Upmarket bargain hunters
Kantar Media’s Anna Gunn uses the latest TGI findings to examine the middle classes’s growing love affair with Aldi and Lidl – and how best to target them.
With Christmas just around the corner, many shoppers are either spending beyond their means or shopping at budget supermarkets to keep costs to a minimum to get more value for money. One trend that has become apparent in Great Britain is that increasing numbers of shoppers are flocking to supermarket chains such as Aldi and Lidl, due to their bargain prices.
Moreover, this trend is more pronounced in the top social classes than amongst the lower social grades, who are feeling more of a financial squeeze at Christmas. The latest Kantar Media GB TGI insights reveal the upmarket consumers who are shopping at these budget supermarkets, their attitudes and behaviours and the best way to target them.
In Britain we are experiencing a shift in where the affluent classes shop for their groceries, with a boom in the popularity of budget supermarkets. Looking at latest insights from Kantar Media TGI, in 2008 only 9% of AB social grade ‘main shoppers’ (those responsible for the bulk of grocery shopping in their household) bought their groceries from Aldi.
In five years the proportion of AB shoppers who go to Aldi has more than doubled to 20%. For Lidl we can see a similar trend, with 11% of AB main shoppers shopping here in 2008, increasing to 18% in 2013. Clearly we are seeing bargain supermarkets growing in popularity amongst the higher classes.
The latest TGI data reveals that AB consumers who shop at Aldi are slightly younger than those who shop at Lidl. 37% of Aldi customers are aged 44 and below. In comparison, AB Lidl customers are much older, with 28% of those aged 65+ shopping at Lidl (24% more likely than the average main shopper). Notably, however, neither of these supermarkets are attracting the younger shoppers of the same AB social grade.
Along with the differentiation in age, these bargain stores are especially likely to attract AB consumers in particular geographical locations, with 12% of affluent Aldi shoppers based in the West Midlands (29% more likely than the average shopper). This is compared to 14% of ABs who shop at Lidl living in the South West, (59% more likely to live there than the average main shopper).
Clearly, although both these shops are largely similar in price and image (both exported from Germany), there are subtle nuances between those who shop at these bargain supermarkets.
Kantar Media TGI measures well over 300 attitudinal statements which vary from food to finance to the environment. Looking at these two target groups of well-off shoppers who are shopping at Aldi and Lidl, they have mostly similar attitudes towards food.
Upmarket Aldi shoppers are 47% more likely to be influenced by the origin of the food they are buying (14% do). This is compared to only 9% of all main shoppers in Britain. Similarly, those who shop at Lidl are 89% more likely to be driven by the origin of food. This upper class shopping at Lidl are 66% more likely than the average to be influenced by environmentally friendly food products.
Though both groups differ in age and geographical location, they are very similar attitudinally when it comes to the provenance of their food. 29% of both upmarket Lidl and Aldi customers would not let their children eat junk food. Similarly, both groups consider their diet very healthy, with 52% of Aldi and 49% of Lidl customers believing this.
Additionally, in TGI’s new FMCG shopper segmentation looking at different consumer shopper strategies, upmarket Lidl consumers are 51% more likely than the average to be Promiscuous Purchasers, driven principally by value (13% are). This is not surprising as they are shopping at a value supermarket.
Comparatively, 30% of Aldi shoppers are Quality Crusaders (driven by superior quality) and are 42% more likely than the average shopper to be so. These high-class groups of customers shopping at these very similar bargain stores are clearly engaging with both stores differently.
TGI reveals what influences shoppers in their choice of supermarket. 21% of Lidl upmarket shoppers rank parking as the most important factor when choosing a supermarket (34% more likely to do so). This might be because they are slightly older and consequently perhaps less flexible about how they can get to the shops.
Looking at the media habits of both groups of high class shoppers, 16% of Aldi customers are amongst the heaviest fifth of newspaper readers (making them 16% more likely than the average main shopper), whereas 18% of Lidl customers are amongst the heaviest fifth of radio listeners (14% more likely than average). Clearly both supermarkets engage with their customers very differently, which is especially prevalent amongst this upmarket audience.
11% of high class Aldi customers read a newspaper 4-5 times a week, compared to only 8% of equivalent Lidl consumers.
Looking at topics of interest, Aldi shoppers are 88% more likely than the average to be interested in the property sections of the newspaper, compared to 2% more likely for Lidl customers.
Perhaps this is because the slightly older Lidl customer is not thinking about relocating, whereas the younger Aldi upmarket group are perhaps more interested in up-rooting before entering retirement.
This well-off group of Lidl customers are 56% more likely than the average main shopper to listen to the radio for 3-5 hours a day on a weekday, whereas Aldi customers are only 14% more likely than the average adult to do so.
Both groups are engaged with radio programmes around business and finance, with 17% of Aldi high class shoppers specifically choosing to listen to this type of programme, compared to 22% of Lidl consumers. Similarly, both groups are very engaged with the Today Programme on Radio 4, with both twice as likely to tune in.
Though both groups of high class shoppers are different demographically and geographically, with nuanced attitudinal differences and engage differently with media vehicles, largely this group are alike. Such bargain supermarkets will likely keep many Britons in the Christmas spirit this year.