Here's Why You Won't Find Any Magazines At An Aldi Checkout Line

Going to Aldi isn't just going to the grocery store; it's a downright adventure. Its Special Buys change regularly, and — depending on where you live — you might be able to pick up anything from a walk-in greenhouse to an actual, honest-to-gosh hot tub. That's enough to make anyone forget to buy actual groceries, and honestly, that'd be understandable. (Fortunately, you can get the scoop on Aldi's weekly deals by checking out its website.) 

There are, however, some things that you won't find at Aldi, and in some cases, those are familiar sights in most other grocery stores. We're specifically talking about magazines and newspapers, otherwise known as the way to pass the time while you're standing in line. You know, the magazines that you almost certainly put back without buying?

That's not to say that Aldi didn't try, and it was fairly recently that it did have print media in some of its U.K. stores. One run lasted about four years when the company announced it would be pulling its magazines and newspapers, and although it's unclear exactly what happened, we can make some educated guesses.

U.K. shoppers who headed to Aldi between 2014 and 2019 were greeted by racks of magazines and newspapers when they first walked into stores. When they were introduced, it seemed a good idea and coincided with an increase in the average number of products each customer purchased. An anonymous source told The Grocer they were worried about the decision to get rid of them: "If people are coming in for the usual weekly shop, they'll find they won't have access to their usual newspapers and magazines, which many are used to having."

There seem to be a few things that factored into the decision, and there just weren't many people buying the papers. Given that Aldi stores generally have a smaller footprint than competitors, it makes sense that space is at a premium and needs to be monetized to the highest. (Aldi stores are small-sized on purpose to help keep overhead low.) Some in the U.K. media tracked low sales back to the simple fact that more people were getting their news online, but some reports suggested that part of the problem was a dispute over return policies between Aldi and Menzies Distribution.

Whatever caused the chain to pull the products in 2019, Aldi did give it another shot in 2021. Around 40 U.K. stores had participated in the trial, and newspapers were back out by October 2022.

Sure, you might be able to go to Aldi and pick up a motion-activated night light for your toilet, a steel firepit, a lawnmower, a reciprocating saw, and even a wet suit — which is convenient because it's also been known to sell inflatable boats. But there are some things you just won't see on shelves, including one product that split Aldi in half — literally.

The Albrecht family founded Aldi, and it was eventually passed on to brothers Theo and Karl Albrecht. One — Karl — didn't want to sell cigarettes, while Theo did. Rather than getting together and hashing out their disagreement, they each took half of the company, put "North" and "South" after the name, and went their separate ways. They split up countries, too: Aldi South was the one that got the U.S., and since that goes back to Karl and his anti-cigarette stance, there's none on shelves.

Other things have been eliminated with the end goal of keeping prices low. It doesn't have things like a customer service desk, name brands, free samples, employees to help bag and carry your groceries, or music. If those are things we need to sacrifice for lower prices and the thrill of the Special Buys aisle, that's well worth it. Customers agree: Its no-frills shopping experience is helping Aldi dominate in the U.S. grocery store game.