[ElDiabloJoe]

Originally Posted by ThirdOfFive

I've never shopped at a Trader Joe's, though I've heard a lot of good things about them, largely from people who also patronize Aldi. Since both Aldi and Trader Joe's have the same parentage, so to speak, then I'm assuming that they're run similarly. Overall Aldi prices are not because of cheaper ingredients or a plethora of chemicals in their products, but because the stores run FAR more efficiently. Better-trained (and paid) workers, concentrate on the essentials (no bagging, shopping cart "service" that is pretty much self-serve, etc.), quick turnover of products, and a limit on the number of products sold (the average Aldi sells about 1,400 products while the average supermarket sells about 40,000) makes stocking far easier and quicker. I've rarely seen an Aldi with more than four workers on at a time. Publix? Probably 20 or more on average. Publix probably has huge overhead compared to Publix. That extra overhead translates into higher prices.

If Trader Joe's approach is similar, then I'd have no basis to believe that their products are any less healthy than, say, Publix. And I'd probably pay a heck of a lot less.

I really like TJ's, but I really dislike Aldi's. You are incorrect in your assumption that they are alike. They are not alike at all. Except both are small.

Since you admit you have never shopped at one or tried their wares, you may consider withholding your assumptions until you do. After which you may or may not like them but truth be told there are many who do.

It's not always the first trip there that hooks people. It's trying some of their stuff and developing a real preference for an item or two. Then you start trying other stuff there and realizing how much of it really is good and how reasonably priced it is. That's how you develop the fan base they have.

Oh- Trader Joe's and Aldi's are sibling companies, but they are not one owned by the other. It's a myth like the one about McDonald's owning Chipotle. Trader Joes is owned by the owner Aldi Nord. But the Aldi stores you see in the US are owned by Aldi Süd. The two are completely separate companies. Two brothers started a grocery chain in Germany. They split the chain when one wanted to carry cigarettes and the other did not. They bifurcated into two separate chains. It's kinda like Puma and Adidas. Two brothers who each started their own brand.

Here, this might help 'splain it: The Connection Between Trader Joe's And Aldi