ON STROUD District Council’s decision to defer a decision on an Aldi store.

Posted by stroudrobbo: Absolutely gobsmacked!! SDC knows the people of Stroud want this. Have they forgotten who they are working for?

Posted by Mrs B, Stroud: Aldi is different from the supermarkets we already have. It’s much cheaper and has none of the nonsense multi-buy offers which are verging on sharp practice.

Posted by Allan Zed: Aldi isn’t exactly “large”, in fact one of the Aldi/Lidl business model’s key allures is the no-nonsense choice. So you don’t have to wade through aisles of cashmere-infused toilet rolls or novelty flour to find the basic one you’re after.

Posted by snr1: What does Merrywalks have to do with an Aldi store? When the discussion came up before regarding supermarkets they were all put on hold because someone was going to develop the old pub site! What happened there? One of the arguments against Aldi last time was it would mean relocating a engineering works. I smell something going on here. Was it the out of town/Stroud councillors who decided once again we don’t need an Aldi. I drove to Quedgeley today to do my shopping instead of Stroud.

Posted by TigerTigerBurningBright: Sorry but a load of people on a newspaper site saying they want a cheap German supermarket does not mean ‘the people of Stroud want this’. As for the person that drove to Quedgeley instead of shopping in Stroud - are you serious? An hours journey and a real cost* of £9 to buy some cheap baked beans. . Yeah, it is more than just the petrol but you need a car. Cars cost money, as does the insurance and servicing.

Posted by mmaxab: Did you know most people need cars to get to work, to transport their families etc - but then if you shop exclusively at the farmers’ market then you probably couldn’t afford a car.... don’t get me wrong, I think the FM is great and right for Stroud but there is no competition between Aldi and the FM because they are completely different. Many people who shop at Aldi/Lidl do so to top up their other shopping, I just don’t see how an Aldi could possibly impact on Stroud. Apart from Cllr Chris Brine everyone sits on their hands and defers the decision in classic civil service fashion - “I know we’ll have a meeting but not come prepared so we can defer the decision because we’re a bit scared of making a real decision.”