After low cost weddings, discount weddings. An American couple from Illinois got married on November 9 in an incredible place: the Aldi store where they do their shopping every Sunday.
According to the Today site, the ceremony took place in this supermarket located in Batavia in the suburbs of Chicago. Exchange of vows, photo session in the aisles of the store between apple stalls and frozen shelves, reception offered by the brand… Aldi covered all the expenses of Mike and Jessica Hurd’s wedding.
“Getting married at Aldi is like a dream come true,” the couple told Today, adding that the supermarket was a key place in the couple’s lives. Working staggered hours during the week, they only see each other on weekends, in particular to do their shopping at Aldi.
The low cost brand does not intend to enter the business of renting venues for weddings. It was a contest organized by the German group in the United States eager to make people talk about it. According to Aldi, 500 couples applied and it was the Illinois Hurds who won the award.
Aldi/Lidl, the American battle
It was their attachment to the brand that convinced the brand’s teams. Mike and Jessica say they didn’t fall for each other right away when they met in 2013.
Along with their all-expenses-paid wedding, the Hurds won a year’s worth of free groceries at their Aldi store.
A good marketing move for the discount brand that has been struggling for a few years on the other side of the Atlantic with compatriot Lidl. The United States is the new commercial battleground for the two German discounters. If Aldi, which tried the American adventure at the end of the 70s, has a wide advantage over its rival with some 2,100 stores, Lidl has been trying to eclipse it for several years.
New to the United States (in 2017 alone), Lidl has already opened 177 outlets on the East Coast, often in its rival’s catchment area. While the concept of small discount supermarkets is less developed in Walmart country than in Europe, Americans’ appetite for low prices is growing.
Each of the two brands wants to be the reference brand in this area. Especially since with the return of inflation, Americans are also looking to save money. Aldi and Lidl are multiplying openings in a large number of states to reach the critical size of national awareness. They do not hesitate (as in Europe) to copy themselves. Similar slogans focused on “the best quality at the best price”, geographically close stores, competing home delivery services… The two groups are closely marked.
The only difference at the moment, Lidl has not yet organized a wedding in one of its stores.
Source: BFM TV
