Edeka the local supermarket hero of Germany

In front of the cash line Edeka stores operate a separate bakery that focuses on pastry items and specialty bread.

The first department on the customer journey is the fruit and vegetable section featuring many regional items.

A local producer, whose farm is located 15 km away from the store, displays potatoes in dedicated branded fittings. This specific store is located in the biggest potato-producing region in Germany, Lower Saxony.

In summer it is local farmers that deliver seasonal berries. Farms located closer than 30 km from a respective Edeka stores are highlighted with the special supplier label ‘regional – within 30 km’.

The in-store bake-off bakery offers mainly small single items like bread rolls and sweet and savory snacks to differentiate from the entrance bakery.

Edeka stores feature a shop-in-shop concept for organic items. Well-known organic suppliers such as Bio-Zentrale or Alnatura have their own sections here.

In this store the beverage section is included in the market. Due to historic building restrictions for sales areas above 800 sqm and the German-specific reusable deposit system for beverages, many Edeka merchants still today operate a separate beverage market door-to-door to their grocery store.

Each Edeka merchant independently decides on their respective store design, often emphasizing local anchoring. This store is placed in the vicinity of automobile manufacturer Volkswagen’s largest factory in Europe. Wall decorations include VW car silhouettes, chainwheels and roller chains.

These design elements continue throughout the whole store.

In each product category Edeka offers its price-entry private label ‘gut & günstig’ that price-matches Lidl and Aldi as well as the ‘Herzstücke’ Edeka quality label.

Also brand items listed in the standard assortment of discount competitors are matched on price and marked with red ‘discountbillig’ (discount-cheap) price tags.

To differentiate from Lidl and Aldi, who are continuously increasing their organic ranges, Edeka has certified part of its own ‘Edeka Bio’ organic private label under the ‘Bioland’ seal that sets significantly higher quality standards than the EU equivalent.

To emphasize local anchoring, in the center of the store Edeka displays an Edeka-branded Volkswagen truck used already 50 years ago by this merchant.

The famous VW curry ketchup used in the factory canteen beeline 25 km from the store is sold only at supermarkets in the catchment area of the VW plant.

The accompanying curry sausage is available in the chilled section and carries an original spare part number also visible in the Volkswagen car dealer system.

The store’s customer magnet are the serviced counters featuring highest quality fresh produce, here the meat section run by a master butcher.

The alcohol section is located in the middle of the store and features many regional German wines as well as special section for Whisky and sparkling wine.

The factory of the world-famous herbal liquor Jägermeister is located close by, so that the respective assortment qualifies as ‘regional’ and is labeled as such.

Another centerpiece of the store is the health and beauty department. With dm drogerie and Rossmann drugstores strong category competitors in the German market, Edeka has taken special care to create an inviting atmosphere for this section.