lidl

[@LuxFerre4242]

@JamesDavis-mm2mi Same for me but the other way around. There's 4 of each in my city, but Lidl's a 2 minute walk from my home while Aldi's a 15 minute drive (and I don't have a car.)

[@transientcylon]

Their board of directors have also been repeatedly approached about taking the company public and said that have absolutely no interest or plans to do so. They literally only exist to serve their customers and employees and not some random shareholder.

[@DemonEdge82]

Trust me, I’ve forgotten quarters a bunch of times at my ALDI and they’re always super understanding and will loan you the quarter for a bit. But I agree it’s my favorite grocery store as well.

[@Moto-foody]

We used to hit Aldi’s when we were stationed in Germany and were amazed with the efficiency of this well oiled piece of German engineering. Lidl and Spar were pretty good too.

[@acceptablecasualty5319]

What was the soldier's choice? Beer, Snacks?

[@Some0ne001]

Lived in Switzerland and Lidl and Aldi were the bomb, Coop was ok too because they have some premium stuff mainly Cailler Chocolate that we wanted but Lidl and Aldi were the go to.

[@irislopez-royal5048]

Every time I lived overseas, I checked to see if I could grocery shop at Aldi's. I was so excited when the town I was living in finally got an Aldi's. Aldi has the best meat prices in town! I can get 95% of my groceries at Aldi's.

[@KinqNick]

As a german its really funny to see all those reactions from you. I thought all the time that a huge selection of items is a good thing beacause if i want to cook something really spesific it is really hard to find those items in german supermarkets. But I forgot the advantages it takes to have these high efficent supermarkets. Nice to remeber the privilages we have here.

[@bobwalsh3751]

SPAR!

[@merljacksonii7233]

I swear to all that is Holy, if it was any other content creator besides Nic, I would have passed on this video. Nic is the Aldi of content. Quick, clean, all the content you need, and get the F out! If you're not pickin up what I'm puttin down, Nic is the Liquid Death of content creation. He can take something as boring as water, wrap it in an exciting and flashy package, offer it up in a straight forward, in your force manner, and then sell some merch about it. Outstanding work, sir.

[@peterbenson2185]

In the UK (or, if you like "U.S. B " ) We have ALDI with the infamous "Middle Aisle" where you can buy certain clothes, summer party products, DIY equipment and other associated wierdness. It's fucking awesome.

[@niq872]

we also have that aisle it really is awesome all kinds of random things, i got a jacket that i use for all kinds of things from spray painting to changing oil outside 4 years and its still holding up

[@MrSGL21]

ALDI has there here too. we call it the Isle of weird shit. even the employees call it that.

[@SuperEcho64]

Terrible customer service? Nonsense. I returned an item to Aldi once. Swapped for a replacement on the spot. No questions asked. Done. They value my time like I do.

[@trepan4944]

I worked as a grocer for 7 years, including a junior manager at night for closing up. The opener about US stores being a mental terrorist exercise is dead spot on. Our meat manager told me they out the best cuts in the middle so you HAD to walk past all the cheaper cuts from either side of the case. Its all engineered.

[@chrismaverick9828]

The average person would end up being incarcerated for mental breakdown if they really understood just how 'big brother' big retail actually is. It's Matrix level of control.

[@IamKingSleezy]

We keep prime meats and sale meats in the middle of our display case for this exact reason

[@kimadkins6937]

Aldi Rules! And you are Brilliant!! ❤

[@ja_u]

Wait, the „meat manager“? There is a separate manager for each type of food? Wow haha

[@trepan4944]

@ja_u yep. Meat department, deli, dairy & frozen, grocery, produce and liquor each had at least 1 manager

[@Commander204]

And this is why Aldi's is a core memory moment for me. Aldi's was a massive influence with my family, especially since my parents were stationed in Germany for a full tour before being reassigned to the US. And when me and my sisters went out to help our parents grocery shop it was 90% of the time at Aldi. Gave us a better appreciation of things like milk and eggs and also knowing how to best fill old grocery store bags without them being too full or ripping, and also knowing that certain products should never go on the bottom, ie bread and eggs. Also never knew Trader Joe's was just another part of Aldi, the more you know!

[@TechTimeWithEric]

I can confirm a couple things. I worked for a company that made ketchup and sauces. In the batching room we would get an order to do 15 batches of organic ketchup. The run would be so many bottles for Whole Foods and so many for Aldi. They would run the filler to and complete the Whole Foods, stop the machine, switch the labels and hit start again. The bottle of organic ketchup at Whole Foods is literally the same as Aldi. Also we made a ranch dressing in a glass jar for Trader Joe's that was FREAKING AMAZING. Sadly I don't have a Trader Joe's near me and I don't work there anymore so I can't get it lol

[@Seelenschmiede]

A friend of mine worked at a factory making vegetable oils. Same bottle, different lables. One sold as premium brand for 12€ a litre. One sold as cheapo brand for 2€ a litre. And people swear they can taste the difference...

[@mschrage618]

I was always taught that Aldi had like the crap leftover products that other stores couldn’t sell. I may have to rethink that and give them a chance now

[@davidknott6124]

As a current cashier in Connecticut, former Walmart cashier, and having shopped at Aldi, you had me simultaneously laughing and nodding my head in agreement! I needed a good laugh after a day on my feet at a grocery store serving customers and thanking God that I no longer work for Walmart!!!

[@eddievanwhy8929]

My wife loves Aldi, I on the other hand hate it

[@tristinsperry5171]

Ive tried to explain to friends this, they still go to walmart because apparently "needing a quarter is stupid". The few that listened love aldi's now

[@TheOystei]

just have a "quarter sized token" on your car keys or whatever.

[@JCGver]

You friend failed "the minimum required IQ for Aldi" test

[@tristinsperry5171]

@@JCGver lol

[@thnecromaniac]

Doesn't work cause you don't leave with the same cart. while you're emptying your cart, they're filling another with your stuff. ​@@TheOystei

[@thnecromaniac]

Proof the test works

[@andrewlynch9971]

My wife and I shop at ALDIs all the time. We were in Spain last year and found an ALDIs store so of course we had to check it out. I regret not grabbing a cart to see if they had slots for Euros, but when we went into the store the first thing we noticed was that there was a conveyer belt walkway both in and out of the store. Like those moving walkways you see in the airport. They were cranked up too. It was like facing the wrong way on a treadmill. They were really saying “Get your shit and get out”, but honestly it was a super fun way to enter and exit a grocery store.

[@Leobelial239]

Spanish guy here. As far as i know, all grocery store carts in spain have slots for coins since at least the early 90's

[@scottchampion]

This is my favorite comment on any youtube video

[@swayback7375]

Well that’s clearly too advanced for American shoppers, lawsuit in the making

[@JCGver]

They take 50 euro cent, 1 euro and 2 euro coins

[@baileythompson3193]

I loved working at Aldi, checking people out was always so fun! I loved how people were always shocked with how fast it was!

[@povertymidas]

BONUS FACT: The numerous bar codes on the items extend to their shipping boxes, most stores get boxes on pallets, pull the boxes out, set them on expensive stands and constantly cylce them to keep older products up front. Aldi gets them in a box they rip part of it off and set it on a stack. That one's empty? *rip* Ok there's more now. It is a marvel of design efficiency! Great vid as always!

[@R.O.U.S.]

Even better, the Aldi near me will just put the empty boxes behind the checkout, and let you use them, for free, to work alongside your bags.

[@mathiasnieder8336]

As a german who grew up with Aldi this is absolute gold. Allthough (at least here) they "softened up" a bit in the last few years Aldi was always a bit special. They were the absolute last chain of grocery storey who introduced scanners on checkouts (until then it was employees who knew the prices of each item out of their head, and boy they were quick), the didnt even had shelves for many items (pallette with stuff and a printed out pricesing, that was it, while every other store labelled every individual item with a tiny sticker with the prico on it). And yes, they had brands, but under other names, Red Bull for example had another shape of bottle and was called red horse.

[@richardchisholm2073]

I loved shopping at Aldi during my six years in Germany. I also loved shopping at most stores in Germany, because they specialized. The Metzger sold meat and sometimes cheese. The Kaffee shop sold coffee. The Backerei sold baked goods. All fresh. I've shopped at one aldi in the states, but it's 70 miles away. And it was shocking when I stepped in to see American products.

[@Kycirion]

You should do a little shopping math. At my previous house the closest Aldi was nearly 50 miles away, and it was STILL cheaper to drive to Aldi, get groceries, then drive home than it was to shop at the small town grocery store I had.

[@Astrofrank]

Aldi sells many local products to cut transportation fees, so Aldi in the USA will sell many American products.

[@DillonD14]

1. I’m a manger for a grocery store. 2. I most definitely have heard customers tell me they did not find something. It is a strategy to get one last sale. If you tell them where that item they couldn’t find is, that’s an extra sale. We also ask customers if they need help finding anything for the same reason

[@timwhitney710]

Aldi is by far my favorite store in the world. Saves me so much money and time as a college student. Plus I personally prefer a lot of their Aldi brand products over the name brand stuff. Like seriously I can walk out with a pack of Bavarian bratwursts, wine, and pasta for ~$10