This story, one of our favorites of all time, was originally published on October 2, 2019.
The first time Travis Cunningham’s wife, Taylor, took him grocery shopping at Aldi, the couple left the store in hysterical giggles.
So Travis did his best Aldi cashier impersonation for a video that’s gone viral.
“My first impression of Aldi is memorable, to say the least,” Travis told TODAY Parents, explaining that his initial opinion of the discount store was that the prices were budget-friendly and the food selection was great. “Then we got to the checkout and I noticed Taylor had been stockpiling boxes the whole time — that’s where the fun began.”
When shopping at Aldi, customers must bring their own bags, pay for bags or use boxes from the store. After checking out, customers bag or box their own groceries. But first, Aldi cashiers ring up the items and place them back in the shopping cart for transport to the bagging area.
“I was taken aback by how quickly they scanned and the means in which they placed the items in the cart,” said Travis. “I thought the worker was just having a bad day and Taylor could tell I was about to say something and basically held her hand over my mouth. I wasn’t angry, I was basically laughing wondering if this person just hated canned goods or was going for a high score shooting them into the cart.”
“By the time we got to the car, we were basically crying laughing,” Travis continued. “I was picturing my groceries banged up like they just went 12 rounds.”
In Travis’ impression, he kneels at his kids’ Melissa and Doug play grocery store and tosses groceries into a shopping cart. “Welcome to Aldi,” is all the El Paso, Illinois father of two says, while his kids and wife giggle in the background.
Nearly 400,000 people have shared the video on Facebook. And judging by the comments, Aldi shoppers everywhere can relate.
“Aldi staff always chucking things around,” said one commenter.
“That’s exactly how they do it,” said another. “Same facial expression and everything!”
Taylor says while the skit made her family laugh, she and her husband mean no offense to the grocery chain.
“We shop at Aldi. We certainly meant no disrespect to the employees or company,” said Taylor. “As far as the impression goes, that’s just a normal night at our house. We have lots of fun and sometimes that fun turns into over-the-top impersonations that lead to tears from laughter.”