At the start of this month, I received my Nectar card shopping summary from Sainsbury’s and was astonished to learn I had visited my local store a remarkable 385 times over the past year.
The ‘Check You Out’ initiative provides a personalized breakdown of your previous year’s shopping patterns through the Nectar app. It shows your most frequently purchased items, accumulated points, and how you rank among other shoppers in your area. For me, the high number wasn’t too surprising—I live just five minutes away, so I tend to make daily trips rather than one big weekly shop.
I also regularly stop by Aldi, which is nearby and generally offers lower prices on many items. But it made me wonder: why do I keep returning to Sainsbury’s when Aldi often costs less and has comparable quality?
READ MORE: Calls for Gloucester Councillors to Disclose Membership in Secret Societies and Private Clubs
READ MORE: Cotswolds Pub Landlords Extend Warm Welcome to Liam Gallagher
The answer lies in the product I buy most frequently at Sainsbury’s. According to the Express, I was the top purchaser of one particular item in my town—satsumas.
Shopping with my husband, who loves fruit, explains a lot. I’ve watched him devour a whole bag of oranges, multiple containers of berries, and several apples in one go. He’s definitely the driving force behind our hefty satsuma purchases. Yet what really makes us buy fruit from Sainsbury’s instead of Aldi is the better quality.
While I will pick up blueberries or apples from Aldi occasionally, my husband and I both feel the quality isn’t quite the same. Sainsbury’s fruit tends to have superior flavor and texture, and it stays fresher in the fridge for longer—even if it is more expensive. Of course, this is based on our personal taste and experience.
Interestingly, there’s one product I exclusively buy from Aldi: bakery items. Since Aldi introduced an in-store bakery last year, it’s become incredibly popular. The smell of fresh bread and pastries like pain au chocolat, Portuguese custard tarts, and sourdough loaves fills the store, tempting me every visit. Even now, I find it hard to resist grabbing a caramel-filled doughnut on my way to the till.
Not everyone has the option of shopping around, but if you do, you often find better deals, yellow sticker reductions, and higher quality products by trying different stores.
The key takeaway from these eye-opening statistics is that I could probably save money by shopping less at Sainsbury’s and more at Aldi. Still, when it comes to fruit, particularly satsumas, Sainsbury’s remains my go-to destination.