Bath taps from Lidl.

Shouldn't be a problem.

Make the new hole using an Aldidl SDS drill with a 10mm bit. If you hold it firmly, the wobble in the chuck should give a 30mm hole.

Fill any imperfections with car body filler smoothing off with a Lidldi angle grinder.

Lidl taps are standard sizes all around.

a) even considering buying plumbing items at a grocery store

b) not describing the bath or what the problem is - e.g. if there is a

If you don't ask sensible questions, you can't really expect to get a sensible answer

Which is to say has anyone any experience of using plumbing from Lidl? Is the thread likely to be matched in local shops.

Doctor Drivel and Andy Hall NNR.

You are a plantpot.

Why? It's no different from buying from a shed where you basically pick the item you want from a shelf. Or out of a Screwfix catalogue.

Of course if you expect to ask for an item for a specific job and be given the correct one you'll need a PM. But then you'll still need the correct information for the assistant to act on.

Two things.

- Does Lidl carry a comprehensive range of taps? There is probably something better to be found in places that specialise in selling a range of taps.

- Do B&Q or Wickes run promotions on bananas? Apart from in the timber section, that is.

I don't see the sense in buying out of context.

Um, because they can? They've got a business model based on selling a small selection of stuff with no service backup at a very low price. It appears to work quite well. So why shouldn't they bother?

clive

To make money? I wonder what percentage of Lidl tools and DIY products are left to rot in a shed after purchace instead of being fitted or used.

Adam

One can offer all kinds of things for sale. Whether people buy them is something again.

Based on the infinitessimal market share that they have, I don't think it does.

However, that wasn't really my point anyway.

A bath tap is not something that one buys every day unless one is a plumber. Therefore, it would be sensible to look at a selection before deciding on one. It strikes me as odd that someone would consider limiting themselves to a very small choice of different products when there are many places offering a much larger range to choose from. It's even more surprising when the chosen product doesn't even fit the bath.

As I said - up to them. The strange part is people buying taps from a grocery store.

I suppose that that is the intention. A very strange business model, however.

Quite a few, I would imagine.

I suspect that a lot of what they sell is simply priced sufficiently low that people don't even think about whether they actually want the item or whether it's suitable. The logic seems to be that it's cheap, therefore it's a bargain and I must buy it. Very strange.

Price? And if they have something suitable you win. You're not forced to shop there so why be so negative?

Indeed. But LIDL aren't exactly a newcomer to selling, so it would seem a fair guess that they've got a little bit of a clue about the market they're aiming for. Which obviously doesn't include you, but there are a lot more people than you out there.

It apparently works sufficiently well. Are they actually going bust? Or are there sufficient non-Andy Hall types out there buying the stuff to keep them going?

clive

One wonders based on their "down in the noise" market share figures of around 2%.

In Germany, the discount chains manage shares of around 35-40%. In the UK, they are managing under 10%.

So no, I don't think that they know what they are doing in the UK market.

Undoubtedly, but the figures don't suggest that very many of them shop in these places.

It really depends on whether the German parent company wants to play a long game in the UK market. The market trends in the UK suggest that that's going to be a very long game indeed.

That's about all they have. It's a reasonable selling position, but not a buying one

But do you? If there's little or nothing to compare with then how does one know that there isn't something more suitable?

Of course. It just surprises me that people are so willing to limit their range of choice.

Depends. The question is are they aiming to make money, in which case that's

Are they losing money at the moment? Are they gaining market share? No idea on the first, but I suspect the latter is true, even if it's only because they started from such a low level. I agree there's no way they're getting the market share they have in their home country - but they've stayed going where competitors such as Kwik-Save have died, which suggests they're not doing it entirely wrong. There is a gap in the market for them, and they do have some interesting marketing tactics, the results of which include having their names plastered over various NGs such as this one, and a rather bigger audience than a simple price-based campaign on groceries would give them.

Whether or not one agrees with eg their shopping environment, their treatment of staff, and the quality of goods and service they provide, they're still being an interesting player and I think it's foolish to dismiss them in the way you tend to.

clive

Brassware has become a fashion item, this over rides all logic.

LIDL I am sure simply observe that a market for cute fancy brassware (Such as "Sunburst" or "Pancake" style shower heads) has developed and seek to cash in on it by sourcing them the cheapest possible way they can (irrespective of quality) and offering it to Mr & Mrs Scum who can afford to buy it as an impulse purchase, are not overly concerned about quality if it means Mrs Scum can have a shower head that looks identical to the £199 one even down to the gold plated trim for £9.99, and they are bound to know a bloke down the pub who can fit it using tools from work and knock-off bits.

DG