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Amazing supermarkets in Europe

avole said:
German supermarkets have limited ranges when it comes to anything other than sausages and their derivatives. 2 frozen chickens seem to be the allowance, and maybe a couple of different cheeses. They certainly have the best spatzle around.

Makes you wonder why so many Germans drive down the hill from Stuttgart to buy from stinky old Cora, doesn’t it?
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The Germans have impressive depth on some categories though. The breakfast cereals are impressive
 
Actually Big C was good and Lotus before it became Tesco was good. The Thais were the best of Asia at the time for grocery. I suspect they still are.
 
If you count international foods, you have a point. You can’t find marmite or HP sauce on French supermarket shelves now. They can’t be beaten for veggies and bio, charcuterie and cheese, not to mention wine. Even so, Le Grand Frais stands tall. Anyone actually been to one?
 
In the Thai markets, yes, but supermarkets have to pay for the airconditioning. Besides, street food is often cheaper than anything in those faceless shopping malls !
 
Re air conditioning in supermarkets, that's something you really notice, while the UK keep their stores convincingly cool, the Spanish ones are alarmingly warm.
 
cjarchez said:
Re air conditioning in supermarkets, that's something you really notice, while the UK keep their stores convincingly cool, the Spanish ones are alarmingly warm.
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Right, France a bit too. Then the fresh produce starts to stink. Ventilation seems to be missing.
 
The bananas here in France are twice the price. Presumably because they’re straighter.
 
SteveS1 said:
The bananas here in France are twice the price. Presumably because they’re straighter.
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My son won't
avole said:
If you count international foods, you have a point. You can’t find marmite or HP sauce on French supermarket shelves now. They can’t be beaten for veggies and bio, charcuterie and cheese, not to mention wine. Even so, Le Grand Frais stands tall. Anyone actually been to one?
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There is one two miles away. Might go now and have a loook.I was a supermarket nerd once. It never really leaves you.

I'm already worried about price, though. A big reason for stocking up in Dover is price. France is also Le Grand Ripoff.
 
Regarding wine. It's a result here. I can pick anything up, even 5 euro stuff in Carrefour, and it's always a winner. Always French stuff. But in UK I always thought French wine was the biggest risk
 
richgilb said:
Regarding wine. It's a result here. I can pick anything up, even 5 euro stuff in Carrefour, and it's always a winner. Always French stuff. But in UK I always thought French wine was the biggest risk
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Five Euros? What are you doing with it, cleaning jewellery?
 
My experience of French supermarkets is that they are bigger, smellier and untidier than those in the UK. (I was going to say that goes for the people too, but I thought that might earn me a tirade of abuse rather than being seen as an all too tired and predicable joke - oops I've said it now). The staff are generally moody even though I try to communicate with them in my not-too-bad French - maybe that's the problem. I don't see their produce as better quality or better value for money than my local here. If you live there and discover some boutique enterprises then it may well be a different story.
 
Bart said:
My experience of French supermarkets is that they are bigger, smellier and untidier than those in the UK. (I was going to say that goes for the people too, but I thought that might earn me a tirade of abuse rather than being seen as an all too tired and predicable joke - oops I've said it now). The staff are generally moody even though I try to communicate with them in my not-too-bad French - maybe that's the problem. I don't see their produce as better quality or better value for money than my local here. If you live there and discover some boutique enterprises then it may well be a different story.
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Lol. Defo wrong about the people. Just get yourself down Asda in Hull to see some proper big, smelly, untidy people.

Moody I get.
 
richgilb said:
French large chain supermarkets are rubbish. Especially since they smell like a sewer when you walk in. Not surprising, as the fresh stuff has mould on it (as does Spain), The queues are too long and the range is meh. I also reckon they are 20% more expensive than UK and Germany.

UK is world leading and has been for over 20 years. As was Thailand when I was in supermarket research 20 years ago. I also worked on Woolworths and Coles in Australia. That was like going back another 20 years.

No doubt some people will say this is not their experience regarding France. When they do, I will go to my Carrefour and take some pictures of the mould for you. I might throw in a video of me queuing too if you are lucky. You will see that getting the product through the checkout fast is not a priority for the staff.

When I come back to the UK, I fill the van so I can avoid French supermarkets. Boulangeries are fine, as are small meat delis. It's the big brand supermarkets that need knocking into shape. Carrefour pulled out of Thailand after only a handful of years because the idiots filled the shelves with French produce. You couldn't make it up. Tesco, who I worked for in Malaysia on range assortment and category management for their first store, cleaned up in Thailand by buying Lotus and developing from there.

Some might argue the smell is authentic That is how fresh food smells. That does not add up at all. Local fresh fruit and veg stores in UK do not smell like someone dropped a massive frart at the door.

But the arrogance still filters through to the stores here in France. They think it is fine if I am queuing ten mins for a bottle of milk, which I am lucky to get, as it often does not arrive until late morning. Carrefour number 1, customer number 2.
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Some are indeed quite poor - Casino, Match, and especially Carrefour, seem to have a business model like a UK supermarket of the 1980's - piling up relatively poor quality food, and selling it cheap. But it's not universally true - the large Leclerc that opened about 3 years ago on the outskirts of Saint-Louis (near Basel) was full of fresh produce, mainly local and seasonal, and ended up being where we did most of our food shopping.

I don't see much positive change in the UK supermarket business model - too many 'brand' products that are bland, overpriced and wrapped in too much plastic wrapping - despite marketing stressing the identity of the producer. I thought we would go to Booths when we returned to Cheshire, but someone has given their stores a makeover which makes it impossible to find anything, and they are also seriously over-priced. Our local Aldi beats Booths and Waitrose hands-down on quality, let alone price. It's so difficult to find good fresh seafood in the UK - we used to eat mussels every few days when we lived in Europe, but I can't find a local shop that stocks fresh mussels. Vacuum packed salmon, or frozen cod seems to be the norm.

avole said:
German supermarkets have limited ranges when it comes to anything other than sausages and their derivatives. 2 frozen chickens seem to be the allowance, and maybe a couple of different cheeses. They certainly have the best spatzle around.

Makes you wonder why so many Germans drive down the hill from Stuttgart to buy from stinky old Cora, doesn’t it?
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Not my experience at all. Hiebers in southern Germany is a truly excellent supermarket, full of local produce, fresh and of high quality. I stopped drinking beer a long time ago, but the range of German beer (and wine) is excellent. Fresh Blackforest venison and trout in stock at most times. We tended to use the Hiebers at Binzen, just down the road from Fünfschilling, a local farmer's co-operative that stocks mainly seasonal fruit and vegetables. Asparagus, chard, apples, pears, pumpkins and squashes when in season, and all sorts of berries and cherries throughout the summer. Food in Germany is excellent.
 
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