Aldi's cart etiquette

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Since we seem to like grocery store etiquette questions here, I thought I'd throw this one out there.

I went to Aldi's the other day (I Aldi's but that's another post). I was walking towards the door with my quarter in my hand for a cart and I see two lines of people, not very long, a couple people each. The first line is waiting to return their carts, and the other line is waiting to get a cart, and they are very nicely taking turns zipper style.

One person returns a cart and gets a quarter, and then one person uses their quarter and takes a cart, and they continue.

So, I walk up to the person at the end of the return line, hand them my quarter and say "Mind if I take your cart?" They smile and say "Sure", but someone else comes up to me and says "You can't do that, now he doesn't have his quarter." and I say "Yes, but he has mine, so we're good". The person let me go, but seemed really befuddled, and maybe a little miffed, maybe because I had jumped the line. I guess maybe I should have gone to the first person in line to ask to buy their cart?

So, I thought I'd ask -- am I the only one who routinely "buys" shopping carts from people in the Aldi's lot? Usually I don't even make it to where the carts are stored because I see someone walking back through the lot, returning their cart, and I go over to them and offter to buy it. They're happy, because they have a quarter, and I'm double happy because I have a cart and I didn't have to walk all the way over to the cart lines.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

It makes perfect sense. I have had times when I have been unloading the cart at my car and have been approached by someone who was willing to take the cart (and give me the 25¢) so I did not have to take it back to the rack.

 

[*JoGo*]

LOL!! The concept confused my then-preschool age son. A quarter is a quarter is a quarter.

My mom goes to Aldi's regularly and hardly ever ends up with the quarter she started with, between people having 25cents but not a quarter or people walking towards the carts, etc.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

Hmmm... at the Aldi's I go to, I never get my own quarter back (there is a football joke in there somewhere, just waiting to get out!)

I rent my cart with my quarter.
I shop.
I get to the checkout line.
My purchases go into the cart of the person in front of me and then my cart is used for the person behind me.
I ALWAYS leave with someone else's quarter!

Is this not how all Aldi stores work? I thought it was "the way"! LOL.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

It makes sense to not wait like that, but if there were people in front of you, it's not really fair.

 

[LuvCuteBoys]

It makes sense to not wait like that, but if there were people in front of you, it's not really fair.

Personally, I think the person was just mad that she didn't realize that she could do this herself. Why in the world were all those people waiting in line? That's just silly.

 

[dis-happy]

Oh my, an Aldi's is getting ready to open near my house and I have NO CLUE how all this stuff works. Can I just shop with my baby stroller? Any other Aldi's etiquette I need to know? LOL

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Hmmm... at the Aldi's I go to, I never get my own quarter back (there is a football joke in there somewhere, just waiting to get out!)

I rent my cart with my quarter.
I shop.
I get to the checkout line.
My purchases go into the cart of the person in front of me and then my cart is used for the person behind me.
I ALWAYS leave with someone else's quarter!

Is this not how all Aldi stores work? I thought it was "the way"! LOL.

Ours is that way too, I thought about pointing that out, but decided it would be too confusing.

 

[ohiomom28]

Hmmm... at the Aldi's I go to, I never get my own quarter back (there is a football joke in there somewhere, just waiting to get out!)

I rent my cart with my quarter.
I shop.
I get to the checkout line.
My purchases go into the cart of the person in front of me and then my cart is used for the person behind me.
I ALWAYS leave with someone else's quarter!

Is this not how all Aldi stores work? I thought it was "the way"! LOL.

I've always put my groceries on the belt and then put my cart at the end for the groceries to go back into...

 

[malibuconlee]

Oh my, an Aldi's is getting ready to open near my house and I have NO CLUE how all this stuff works. Can I just shop with my baby stroller? Any other Aldi's etiquette I need to know? LOL

You can do that and I have when just picking up a few things. But it does get confusing because they are putting the groceries in the empty cart at the end. I would just keep some quarters in your car. You need to use one to get a cart. Keeps the carts in the lot and from banging up cars too. ALthough it can be a bit of a pain when you have little ones!

 

[momof1princess]

at our aldi, you never get your own quarter back, because when you put your groceries on the belt at the checkout, there's another cart at the end next to the cashier and she puts your groceries into THAT cart, not the one you got outside. usually, when we walk out, someone else is walking up to get a cart, and we'll just give them the cart and they give us their quarter. we rarely have to put one back up. if they don't have their quarter out yet, we just give them the cart and tell them to have a nice day.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

I've always put my groceries on the belt and then put my cart at the end for the groceries to go back into...

I tend to buy enough stuff at Aldi's that I'm still putting things on the belt while they're piling up at the end, still rung up. So they use the cart of the person before me, and then use my cart for the next person. We all get a cart and a quarter in the end.

 

[momof1princess]

Oh my, an Aldi's is getting ready to open near my house and I have NO CLUE how all this stuff works. Can I just shop with my baby stroller? Any other Aldi's etiquette I need to know? LOL

sure, that would be acceptable. you can also bring your own grocery bags-reusable, paper or plastic. aldi also sells them, if you don't bring any.

 

[shaylyn]

You have to RENT your shopping cart????

 

[fall08CP]

You have to RENT your shopping cart????

Believe it or not, yes.

The carts are locked up and you have to insert a quarter to get it loose. You then lock your cart when you're done and it spits the quarter out.

The logic is that everyone will return their cart because they want their quarter back.

I do as the OP says- hand my cart to someone on their way in and they give me their quarter. But honestly, I don't care if I get my quarter back... unless it's Aaron Rodgers of course





Yes, I went there.

 

[Becky2005]

So, I thought I'd ask -- am I the only one who routinely "buys" shopping carts from people in the Aldi's lot? Usually I don't even make it to where the carts are stored because I see someone walking back through the lot, returning their cart, and I go over to them and offter to buy it. They're happy, because they have a quarter, and I'm double happy because I have a cart and I didn't have to walk all the way over to the cart lines.

We do it ALL the time at our Aldi's -- for that matter 1/2 the time the people don't even get back to the cart corral! You see them finish loading their groceries and start heading back, you ask them if they are done and hand them a quarter.

Or in reverse, you start heading back, see someone heading in, ask them if they need a cart, they hand you their quarter and everyone is happy.

I have NEVER seen it where someone actually puts the cart back and then the next person turns around and puts a quarter in to get the cart back out. At least not a line of people doing that.

We would just be handing carts off to people not, plugging it in and unplug it just to get the exact same quarter back. For that matter at our check-out they have an empty cart at the end of the check-out, load it up, you take that one and then they take your cart and load the next person's order in that one.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

You have to RENT your shopping cart????

It's not really "rent", it's more of a "security deposit".

It's totally worth it, because there are no shopping carts to run into in the parking lot!

 

[Pig Pen]

I have never heard of Aldi's. I must live in a time warp. I googled it and found there is one about 5 miles from our Winter Haven home. I will need to check it out the next time I am there.

 

[Kat77]

Personally, I think the person was just mad that she didn't realize that she could do this herself. Why in the world were all those people waiting in line? That's just silly.

Yup, annoyed she got caught up the the weird cart line and you did not.

 

[yoopermom]

Maybe it's the "Disney-nice" influence on me, but I always unload my cart, and then look for the nearest elderly person headed in to the store, and give them my cart for "free". You'd think I was giving them a million dollars, not a quarter! I figure a quarter isn't going to make or break me, but it might help them buy one more little thing off their list...

(And, yes, I've had other people give me theirs for free, I live in an area of awfully nice people! )

Terri