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The Best Way To Save Money at Aldi, According to a Lifelong Aldi Shopper (au.lifestyle.yahoo.com)
submitted 7 months ago by to c/frugal@aussie.zone
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TL;DR: Arrive early to get the marked down meat/fish (and bread) which expires the next day. Freeze the extra.

I’m not organised enough for this and don’t eat these things but hopefully this is useful.

Another tip is to learn the day your local supermarket restocks and shop right before closing the night before. A lot of items will be on clearance.

One bakery used to have a discounted table of day old bread but that was a long time ago and I don’t really see that anymore.

If you don’t drive (and especially while PT is free) buy a wheeled shopping cart from a local $2 shop. You won’t regret this. Some of them are foil lined to help keep items cool as well.

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[–] 8 points 7 months ago (6 children)

Thank you for giving these tips. Over the next few months, they will become very valuable to some/a lot of people. I wonder what the other two supermarket chains do that's similar (for people who haven't got an ALDI nearby)? There's an opportunity in putting together some kind of guide for people.

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  • [–] [S] 4 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (4 children)

    No worries, I’m seeing the fallout coming and trying to help however possible.

    I’m not sure, I do know that the Woolies near me in a previous suburb had a lot of things heavily discounted every Thursday night right before close. As they were making room for restock. The day would be different for each location probably.

    And I know Coles do regularly have half price specials however the discounted items tend to be luxury things I don’t buy. The exception being sunscreen and multivitamins.

    spoilerIn fact I’d suggest people buy a bulk pack of affordable multivitamins to fill any gaps because cheap filling food can be less nutritious and deficiency can really mess you up. This goes extra for growing children. Maybe even consider calcium supplements (if possible) regardless of age if you have to live on ramen.

    They also have Flybuys which I don’t pay much attention to (not much brain space) but Flybuys rewards can get you things like cookware or Bunnings cards. I wouldn’t deliberately overspend to get the items though. Older solid cookware can still be found in op shops.

    Woolies does have the Save For Xmas thing if you have a rewards card. So you can either get small amounts of money back off shops or save up the store credit to try and soften the financial blow at the end of the year. But honestly you get fractions on the dollar so I wouldn’t be buying extra stuff to try and game it. The furthest I would go is stocking up on basics like toothbrushes when there’s extra points on them.

    I do see discount short dated perishables including meat but not sure if that’s just that shop.

    I’m not aware of anything for IGA. This seems to be the more bougie kind of shop with fewer generics and more specialty or luxury goods.

    Edit: Ok they do https://www.igarewards.com.au/

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  • [–] 1 point 7 months ago (3 children)

    I reckon you should get a grant (or get paid somehow) to write an e-guide with all your tips. `

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  • [–] [S] 2 points 7 months ago (2 children)

    I only wish. Secret shopper?

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  • [–] 2 points 7 months ago (1 child)

    I was thinking one of the big welfare charities or even the Australian Food and Grocery Council (Peak body for all the supermarkets) which is all about profits, growth, etc, but reckons it is on about sustainability (LOL) with "efficient management of environmental and social concerns". CHOICE could be worth contacting, perhaps. Even asking your local MP (if you've got someone who cares about people experiencing difficulties in affording daily life) to see if they could connect you with a source of funding. State MPs do offer grants themselves.

    Don't mind me, just freewheeling here. I just think your info could be useful to everyday people as well as community workers, and the like, who support people.

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  • [–] [S] 1 point 7 months ago

    Thanks, unfortunately it’s all kind of well worn advice that people have probably heard before.

    The night-before thing was taught to me a long time ago and I signed up for rewards programs after seeing other redditors talk about it

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  • [–] 3 points 7 months ago

    I think things vary from store to store, and I do see patterns within my local stores change every do often.

    Currently my local Woollies and Coles both have a shelf in the refrigerated section where they collect the marked-down stuff. It seems to be that they'll leave things on their normal shelves for the initial markdown, then whatever doesn't sell in that first pass goes to the special shelf for further discounts.

    Some days there's nothing much. Some days there's a big pile of stuff 90% off. If you're on a tight budget or just like a bargain, you check several times a week.

    Idk about Coles (I'm not there as often) but I've seen Woollies doing further discounting of markdowns around 5pm. So if I'm looking for bargains, I try to go between 5 and 6.

    This all applies specifically to the stores in my town, so YMMV. But observe patterns at your local (or ask if you know someone on staff) and you can probably work out their routine to your advantage.

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