The cheapest real Christmas tree on the high street has gone on sale in branches of Aldi, for £19.99. The tree, a first for Aldi, is of the Nordman fir variety which makes up more than 80% of sales of real trees.
A Nordman fir is noted for holding its needles well and for its distinctive fragrance. Every Aldi Christmas tree – grown in Scotland - will be cut just prior to dispatch to stores to keep them as fresh as possible.
Jorge Nobrega, award-winning horticultural expert at Lovania Nurseries UK which supplies Aldi said: “A typical Nordman fir tree of the same quality, density and height range would retail at around £35 –with some Christmas tree shoppers in London paying up to £55 – making the Aldi £19.99 price a great bargain.”
Tony Baines, managing director of Aldi corporate buying, said: “Nothing beats the look, feel and smell of a real Christmas tree. They really add to the Christmas atmosphere and are centre-point in the home during the festive season.
The tree is one of Aldi’s ‘Specialbuys’, he said, “which are carefully chosen to surprise and delight our customers, and this tree should hopefully be no exception. Our customers know we consistently offer them great value and this can really be seen with the price of this Nordman fir Christmas tree.”
Elswhere, B&Q is selling a medium Nordman fir for £35; for £53 it will deliver a 6ft tree to shoppers’ homes. John Lewis is selling real trees for the first time this year, but at £65 for a 5-6ft Nordman, rising to £100 for an 8-foot in a stand. Ikea is offering a £20 voucher to spend in its store for customers buying its £25 Nordman tree, effectively cutting the cost to £5.
Ninety per cent of real Christmas tree sales are during the first two weekends of December. Up to 6m trees are sold each year.
