Middle and upper classes flock to Aldi and Lidl for drinks bargains

By Gemma McKenna

Published: 03 February, 2015

The British notion of class is no longer holding back shoppers from snapping up drinks bargains at discounters Aldi and Lidl.

According to the latest edition of Wilson Drinks Report, 45% of ABC1 adults had shopped at Aldi or Lidl in the past three months - on a par with the lower socio-economic group C2DE.

Lidl Chianti Any embarrassment over shopping at Lidl or Aldi has evaporated, says WDRWilson Drinks Report's latest edition shows middle and upper class consumers are much more willing to shop at discounters than before.

Red wine drinkers are more likely to have shopped for food or alcohol at Aldi or Lidl than any other drinker type, while lager drinkers are least likely. A total of 56% of red wine drinkers surveyed had shopped at Aldi or Lidl over the last three months.

The study found significant regional differences, with adults in London and the South East much less likely to have shopped at Aldi or Lidl than adults in the North East - although this is in part linked to store locations.

What's more 13% of adults did most of their alcohol shopping at Aldi/Lidl over the three-month period, whilst a further 39% did some of their alcohol shopping there. This can be further split down by drinker type, with more red wine and bitter drinkers (20%) doing most of their alcohol shopping at Aldi/Lidl.

Tim Wilson, managing director of WDR, said : "In the past we might have expected a much higher proportion of C2DE shoppers to buy food and alcohol at the big discounters. However our new research confirms that the upper and middle classes are just as happy to grab a bargain. Initiatives like the recent launch of premium French wine in Lidl, endorsed by a Master of Wine, only add to the increasing credibility of the discounters in the minds of the shopper.

"We think that this provides real evidence that any perceived embarrassment of more middle/upper class shoppers being seen shopping at the discounters has now gone."

The research was carried out by YouGov, who surveyed 2,136 British adults exclusively for WDR on the period July to September 2014.

The findings are contained in the latest edition of WDR, available to purchase as a single copy (£500) or as an annual subscription for four issues (£1,200).

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