Expert rejects Which? claim that consumers prefer discounters

A retail expert has rubbished claims made by consumer watchdog Which? that consumers want cheap products.

Which? editor Neil Fowler said “customers appear to rate the low-price, no-frills approach” after the group’s survey found discounters Aldi and Lidl scored higher than the big four retailers in a customer satisfaction survey.

But John Fernie, professor of retail marketing in the School of Management and Languages at Heriot-Watt University, disputed the claim. “I don’t believe it one iota,” he said. “There is a market for discounters, but it is not mainstream. The trend over the last six months has been moving to food for ethically aware and organic consumers, which is not an Aldi or Lidl proposition.”

Fernie also questioned the basis of the survey, which covered 50 UK retailers including food outlets, electrical stores and book shops. “They’re not comparing apples with apples. How can you compare Waterstone’s books with the price of a sandwich?” he asked.

The survey showed John Lewis and Waitrose to be among Britain’s favourite retailers, while Somerfield came in the bottom eight.