On a gray Tuesday morning in October, when the bus window fogged up from your breath, a handwritten sign appeared in the local Lidl: “COMING SOON – ENERGY-SAVING HEATING GADGET – MARTIN LEWIS APPROVED.”
People really did stop their trolleys to look. One woman in a school-run coat took out her phone and took a picture. She then sent it to the family WhatsApp with the question, “Worth it?”
There was a strange mix of relief and suspicion in the air around her. Relief, because if Martin Lewis says it’s good, maybe the winter won’t be as bad. Suspicion, because the same celebrity trust that helped us avoid getting ripped off was now sitting on a supermarket promotion board next to the cheap biscuits.
That’s when the mood changed.
Was this help or just another sale?
When saving money becomes advertising
The Lidl move touches on something deep. For the last two winters, millions of people have sat in cold living rooms, wrapped in blankets, and watched Martin Lewis videos for tips on how to stay warm. He became the calm, urgent voice that explained standing charges and boiler settings when everything else seemed scary.
When people go into Lidl and see his name quietly attached to a winter gadget, it means more than a regular ad. It seems like it’s about me.
People don’t just see a heater or an airer. They see a lifeline with a well-known face on the box.
A store worker in South London told me that three different customers asked the same question in the same hour: “Is this really what Martin Lewis was talking about?” Not “How much power does it have?” or “How much does it cost to run?” but “Is it his?”
That’s what trust can do in 2024. Lewis has said over and over again, almost painfully, that he doesn’t get paid to recommend products and that he hates being turned into an ad. Then a big, bright Lidl middle-aisle ad comes along, using the phrase “Martin Lewis approved” like it’s a sticker of approval.
You can almost hear people saying, “Wait, when did he become a marketing slogan?”
People are upset online, but it’s not just about one radiator, air fryer, or heated clothes horse. It’s about the line between giving advice and making a sale getting blurry. People remember PPI, payday loans, and all the other “solutions” that ended up being traps, and they don’t want to go through that cycle again with energy gadgets.
The reasoning is clear. You can weigh advice when it is clearly different. When it stands in aisle three under fluorescent lights, wrapped in promotional cardboard, something changes. The comforting thought that “he’s on our side” starts to look like a brand asset.
Let’s face it: no one actually reads the small print on a cardboard ad board.
How to figure out what a “celebrity-approved” winter gadget is
Before you even pick up the box, there is a simple, boring way to cut through the noise. Just ask, “Where did the recommendation really come from?” It doesn’t mean that Martin Lewis likes the exact model that is on sale at Lidl if he talked about a type of gadget on his show or website.
Take out your phone, type in the type of product and “MoneySavingExpert” or “Martin Lewis,” and look for the first place it was used. Was he talking about a regular heated airer that uses 200 to 300 watts of power, or this one with its own size and price?
A small detail can make a big difference in your bill.
Next, go back to the basics and read the label. Check the wattage and then figure out how much it will cost to run. Many energy experts use this simple formula: cost per kilowatt-hour times kilowatts times hours. If the device uses 300W (0.3kW) and your rate is 28p per kWh, it costs about 25p to run it for three hours.
Then look at what you’re doing now and see how it compares. Are you heating the whole house just for one room? Do you dry your towels in the dryer every other day? The new gadget only “saves money” if it replaces a habit that wastes money, not if it just adds to the list of things that are plugged in at the same time.
We’ve all been there: you buy something to save money, but it just ends up sitting in the hallway.
These deals have a hidden emotional trap. When you’re cold and worried about bills, your brain isn’t calmly looking at numbers; it’s looking for comfort. That’s why the word “approved” sounds so strong and scary. It makes the lines between responsibility less clear.
One consumer advocate I spoke to said it plainly:
“Brands love to bask in the light of someone else’s honesty.” The problem is that customers think the glow applies to all the items on the shelf, when it doesn’t always.
To keep your feet on the ground, you can mentally box off each step:
Take the person (Martin Lewis) out of the equation and look at the product (Lidl’s specific gadget).
Before you think about “approval,” check the wattage, price, and running cost.
Think about what you’re replacing with this. It’s not a saving if the answer is “nothing.”
Don’t just look at social media posts and store posters; look for reviews that aren’t connected to the product.
Leave, do the math at home, and then come back if it still makes sense.
Trust, bills, and the quiet anger in the middle aisle
There is a quieter feeling that doesn’t always get said out loud behind the Twitter threads and Facebook rants. You feel like you’re being squeezed from every side, and then someone gently pushes you to buy your way out of it. Another piece of tech. One more change. One more “hack.”
People get angry when Lidl uses Martin Lewis’ name, even if it’s not directly. People aren’t only mad at the store. They are afraid that the last few public figures who still support us might be taken over by the same corporate logic that gave us Black Friday “deals” on things we didn’t need.*People are afraid that Lewis has sold out, but what they are really afraid of is that the system will turn his advice into a sales channel whether he wants it to or not.*
Main point: Detail: Value for the reader
Don’t mix advice with adsFind out where the “Martin Lewis” mention comes from and read the original source.Keeps you from being pushed into buying something just because you trust it
Do the math for the wattsCheck the power usage, the price of your plan, and how many hours you can realistically use the device.Shows if the product will really lower costs or just raise them
Don’t get caught up in the hype; focus on your habits.Don’t use gadgets to add to your expensive routines; use them to replace them.Changes “smart buys” into real savings instead of junk.
Questions and Answers:
Question 1: Is Martin Lewis really working with Lidl on this winter gadget?
Question 2: When it says “Martin Lewis approved,” does that mean he supports the exact product?
Question 3: Is it really cheaper to run these Lidl winter gadgets than central heating?
Question 4: How can I quickly find out if a heating device will save me money?
Question 5: What should I do if I already bought one and now feel like I was tricked?
