There's no denying it anymore, we're well and truly in 'wedding season' now.
Are you getting ready to tie the knot? Concerned about how much damage your big day will do to your bank balance, but still want to make sure your guests have a good time? If this sounds like you or someone you know, then thankfully, Aldi has just launched a new competition, and it could be exactly what you're looking for.
The budget supermarket is pretty well-known for its wine selection at this point, so if you're engaged and would consider yourself to be an Aldi wine advocate, then 60 bottles of the retailer's finest award-winning vino could be yours for free.
Aldi is looking for engaged couples to supply free wine to on their wedding day / Credit: Aldi | Matthieu Joannon (via Unsplash)
Launched to celebrate David and Victoria Beckham's silver wedding anniversary (for some reason?), this new competition is open to all engaged couples across the UK - with three lucky lovebird duos set to be chosen as the winners of a selection of the supermarket's top tipples, all paying a resemblance to some more pricey picks.
One of these wines Aldi's popular Pierre Jaurant Bordeaux, which wine expert, Sam Caporn, says "allows for a taste" of the Beckhams’ favourite Château Mouton Rothschild, that would set you back a whopping £3,600 per bottle.
Aldi says its also chosen to launch this competition for lucky couples now after some recent research has revealed that, despite the rising cost of living crisis continuing to make its impact felt on millions nationwide, the average wedding now costs around £20,775.
Three lucky winners will be chosen to win 60 bottles of the supermarket's finest vino / Credit: Aldi Corporate
This is apparently the first time the figure has topped £20,000 too, according to the research.
So, if you're engaged and you fancy being in with a chance of receiving a wedding party-sized supply of Aldi’s wines, then all you'll need to do enter sending an email to aldiweddingwines@clarioncomms.co.uk with your full name, proof of age, date and location of your upcoming wedding, and 150 words explaining why you think you should be chosen as one of three lucky winners.
The competition closes on 25 July, with the three winners contacted after that deadline date, and you can find out more and full T&Cs here.
Featured Image - Al Elmes (via Unsplash)
Shopping
Marks & Spencer food hall on Wellington Street set to close later this month
As of the end of March we won't be able to get our Percy Pig fix on Wellington Street any longer.
Whether you're popping in for a Dine in for Two Meal Deal or an iconic Colin the Caterpillar cake, there's no denying that we all love a cheeky trip to M&S.
After all, it's not just food...it's M&S food.
But unfortunately for us, one Marks & Spencer food hall in the city centre is closing its doors for good at the end of this month.
The one in question is on Wellington Street, just round the corner from the train station and nearby the Wellington Place development.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Signs have gone up on the windows announcing its closure, stating it will be closing on Saturday 22 March 2025.
Now the only two remaining stores are the train station location and the superstore on Briggate.
We here at The Hoot shared the sad news via Instagram and were met with mixed responses.
Comments said: "This is an odd move to make, I use that store a lot. We have a massive residential population now in the West End, including myself and we'll be left with just two supermarkets to serve the whole district, Tesco and Sainsburys."
"Like most of these developments they can’t predict the footfall, just like down at Leeds dock, it’s a ghost town because people go into the centre. Oh and if you want a big shop, you’ll take your car to either crown point or whiterose to put your shopping in."
"I love this store ! I use it all the time . Also get my clothes collections from there - I hate going to the big one in town and the station one is not great . I will really miss it @marksandspencerfood please rethink !"
So if you're after a final browse around the food hall, you've only got a few more weeks to do so.
Tesco is set to trial personalised Clubcard prices giving shoppers even cheaper offers
Emily Sergeant
Tesco is trialling personalised Clubcard offers which give customers tailored prices based on their purchases.
The supermarket ‘s Clubcard loyalty scheme has more than 20 million people signed-up nationwide, making it one of the most popular of its kind on the market, by far – but over the coming weeks, prices could begin to get cheaper for some than they already are as part of the new ‘Your Clubcard Prices’ scheme being trialled.
The scheme, which is being launched nationwide to a select group of people, will see shoppers sent new personalised offers every Wednesday, on top of all other existing deals.
These will be sent via the Tesco Clubcard app, and added automatically at the checkout.
Images: The Manc Group
At this moment in time, it’s believed to be unclear how many people are a part of the trial, and also how long the trial will last for.
What we do know, however, is that customers will be able to use their personalised offers multiple times for a total of seven days in larger Tesco stores, but at present, they unfortunately can’t be used in Express locations.
“We are constantly looking for ways to make Clubcard work harder for our customers,” a Tesco spokesperson explained.
“We are currently offering Your Clubcard Prices to a trial group of our Clubcard members, giving them offers on products they regularly buy at Tesco, in addition to the thousands of Clubcard Prices available to all Clubcard members each week.”
The news that Tesco is trialling personalised Clubcard offers comes after the retailer was advised by leading consumer watchdog, Which?, last February to make prices clearer for customers.
It also comes after the UK’s cheapest supermarket of 2024 has was revealed.
Emily Sergeant -
28th June 2024 
