ALDI opened last Friday, with a modest amount of fanfare. I went on the Thursday prior to see their offerings. The store was much smaller than anticipated. It is barely larger than Costco's front end. Not a criticism, but an observation. All of ALDI's greeters were pleasant and put on the expected smiling face, but it seemed really weird to be handed little yogurt cups, pretzel crisps and pizza rolls from overly courteous Aryans - white, slim, young and well-groomed - in their $600 dollar suits. It really felt weird seeing one of the Aryan Amazons bending over to hear a little Asian woman asking for a sample of their cinammon cereal. That pretentiousness doesn't sell well in this borough.
As to its product, that is left to be tasted. The prices are low, the selection is limited and the quality is yet TBD. I suspect that immigrants, which comprise a majority of the area's consumers, will not accept Eurotrash. I don't know if ALDIs fits that bill, the early word suggests their products are not on par with the suits their young lil execs wear at their opening.
As far as it being a threat to COSTCO, the jury is out. The profit margins for cost-cutting retailers/wholesalers is low. ALDI has some advantages, as I have pointed out earlier. And, as for ALDI, its not a matter of stealing a big chunk of COSTCO's business, it is only a matter of putting a big enough dent in it to make it unprofitable.
So now, the matter goes to the consumer......
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