What’s Eating America
It’s not shameful, it’s savvy: The shoppers redefining how to save money on groceries
May 11, 20265:00 AM ET, Heard on All Things Considered
By Joe Hernandez, 3-Minute Listen, Transcript
Rich Henderson and his wife, Rachel Negro-Henderson, grocery shop for their family at the Aldi in Bellmawr, N.J.
Rachel Wisniewski for NPR
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BELLMAWR, N.J. — When Rachel Negro-Henderson started shopping at Aldi regularly during the pandemic — a change her family made when her husband lost his income as a crew coach — she’d sometimes have awkward run-ins with acquaintances.
“People would not want to talk about why they were here, like it was a mistake,” the healthcare administrator said. “They just stumbled into a grocery store because they needed a tomato.”
But after just a few years, those interactions have changed. Negro-Henderson, who lives in Audubon, N.J., with her husband and three kids, says she now sees people she knows there all the time.
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“Everyone’s like, ‘Yeah, I’m saving money. I might as well come here. I’m getting the same product,'” Negro-Henderson said.
A slew of factors has been making it harder to put an affordable meal on the table. Food insecurity mushroomed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and grocery prices have skyrocketed in recent years. Layer onto that inflation, the threat of tariffs and corporate cost-cutting schemes like shrinkflation and electronic shelf labels, which give retailers the ability to change prices based on demand.
Left: Negro-Henderson pulls out her shopping list. Right: Produce is for sale in boxes at Aldi.
Rachel Wisniewski for NPR
“Consumers are just to a point where [they’re saying], ‘Give us a break,'” said grocery industry analyst Phil Lempert. “This is food. You don’t screw around with our food.”
Many of those facing economic pressures and frustrations have begun shopping at budget grocery stores and warehouse clubs in lieu of traditional supermarkets, their priorities shifting in pursuit of a good deal. Look to social media to see the change, where creators regularly post their favorite finds at Aldi or meals they’ve made entirely from ingredients bought at Costco.
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In the process, Lempert said, discounters have invested in improving their food and beverage offerings, shaking off any lackluster reputations they may have had in the past and ushering in a new generation of cost-conscious consumers.
How discount grocers keep prices low — and sales high
According to Lempert, budget grocery stores tend to be smaller than the typical 40,000-square-foot supermarket, carry fewer items, have smaller staffs and operate with greater efficiency.
For example, he said, Aldi doesn’t unpack boxes of canned goods but, rather, has employees tear off the tops of shipping boxes and place them directly on store shelves to save time.
Negro-Henderson looks over canned goods while grocery shopping.
Rachel Wisniewski for NPR
“If you look at the stores themselves, they’re bare-bones,” he said. “You go into a Wegmans and you’re seeing beautiful service departments and beautiful signage and stuff like that. You know, you’re not seeing that” at discount stores.
Read more: It’s not shameful, it’s savvy: The shoppers redefining how to save money on groceries – NPRContinue/Read Original Article: It’s not shameful, it’s savvy: The shoppers redefining how to save money on groceries : NPR
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